What are useful olives: composition, nutritional value

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

There is such an amazing long-lived tree that can last up to 2000 years. This is revered since ancient times and personifying a symbol of maturity, wisdom and nobility, a beautiful powerful olive plant. It belongs to the olive family.

The ancient Greeks wove the same wreaths from olive branches that were placed on the shoulders of the winners of the first Olympic Games.

Today, the cultivated species of the tree is grown in many countries: North and South America, Northwest Africa, Australia, East Asia, Asia Minor and the Mediterranean.

This article will provide a description of this amazing centenarian, talk about its varieties and how useful olives are.

But first, let's define the difference between olives and olives.

Olives and black olives

Oddly enough, but both fruits grow on the same tree. There is simply the term "olives", used only in Ukraine and Russia. In other countries, they are only called olives.

For Russians, green fruits are olives, and black ones are olives. The former are mostly used in conservation, andthe second (real black olives) - in the development of the well-known oil. That's the whole difference. You can find out what real black olives are just below.

Olives: photo, description

The color of these fruits depends only on their maturity. Green fruits are usually not quite ripe (they are harder) and contain less oil. Ripe fruits are dark purple in color and slightly shriveled.

In Russian stores, black canned olives, as a rule, were also picked green. With the help of certain chemical procedures, they are turned into fruits with a dark color.

The most real ripe olives (photo below) acquire a natural (in nature) dark purple color, without the addition of any dyes, and they cost much more than colored counterparts. It turns out that either green olives or dark, but expensive, bring the greatest benefit.

Varieties and groups of olive fruits

Different varieties according to their application. There are only 3 groups:

• Oilseeds used in the production of olive oil.
• Combined (or universal) used in canning and butter making.
• Tables (in canned food), intended for consumption both in canned food and as a whole.

Greek olives

The world's most famous olives are Greek. They are collected in Greece (Kalamata).

They are almond-shaped, brownish black in color with a tight skin.

Generallyin this country there are about 10 types of table olives associated with their place of origin. Many varieties here are also collected in an unripe green form. The kalamata variety is harvested a little later, at the moment of the beginning of the color change, but there are also those that remain on the tree until they are fully ripe, before the skin on them begins to wrinkle.

Large round brown and shriveled black olives from Halkidiki and Thassos, respectively, are s alty.

Green olives are often seasoned with lemon, wild fennel, garlic, hot pepper seeds, etc.

More noble olives (Kalamata variety) and other dark types are stored in olive oil and vinegar.

Harvesting

Green olives are picked from the trees by hand and placed in special baskets. Falling ripe berries are collected in small nets under each olive tree.

After harvesting, all fruits are sorted by size and placed in large containers with a prepared solution of caustic soda, necessary to eliminate the bitterness characteristic of olives.

In order to give black color to some olives, a certain chemical treatment is carried out. To do this, the berries are poured into containers and oxygen is supplied to them, which causes the oxidation of the fruit. This whole process takes approximately 7-10 days. Blackened olives acquire a soft texture and a specific aftertaste.

When processing green olives, they do not undergo such an oxidation procedure. They are simply placed in a brine seasoned with variousspices and seasonings. Subsequently, the product is stored in special plastic barrels (capacity 10 tons) placed underground.

Composition of olives, nutritional value

A little lower we will find out how useful olives are, and now we will consider the composition of the fruits of this plant. Besides the fact that these fruits are quite tasty, they are also very nutritious. Due to their fibrous structure, olives are quite easily absorbed by the body.

They contain B vitamins (niacin, thiamine, pyridoxine, riboflavin, pantothenic acid), folic acid, vitamin K, E, choline (vitamin B4). They also contain a huge amount of the following trace elements: potassium, calcium, sodium, zinc, magnesium, copper, phosphorus, selenium, iron and oleic acid.

The nutritional value of these fruits is undoubtedly great. Ripe olives have more oil than green olives. For example, 30 g of the former contains approximately 30 calories, 2 g of carbohydrates, 3 g of fat, 1 g of dietary fiber, and 0.3 g of protein.

Benefits of olives

What are the benefits of olives? According to the beliefs of the peoples of the Mediterranean, the olive never dies, and people who use its fruits become resilient and hardy. Berries help prevent the development of cardiovascular diseases, stomach and liver ulcers. And olive pits are edible, as they are completely and well absorbed in the digestive tract.

Pectins, which are part of the berries, help to remove toxins from the body, as well as s alts of various heavy metals. These fruits improve the microflora of the entire intestine. Such berries are vital, especially for peopleliving in places with bad ecology.

Eating a few olives a day helps to calm the nervous system, vitality, improve mood and condition of hair and skin.

What else are olives good for? Recent studies have proven that olives can prevent the development of cancer.

Statistics show that Mediterranean women are less likely to get breast cancer, and all this is due to oleic acid, which is the main component of olives and olive oil.

The oil from these fruits is better absorbed than others, and therefore it is very popular in many diets.

Olive fruits, as noted above, perfectly neutralize toxins, and therefore they are often added to various alcoholic cocktails.

In conclusion, a little about the dangers

Olives can cause some harm to he alth with some he alth problems. For example, with cholecystitis (strong choleretic effect on the body).

Also, olives have a slight laxative effect, due to their high oil content, which is contraindicated for diarrhea.