Black Olive Tapenade Recipe With Anchovies And Garlic

Black olive Tapenade is an olive spread usually served over some crostini bread or bruschetta—the perfect finger food to accompany a glass of rose. Olives are mixed with anchovies, garlic, capers, thyme, lemon juice, and extra virgin olive oil. This olive paste is a must-have among pantry staples of all olive lovers. 

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Brine-curing fresh olives from the tree
• Instructions
• How to serve it
• Top tips
• Capers curiosity
• More recipes from the South of France
• 📋Black Olive Tapenade Recipe With Anchovies And Garlic

Tapenade is a Provençal word meaning spread and a classic Mediterranean recipe. 

However, there are many olive tapenade recipes, and ingredients and flavors are often added or changed.

This recipe perfectly balances the addictive savory flavor of olives, anchovies, capers, and garlic, making a thick paste.

For a smoother paste, you can add more extra-virgin olive oil.

You can use green olives or add sun-dried tomatoes.

You will find a similar recipe everywhere in the Mediterranean countries using a wide variety of black olives.

You can buy prepared Tapenade in a jar, but a homemade olive tapenade is so easy to make you will taste the difference.

For more olives recipes you can check fried stuffed olive Ascolane, Pan Bagnat, and stuffed pepper.

Ingredients

The main ingredients you need to make a homemade tapenade are:

• Fresh black olives: you can use niçoise olives, kalamata olives, and ligurian taggiasca. As I have my olive tree in the garden, I use my olives. If you are buying the olives, make sure they are already pitted, you will save so much time
• Anchovy fillets: I always use anchovies stored in salt as I do not trust the quality of the commercial oil they use to store them. 
• Capers: As for the anchovies, I always use capers stored in salt as I do not trust the quality of the commercial oil they use to store them.
• Fresh Thyme: you can substitute with fresh parsley
• Fresh Garlic cloves
• Fresh lemon juice: this can be replaced with wine vinegar or a drizzle of balsamic vinegar

For a vegan tapenade, you can omit the anchovies

Brine-curing fresh olives from the tree

If you are using the olives from your tree, you must cure them first; otherwise, the taste will be very bitter.

1. Soak the olives in fresh water for three days.
2. Prepare a brine solution by dissolving enough salt in water until it becomes saturated. 
3. Soak the olives in the brine for another three days
4. Pit the olives

Instructions

Preparing the ingredients

If you use capers and anchovies stored in salt, rinse them in water to remove the excess salt.

1. Place a tablespoon of capers in a strainer and rinse under running water.
2. Drain the water before using them
3. Rinse the anchovies under running water to eliminate the salt.
4. Remove the bone and fins from the anchovies fillets.

Making the olive paste

3. Add more olive oil if you want to have a smoother paste

How to serve it

It is a perfect summer appetizer served at room temperature as a spread on baguette slices or homemade bread, but there are many other ways you can serve it:

• Seasoning for pasta dishes
• Mix it in salad dressings
• Sandwich spread 
• Serve on a charcuterie board
• Over Spanish style cheeses like Manchego
• On main courses to flavor and marinate meat

Top tips

• Buy pitted olives, it takes too long to remove the bone
• You can use green olives instead
• Add more oil if you want to have a smoother paste
• Use capers and anchovies stored in salt, they taste so much better

Capers curiosity

Did you know there are capers plants growing naturally on the Roman walls in Rome?

More recipes from the South of France

Other appetizers from the South of France that you can serve with Tapenade are:

If you are making this black olive Tapenade, leave your comment below I would like to hear from you. You can find more delicious ideas if you FOLLOW ME on Facebook, YouTube, or sign up to my newsletter.