Stuffed and fried Ascolana olives (Olive all’ascolana)
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These meat dishes, breaded and fried olives, are a typical speciality dating back to the 1800s in Ascoli Piceno in the central Italian region of Marche. They were probably invented by chefs from wealthier families to provide inventive means. Each olive tree is cut away from a spirally shaped stone, then twisted around a stuffing: several types of meat (usually veal or beef, pork and chicken), soffritto sausage , white wine braised, ground , and mixed with grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and nutmeg. As usual , the different versions of the recipe are innumerable and in the Marche coastal regions , sometimes stuffed with a variety of fish species.
Today , these stuffed olives are popular throughout Italy and are often served with paper handles held at fairs along with a contemporary meal with other fritto misto portions or other delicate bites as a pre-dinner aperitif . I’m not going to lie – they do take a bit of time (although you can already put a lot of effort into using pre-processed olives – there’s even – although it’s quite expensive – a mix specifically created to set olives under the olives'ascolana ). and is often reserved for holidays or other special occasions.
Traditionally, these are made from large, green, light varieties of Ascolana Tenera (Oliva Ascolana del Piceno), which is a DOP product, but as they can be hard to find in some places, you can use any large, light brine -hard green olives (again, using prepared olives makes the whole process much easier).
This is one of those “una tira l'altra” dishes – an idiomatic Italian expression that literally translates as “one pulls the other”, meaning “you can’t eat just one”.
They make a great aperitif snack in a glass of frozen prosciutto or rosé (perhaps Cirò Rosato ) – or your favourite aperitivo to drink – and are great finger food for cocktail parties.
What you need
. 1 pound green ascolan olives (dried and rinsed in brine) 3 tablespoons olive oil 1/2 onion (finely diced) 1 bunch celery (finely diced) 1 carrot (finely diced) 1/2 cup dry white wine 14 ounces ground beef (finely ground) 5 ounces bread pork (finely cooked) 2 ounces chicken breast (finely diced) 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt 2 egg yolks (lightly beaten) 1 cup Parmigiano Reggiano (freshly grated) Freshly grated lemon 1/2 cup nutmeg Pinch of black pepper 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 2 eggs (lightly beaten) 2 1/2 cups breadcrumbs (finely diced) 2-3 cups frying oil (peanut or other high smoke point oil)
How to make it
Using a sharp piece of string, carefully cut the flesh out of each olive in a spiral shape (similar to an apple tree spiral). Remove and drain the pits and set the spiral-shaped olive pieces aside as you stuff. Skip this step, of course, if you’re using pre-dried olives.
In a large freezer over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Add the cooked onion, carrot and celery and cook until the onion is translucent and the Vegetable Recipes are softened, 6-8 minutes.
Add white wine and cook for 1 minute. Add diced cooked meat and salt cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until cooked, about 10-15 minutes.
Purée the mixture in a meat grinder or food processor, then place in a large mixing bowl. Add the egg yolks, Parmigiano, lemon zest, nutmeg and pepper. Stir to combine all ingredients well. Then take small dots and wrap an olive spiral around each one, reforming it into the original olive shape, pressing gently so that the filling holds the olive paste together. (If you use pre-dried olives, this step is much easier – you can use a pastry bag with a fine nozzle to fill the stuffed olives).
Pack each with a fine olive oil in the flour, a chopped egg and then roll in the breadcrumbs. The filled olives should be slightly larger than their original size. Do not overstuff or they will not hold together. (At this point, you can either taste the olives immediately or store them in the fridge or freezer until you’re ready to fry them.)
Heat the frying oil in a large heavy-bottomed, high-pressure pot until hot but not smoking, and fry the breaded olives in batches (don’t try to pack too many olives at once or reduce the temperature of the cooking oil and they won’t cook evenly or properly). When the olives are evenly golden brown, remove the olives from the frying oil with a perforated metal spoon or a net rinse. Drain briefly into a paper towel-lined plate or tray and serve while still hot, with lemon wedges.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) Calories 77 Total fat 4 g Saturated fat 1 g Saturated fat 2 g Cholesterol 25 mg Sodium 174 mg Carbohydrate 5 g Fiber 1 g Protein 5 g (Nutritional information in our recipes is calculated from the ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. Individual results may vary.)
