Green olives, which are picked when they’re under-ripe, tend to be more bitter than black ones, but that bitterness also brings with it depth and complexity. Many of the cheaper olives I tasted have a strong, wine-vinegar acidity that I don’t really enjoy straight from the jar. I do, however, appreciate that punch when they’re paired with other ingredients: sliced on pizza, tossed into salads or, my favourite, skewered with an anchovy and a pickled guindilla pepper to make that classic Basque pintxo, the gilda. Salty olives are also brilliant for seasoning dishes such as tagines or in a tapenade crust for roast chicken – just remember to season after they’ve imparted their salty flavour.
This tasting led me to reconsider what makes a green olive excellent. The test group were all completely different, ranging from ones with rich olive oil and woody herb tones and a great meaty texture to others with strong acidic tones balanced by sweet apple notes. All are delicious in their own way, and considering that I’m not usually a fan of pitted green olives, I was impressed by the overall quality.
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The best supermarket pitted green olives
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Best overall:
Realfoods by Organico organic green pitted olives
£3.80 for 230g at Ocado (£1.65/100g)
★★★★☆
A large Greek olive with a speckled skin and fresh aroma. Floral and salty, with almond and artichoke notes. The texture is perfect – meaty with a good, fleshy bite. Certified organic, B Corp and a Planet-Score of A for sustainability. Good value with impressive certifications, which earns them a bonus point.
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Best bargain:
Epicure manzanilla olives
£1.60 for 235g at Fennel & Ginger (68p/100g)
£1.75 for 235g at Ocado (£0.74/100g)
★★★★☆
Manzanilla olives from a century-old brand founded in London in 1891. Muted green colour with a gentle, olive oil aroma. Sweet, complex flavour with low acidity, light umami fermentation, and almond and beechwood notes. Good crunch and mild bitterness. A beautiful product and great value.
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And the rest …
M&S pitted green queen olives
£2.40 for 225g at Ocado (£1.07/100g)★★★★☆
A large gordal olive with a pungent, acidic and noticeably piquant first taste. Develops complexity with green tomato and earthy, twiggy notes. Meaty yet fibrous. Handpicked in Andalucía. Good provenance and solid value for the quality.
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Biona organic pitted green olives
£3.70 for 280g at Ocado (£1.32/100g)★★★★☆
Large, pale green and perfectly formed. A subtle aroma, and notably less salty than many of the others. Mild but complex flavour – sweet, almondy and earthy. Meaty and fleshy texture. Handpicked in Cerignola, Italy. Certified organic and good value overall.
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Sainsbury’s So Organic pitted green olives
£2.85 for 290g at Sainsbury’s (98p/100g)★★★★☆
A large olive with a dark khaki hue and a mild acidic aroma. Lovely, complex, savoury flavour with hints of olive oil and woody herbs and a fabulously meaty texture. Organic-certified and sourced from the Rovies region of Greece. Really good value for an organic product.
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Ponti organic pitted green olives
£5 for 250g at Ocado (£2/100g)★★★★☆
A tiny, pale green olive with a subtle, fruity scent. Complex, sweet flavour with notes of chardonnay and green fig, plus a light acidity. Firm bite. An Italian heritage brand since 1787, B-Corp certified and organic. A leap in price compared with some of the others, but a product with obvious quality.
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Gaea pitted green olives
£2.40 for 290g at Morrisons (83p/100g) £3.50 for 290g at Ocado (£1.21/100g)★★★☆☆
A large, light yellow olive-green with a mildly floral aroma. Sweet with grassy notes and hints of cucumber and nuttiness. Meaty texture with a strong skin and bite. Made from green chalkidiki olives, with a simple brine using lemon juice and salt. Good value for a clean-tasting product.
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Fragata stoneless green olives
£1.95 for 335g at Tesco (58p/100g)★★★☆☆
Fresh, complex aroma with classic wine-vinegar notes. A heavy acid punch upfront, followed by deep olive flavour with a touch of sweetness and appley tones. Nice, ripe crunch. A classic olive with solid provenance from Andalucía. Excellent value and notably water-efficient, using 60% less than Spain’s average, according to the Water Footprint Network.
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Waitrose Essential pitted green olives
£3.50 for 450g at Waitrose (78p/100g)★★☆☆☆
Fresh aroma and light green colour. Bright initial flavour with gentle salt, acidity and classic bitterness, before finishing on a twiggy note. Soft texture. No information on origin or variety, but good value.
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Hellenic Sun pitted jumbo green olives
£3 for 330g at Ocado (91p/100g) £16.14 for six x 330g at Amazon (82p/100g)★★☆☆☆
Classic lactic acid aroma and speckled, muted green colour. Very salty with a mildly earthy flavour. The jumbo size gives these a great meaty texture. Handpicked in Greece, though details are limited. Not the best, but decent value for a big olive, especially if you need a salty one.
