23 Olive Recipes for Bold Dinners, Easy Snacks, and More

Whether you keep a jar of emergency Castelvetranos in the fridge, never skip a dirty martini at happy hour, or always have a bowl of marinated olives to snack on while making dinner, there’s an olive recipe below with your name on it.

Whatever your favorite olive variety, the salty, briny little fruits (yep, fruits!) are the backbone of everything from quick pantry pastas to Mediterranean-inspired braises. They’re the punchy, savory kick in your favorite salads and party snacks. And olive brine’s no slouch either. So pour yourself a Dirty Martini Spritz, slap together an olive-and-cream-cheese sandwich, and read on for our favorite olive recipes—some worth sharing, others worth keeping all to yourself.

• Appetizers and snacks
• Pasta, pizza, and bread
• Chicken dinners
• Seafood and vegetarian dinners
• Salads and sides

Marinated Olives and Feta

Warm garlicky olive oil transforms large Castelvetranos or Cerignolas and creamy feta into an effortless olive recipe you’ll want to scoop up with plenty of crusty bread.

Gilda Salsa

Turn olives, anchovies, pickled peppers, and parsley into a punchy Basque-inspired salsa that’s just as good on grilled fish as it is with chips or crusty bread.

Boquerones With Green Olives and Orange

Buttery Castelvetrano olives, white anchovies, orange, and garlicky oil make a 15-minute appetizer that feels dinner-party fancy.

Crispy Olives With Calabrian Chile Sauce

Coat store-bought stuffed olives with panko to fry up golden and crisp, then dunk them in a spicy Calabrian chile sauce that’s made for cocktail-party snacking.

Pasta With Feta, Olives, and Raisins

Sweet golden raisins balance briny Castelvetrano olives and creamy feta in this clever pantry pasta that’s ready in just 25 minutes.

One-Pot Puttanesca

Pasta cooks right in a tomato-rich broth with olives, capers, and anchovies, soaking up every briny bite in this easy one-pot weeknight dinner.

Spaghetti With Eggplant Caponata

This Sicilian-inspired spaghetti dinner tosses roasted eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, and green olives with a sweet-sour golden raisin agrodolce.

Spicy Tomato and Black Olive Grandma Pie

This speedy grandma pie skips the long rise but still delivers a crisp, focaccia-like crust topped with spicy tomato sauce and wrinkly salt-cured black olives.

Lemony Pasta Salad With Crisped Capers

Smashed Castelvetrano olives, sun-dried tomatoes, lemon, parsley, and crispy capers make this chilled mayo-free pasta salad extra briny.

One-Pot Pantry Orzo With Chickpeas

An entire jar of green olives, an entire jar of capers, and a can of chickpeas give this one-pot pasta tons of texture and big flavor with very little weeknight effort.

No-Knead Fougasse

Studded with green olives, rosemary, and lemon zest, this no-knead French bread looks bakery-worthy but comes together with surprisingly little effort.

One-Pot Chicken and Rice With Olive Gremolata

Tender chicken legs and schmaltzy rice simmer together in one pot, then get a bright finish from a punchy relish of chopped green olives, parsley, and garlic, dressed with sherry vinegar and olive oil.

Dirty Martini Chicken Thighs

Olive brine, vermouth, vodka, and buttery Castelvetrano olives turn crispy chicken thighs into a cheeky dinner inspired by the classic cocktail. Or go all out and marinate your chicken in olive brine →

Crispy Chicken With Za’atar-Olive Rice

Blistered Castelvetrano olives, crispy ground chicken, za’atar, feta, and lemon make this one-pan dinner bright, savory, and weeknight-friendly.

Sheet-Pan Chicken With Grapes and Fennel

Roasted grapes, fennel, buttery green olives, and crispy sourdough croutons make this colorful sheet-pan chicken feel dinner-party worthy.

Braised Chicken Thighs With Olives and Herbs

Smoky tomatoes, briny Kalamata olives, lemon, and fresh herbs turn tender braised chicken thighs into an easy one-skillet dinner. Serve with a Crunchy and Bright Greek Salad and some crusty bread.

Swordfish Steaks With Olive-Pistachio Sauce and Potatoes

A bright, briny olive-pistachio sauce turns roasted swordfish into an elegant dinner, while buttery potatoes make it hearty enough for company.

Mushroom Piccata

Castelvetrano olives, capers, butter, and lemon turn deeply browned mushrooms into a bright vegetarian take on classic chicken piccata.

Navy Bean and Escarole Stew With Feta and Olives

Creamy navy beans, tender escarole, Castelvetrano olives, and crumbled feta make this cozy vegetarian stew bright, briny, and deeply satisfying.

Muffuletta Potato Salad

Inspired by the iconic New Orleans muffuletta sandwich, this potato salad is packed with olives, pickled peppers, capers, salami, and provolone.

Tuna Niçoise Salad

Named for the city of Nice, this French favorite traditionally features the town’s namesake tiny but robustly flavored Niçoise olives alongside jammy eggs, tuna, and crisp vegetables.

Chopped Salad With Sardines and Preserved Lemon

Briny olives, preserved lemon, crisp vegetables, and tinned sardines come together in a protein-packed chopped salad that’s ready in 20 minutes.

Grain Salad With Olives and Whole-Lemon Vinaigrette

This olive recipe transforms chewy farro into a bright make-ahead salad with buttery Castelvetranos, fresh herbs, and a punchy chopped-whole-lemon vinaigrette.