Types of Olives Explained: Castelvetrano, Kalamata, Manzanilla, and More

There are hundreds of types of olives in this big, briny world. Rare and widely cultivated varieties of the fruit—yes, fruit—abound at supermarkets and specialty grocers. Devotees wax poetic as they toss their favorites into pastas and salads, bake them into savory breads, and load up dirty martinis until their coupes runneth over.

• Green olives vs. black olives
• The most common olive varieties
• Regional specialties
• Olive-curing explained
• How to use each type of olive
• Best olives for martinis
• Best olives for cooking
• Best olives for snack boards
• Best olives for stuffing
• Olive FAQ
• How to buy and store olives

Historians estimate that people have been growing and harvesting olives for some 8,000 years. Olive trees can remain productive for centuries—sometimes more than a thousand years. They thrive in hot, dry climates, including parts of France, Italy, Greece, Morocco, Turkey, Lebanon, and more.

Olives contain polyphenols and other naturally occurring compounds that contribute to their flavor and aroma. Whether you’re well-versed in cultivars and curing methods, or just want to buy, cook, and snack smarter, consider this your guide to everything olive.

Green olives vs. black olives

Most olives start out green and darken as they ripen. Green olives are typically harvested earlier, while black olives are left on the tree longer and develop deeper color and flavor. Depending on the variety, ripe olives may turn purple, brown, or nearly black rather than true black.

Some olive varieties are commonly sold green, including Castelvetrano, Picholine, Lucques, and Gordal olives, while Kalamata, Niçoise, and Gaeta olives are typically sold fully ripened.

The most common olive varieties in American grocers

Different types of olives have varying flavors and textures, and some are suited to cooking while others were born for the bar cart. Here are some of the most widely available olive varieties.

Arbequinas hail from Spain, but their aspirationally productive trees can thrive in all sorts of Mediterranean-adjacent climates. The uniformly round, greenish-tan orbs have nutty, buttery flavors.

Try it: Often used to make olive oil, easy-going Arbequinas are also suited to salads, charcuterie boards, and straight snacking.

Not for the faint of heart, these wrinkly, salt-cured Moroccan black olives are brackish and super savory. Their soft, chewy texture is similar to a plush golden raisin.

Try it: Toss Beldis into fennel or citrus salads for salty contrast, or snack on them straight with a tall glass of water within arm’s reach.

These green giants from southwestern Sicily are mild and meaty, making them a great gateway olive for anyone on the fence. Because they’re typically picked young, Castelvetranos retain their bright green color and have a soft chew.

Try it: Eat Castelvetrano olives out of hand, marinate them in garlicky lemon oil for an almost-instant appetizer, or pop one or more into your next martini.

Another regional Italian standby, these oval-shaped green olives from Puglia are fruity and not too briny. Their firm texture, large size, and relatively small pits make them ideal for snacking or stuffing.

Try it: Nibble Cerignolas as they are, or stuff them with blue cheese, pimentos, or whatever filling speaks to you. Craving something slightly more spirited? Marinate a handful of Cerignolas in gin, vermouth, and fresh citrus for the ultimate happy hour app.

Named for a town in Lazio, Italy, dark purple Gaeta olives are small and oval-shaped. They have tangy and earthy notes offset by a smoky, pleasantly bitter backbone.

Try it: Use in salads, pasta dishes, homemade olive mixes, and anywhere else you might want a briny boost.

Hailing from Peloponnese, Greece, these shiny, almond-shaped black olives are easy to find in supermarkets and any restaurant or taverna with a Greek salad on the menu.

Try it: Tender and salty, they’re the classic choice for Greek salad, but also great for eating out of hand or mixing into tapenades, pastas, and stews.

If you hear the word “olive” and immediately picture pimento-stuffed, bright green spheres, you’re probably envisioning pitted Manzanillas. Originally from Sevilla, Spain, their name translates to “little apple,” and they’re fittingly round and juicy.

Try it: Skewer Manzanillas on toothpicks to garnish a cocktail, pile them onto a cream cheese and olive sandwich, or simmer them in a chicken tagine.

These brine-cured black olives from Nice, France, pack a punch. They’re small, savory, and intensely salty.

Try it: Mix them into tapenades, tuna-studded Niçoise salads, and Provençal-inspired fare like this main-course salmon Niçoise.

Most of the olive varieties you see on store shelves come from a handful of countries—or from California. (According to the trade group California Olive Committee, farmers in the Golden State produce some 95% of domestically grown olives.) Here are a few regional specialties and deeper cuts to look for.

• California: Mission (mild and fruity, usually used for olive oil).
• France: Nyons (small, wrinkly, black); Picholine (green and crisp).
• Greece: Amfissa (soft, green, juicy); Halkidiki (big and green).
• Italy: Leccino (purple-black, Tuscan olive oil mainstay); Nocellara del Belice (green, firm); Taggiasca (black, sweet, buttery).
• Spain: Arbosano (mild and nutty); Gordal (zaftig green queens); Hojiblanca (grassy and sweet, olive oil powerhouse).
• Tunisia: Chetoui (peppery and fruity); Chemlali (bright and grassy); Meski (plump green crowd-pleasers).

Big boy Gordal olives

Tiny Picholine olives

Why olives taste so different: Curing explained

Olives can’t be eaten straight from the tree. The olives you buy online or in grocery stores have all been cured. Just-picked olives not only have a high oil content of up to 30%, but they also contain a compound called oleuropein, which makes them taste bitter.

That’s why curing olives is key. Whether you immerse the fruit in brine or oil, pack them in salt, or use another approach, curing converts olives’ comparatively low natural sugars into lactic acid and mellows the bitter oleuropein. It turns a low-key unpalatable tree fruit into a salty, delicious snack.

The curing method used impacts the olives’ flavors and textures. Here are four of the most common ways.

Producers ferment fully ripened olives in vats of brackish liquid for up to a year to develop salty, fruity flavors.

Brine-curing tends to keep the olives’ color brighter and gives them a snappy texture, too, says Brad Hedeman, the head of marketing and product selection for Zingerman’s Mail Order. “The salt in the brine draws out their moisture, and that leaves the flesh tighter and firmer.”

For a month or more, olives nestle into heaps of salt, which pulls out their moisture and bitterness. The process intensifies their flavors and can prune their skins. If you’re handed a wrinkly olive that looks like an overgrown raisin, chances are, it was dry-cured.

After dry-curing olives, producers macerate them in oil for a few months to soften and enrich them.

“Oil-curing olives brings the olive oil into their flesh, and that usually creates a richer, fuller texture and flavor,” Hedeman says.

Used by large-scale commercial operations and avoided by those who are serious about quality olives, this method involves treating raw olives in an alkaline lye solution. The lightning-fast process leeches out flavor and compromises textures, and can produce bland, mushy results.

How to use each type of olive

Most olives pair especially well with citrus, fennel, tomatoes, bitter greens, aged cheeses, and hardy herbs like rosemary and thyme. But they are also diverse, distinctive, and incredibly versatile. Put yours to work in the kitchen and at happy hour.

While you can garnish a cocktail with a variety of olives, most bartenders find that mild, brine-cured olives are best. Their firmer textures stay intact in the boozy liquid, and their easygoing flavors won’t overpower your drink. Our favorite martini olives include Castelvetrano and Gordal.

In any case, opt for olives that still have their pits, suggests Giorgio Bargiani, the assistant director of mixology at London’s Connaught Bar. “The stone preserves the juices and the meatiness of the olive,” he says. “And from a visual perspective, a pitted olive doesn’t look as good in a martini.”

The best olives for cooking depend on whether your recipe calls for something delicate or bold and whether they need to keep their shape.

If you’re baking focaccia, use unpitted olives with a meaty texture, like soft Castelvetrano olives or kicky Kalamata olives.

Tapenades are traditionally made with black olives, but you can swap in any firm and fleshy variety, including green Gordals and Cerignolas.

Salads can go in many directions. Chopping Romaine, tomatoes, and cucumbers for a crunchy Greek salad? Kalamatas all the way. Beldi olives complement citrus and fennel, while Niçoise olives share their name with a world-famous tuna, greens, potatoes, and beans combo.

If you’re making an olive spread for muffaletta, or trying out this gilda-inspired salsa to pile on crostini, try Manzanillas, Castelvetranos, or Cerignolas.

Cooking a tagine or a braise? Choose something with distinctive flavor, like Picholine or Kalamata.

Popular olives for snackboards include Arbequinas, Castelvetranos, Cerignolas, Manzanillas, and Kalamatas. That said, there’s no wrong move here. Snack on whatever olives you like best and let the haters stay salty.

Rose Previte, the chef-restaurateur of Los Angeles’ Maydan Market and Maydan restaurant in Washington, D.C., serves a mixture of black and green Tunisian olives with her cheeseboards. “I like to put them in olive oil with a little lemon zest,” she says.

The best stuffed olives are firm enough to keep their shape once you remove the pits and fill them. Use large olives so you have enough workspace to complete the task without losing your eyesight or mind. Cerignolas, Manzanillas, and Gordals (also known as Queen olives) are all good candidates.

Are olives a fruit?

Yes. Olives are the fruit of the olive tree.

Can you eat olives right off the tree?

No. Fresh olives are extremely bitter and must be cured before eating.

What are the mildest olives?

Castelvetranos are often considered one of the mildest and most approachable varieties.

How to buy and store olives

Hedeman suggests buying olives from a shop with an olive bar where you can taste-test different varieties. If no such wonderland exists in your neighborhood, read the labels on the jars on supermarket shelves or digital retailers, he says.

Look for labels with a limited number of recognizable ingredients. For instance, “if the olive is salt-cured, you’ll only see ‘olives, water, salt’ as the ingredients,” Hederman says.

Oil-cured olives might include a few additional ingredients, such as pepper, garlic, or wine. Avoid anything that lists dyes or additives you struggle to spell or pronounce.

Once you get those olives home, store them in the fridge in an airtight container. “I like to store mine in brine to keep the saltiness intact,” says Previte. Sometimes, she’ll add a splash of olive oil to their containers for extra richness.

Don’t be hesitant to try new-to-you varieties, either. “Being a lover of olives in all forms, I never met one I didn’t like,” says Previte.