This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)

The baked olive of  Ferrandina is a Collina Materana product, from the municipalities of Accettura, Aliano, Cirigliano, Ferrandina, Gorgoglione, Salandra, San Mauro Forte, Stigliano, in the province of Matera. The olive trees cover the 80% of the arable land in this area. The most common variety is the majatica, which has found favourable environmental conditions in the claysh soils of this area of the Basento Valley. The first written testimony on the baked olives of Ferradina is of the 18^th century. The manufacturing took place in many olive oil mills of Ferradina, but it was subjected to a lengthy abandon, because of the insustrialization of the Basento Valley. The olive oil mill Lacertosa remained for a long time the lonely guardian of the production, but other manufacturers have flanked it in the last years. To this day, the manufacturing follows the traditional system, which was only partially adjusted to modern technologies. The olives undergo a manufacturing process which starts with cropping, which takes place only when they have reached full ripeness. When they reach a suitable dark coloration, they are withered for a week on wood shelves. Then they are seared in boiling water for a few minutes, in order to eliminate their bitter taste, after they drained, salted and spiced with oregano and wild fennel. After some aging days they are wilted at mild temperatures through two successive cookings in drying rooms, which have substituted the traditional wood ovens. The manufacturing process comprehends a first searing in water at 90°C for a few minutes and then a dry salting for a short period. The partially dehydrated olives are put on trellis and are baked in the dryng rooms, where temperatures reach 50°C. The manufacturing technique of the baked olives of Ferrafina highlights the fruits’ natural sapidity, but it maintains the typical sweetness of the majatica variety.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)