Olive all’ascolana (stuffed fried olives)

Olive all’ascolana come from Ascoli Piceno and are today the symbol of fried food in Marche. The version protected by the “Oliva Ascolana del Piceno” PDO uses olives of the Ascolana Tenera variety and a filling of mixed meats; at home every family has its own proportions. This version stays close to tradition.

Ingredients for about 60 olives

• 60 large green olives in brine, ideally Ascolana Tenera
• 160 g lean beef
• 110 g pork loin
• 30 g chicken breast
• Half a carrot, half an onion, half a celery stalk
• Half a glass of dry white wine
• 50 g grated Parmigiano
• 1 egg for the filling
• Nutmeg, grated zest of half a lemon, salt and pepper
• For breading: flour, 2 or 3 eggs, breadcrumbs
• 3 tablespoons IL CONTE Blend for the filling and about 1 litre for frying

Method

1. Chop the carrot, onion and celery and soften them in a pan with 3 tablespoons of Blend. Add the meats cut into small pieces and brown them.
2. Add the wine and cook over low heat for about 30 minutes, with a splash of water if it dries out too much. Let it cool.
3. Mince the meats finely with their juices, then knead with the Parmigiano, the egg, nutmeg, lemon zest, salt and pepper: the filling should be firm and compact.
4. Pit the olives in a spiral: with a small knife cut the flesh round the stone in a single strip.
5. Wrap the spiral round a small ball of filling, giving the olive back its shape.
6. Roll the olives in flour, then in beaten egg and breadcrumbs. For a crunchier crust, repeat egg and breadcrumbs.
7. Heat the oil to about 170 °C and fry a few olives at a time for 3–4 minutes, until golden. Drain on kitchen paper and serve hot.

The right oil

For the base and for frying use the Blend: extra virgin olive oil handles frying temperatures well and gives a dry, fragrant crust. Frying needs plenty of oil: the 3 or 5 litre tin is the most practical size. How and why to fry with extra virgin olive oil: can you fry with extra virgin olive oil?

Tip

In Ascoli they are served in the “fritto misto all’ascolana”, with fried custard squares and lamb chops. Breaded olives can also be frozen raw, spread on a tray, and fried straight from frozen.

Photo: Manuela Zangara, Wikimedia Commons, licence CC BY-SA 2.0.