Olive Ascolane

Name: Olive Ascolane
Cook time: 110 min
Total time: 110 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 40 Ascolana Tenera Olives, large, pitted, preserved in brine, well drained; 100g Beef Stew Meat, diced; 100g Pork Shoulder, diced; 80g Chicken Thigh, diced; 1 Carrots, small, finely chopped; 1 stalk of Celery, finely chopped; 1/2 Onion, finely chopped; 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil; 1 tbsp Unsalted Butter; 60ml Dry White Wine; 1 tsp Tomato Paste; 50g Bread, stale, crusts removed; 50ml Milk, for soaking the bread; 50g Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated; 1 Egg; 1/4 tsp Nutmeg, ground; 1/2 Lemon, zest, finely grated; 60g All-purpose Flour; 2 Eggs, beaten; 150g Breadcrumbs, fine

Olive Ascolane are a classic Italian aperitivo: large, meaty olives stuffed with a rich, slow-cooked meat ragù, coated in crisp breadcrumbs and fried until golden. The result is a savory, crunchy bite with a tender, flavorful filling brightened by lemon and fragrant Parmigiano — perfect for sharing.

Olive Ascolane are a classic Italian aperitivo: large, meaty olives stuffed with a rich, slow-cooked meat ragù, coated in crisp br... Show more

Traditional Italian Recipe

Health Grade

C · Balanced

Time

1 hr50 min

Price

1,61 €

Calories

865 kcal

low sugar

potluck

holiday/special occasion

italian

Method

Drain the olives

Drain the Ascolana Tenera olives from their brine, then spread them on paper towels and pat them very dry. A dry surface will help later when you stuff and bread them.

Soak the bread

Tear the stale bread into small pieces, removing any crusts that are still attached, and put it in a small bowl. Pour over the milk, press the bread down so it absorbs the liquid evenly, and let it soak for 5 minutes.

Chop the filling

Peel and finely dice the carrot, finely chop the celery and onion, and cut the beef stew meat, pork shoulder, and chicken thigh into very small pieces if they are not already. Aim for a neat, fine dice so the filling holds together easily. Finely grate the zest from half the lemon, keeping the white pith behind.

Heat the pan

Set a large skillet over medium heat and add the extra virgin olive oil and unsalted butter. Let the butter melt and foam gently without browning.

Brown the filling

Add the chopped carrot, celery, and onion to the pan and cook, stirring often, until softened and lightly golden around the edges, about 5–6 minutes. Add the beef, pork, and chicken, breaking everything up well with a spoon, and cook until the meat loses its raw look and takes on good color, about 8–10 minutes.

Deglaze and finish

Stir in the tomato paste and cook it for about 1 minute so it darkens slightly and smells sweeter. Pour in the dry white wine, scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and let it bubble for 2 minutes. Lower the heat and cook for about 10 minutes more, stirring now and then, until the meat is tender and the mixture looks fairly dry rather than saucy.

Mix the stuffing

Transfer the cooked filling to a bowl and let it cool just until warm. Squeeze the soaked bread very well so it is damp but not dripping, then add it to the bowl with the filling. If the meat mixture still looks chunky, chop it a little more with a knife or crush it with the back of a spoon, then mix in the Parmigiano Reggiano, egg, ground nutmeg, and the lemon zest until you have a compact, evenly combined stuffing.

Chill the filling

Cover the bowl and chill the stuffing for 20 minutes, until it feels firmer and easier to shape.

Spiral the olives

While the filling chills, use a small sharp knife to cut each olive in one continuous spiral around its cavity so it opens into a long strip. Work slowly and keep the strip as even as you can so it wraps back around the filling neatly.

Stuff the olives

Divide the chilled stuffing into 40 small portions and roll them into little cylinders or oval balls. Wrap one olive strip around each piece of filling, gently pressing the ends together so the olive closes back around it and the shape looks like a whole olive again.

Bread the olives

Set up three shallow bowls: put the all-purpose flour in one, beat the remaining eggs in the second, and spread the fine breadcrumbs in the third. Roll each stuffed olive lightly in flour, dip it in egg, then coat it in breadcrumbs, pressing the crumbs on so the surface is evenly covered.

Heat the oil

Pour enough neutral frying oil into a deep, heavy pot to come about 2 inches up the sides. Heat it to 170° C.

Fry until golden

Fry the breaded olives in small batches for 2–3 minutes, turning once or twice, until they are deeply golden and crisp all over. Lift them out with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels or a rack, letting the oil come back to temperature before frying the next batch.