olive all'ascolana — Italy

Olive all'ascolana are stuffed, breaded and fried olives from the province of Ascoli Piceno, in the Marche region of Italy. Large, mild green olives are pitted in a single spiral cut, filled with a seasoned meat mixture, then coated and fried until the outside turns golden and crisp. Reports of this dish are tied to the town of Ascoli Piceno and its surrounding province, where the local variety of large green olive, tenera ascolana, is grown. The dish is now made and served across Italy, most often as one item within a mixed plate of fried appetisers, alongside fried vegetables or small pieces of fried meat. To prepare it, the olives are pitted by cutting around the pit in a continuous spiral, keeping the flesh in one piece. A filling of mixed minced meats, usually including beef, pork and chicken, is cooked down with parmesan, egg, nutmeg and a little white wine, then cooled and used to fill the pitted olives, reshaping them into a ball. Each stuffed olive is passed through flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs, then deep-fried until golden. Reports describe the filling and the breading as the two features that most distinguish this version from other stuffed olive preparations found elsewhere in the region, which may use a single type of meat or a plainer coating. The particular olive variety from Ascoli Piceno, larger and milder than most, is also mentioned as part of what makes the dish workable at all, since it holds the filling well.