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Making olive oil at home is possible with fresh, untreated olives. Crush the olives into a paste, mix slowly, and separate the oil and water through natural or centrifugal methods. Filtering is optional.
Olive oil is an oil extracted from olives, the fruit of the olive tree. It is typically imported and sold in shops, but it is possible to make olive oil at home. With a little effort and fresh olives, you may find that making your own olive oil at home results in a delicious treat.
The first step in making olive oil is selecting the right olives. Green or black olives can be used, but they must be fresh and untreated. Olives can also be obtained directly from a tree by picking or shaking. If there is no olive tree where you live, fresh olives can be purchased from an olive producer, at a farmer’s market or in a specialist supermarket.
Olives should be separated from leaves, twigs and other debris and cleaned thoroughly before using. When making olive oil, there is no need to remove the pits. Removing wells actually reduces the final yield.
The olives will then be crushed with enough force to make a paste. A traditional method of crushing is a mortar and pestle, though anything that’s capable of grinding olives into a wet paste will work. A useful tip is to crush the olives as slowly as possible. It may seem tempting to use a food processor, but if the olives are turned into a paste too quickly, bitter flavors may be present in the oil.
After crushing, the olive paste should be mixed slowly for 20-40 minutes. This process is necessary and fundamental for the success of the olive oil. A slow mixing process is required because it allows time to combine microscopic droplets of oil into larger ones, which will then be extracted. If this step is left out, the oil yield will be much smaller.
The paste should then be spread and pressed to squeeze out the vegetable liquid, a mixture of oil and water. Letting the liquid sit is the traditional method for separating oil and water. After a long enough time has passed, the oil and water will naturally separate. If you have the patience, this can be a good method at home.
If a centrifuge is available while producing olive oil, the separation process will be both faster and more accurate. Centrifugal separation works by spinning the plant solution fast enough so that the difference in density between oil and water causes the liquids to separate and pool or collect in different areas. Once the oil has been separated from the water, it should be filtered again to remove any particles left behind. This step can be skipped to produce a cloudier, more natural look.
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