Kalamata Grocery rocks.
We lived right near here when first moving to Calgary and shopped here often. Ill still stop in when Im in the area and pickup a few things, like OLIVES.
I highly recommend checking it out. If you need another excuse to get there, its in the same block as Galaxie Diner. Go for breakfast then get some olives.
Rock on!
Quote:
Originally Posted by curves2000
I am a massive olive guy myself being Greek. It's almost a religion in Greece when it comes to olives and olive oil.
Olives by their nature are generally salty as they are preserved in brine and are usually picked in the fall, so technically by the time they arrive in North America, its usually a winter food product. Olives can stay "fresh" for a long time, over a year in a lot of cases due to the salt content.
They are an excellent source of many nutrients and have many heart benefits from the monounsaturated fat, which is a healthy fat. If you take out the pits in an olive, such as a pitted Kalamata olive, you loose a little of the flavor. Keeping the pit is the best way to go for full flavor. If you really want to add some nice taste I would suggest sprinkling just a little bit of olive oil and a pinch of fresh oregano (crush it in the palm of your hand using your other hand, this brings out the aromas)
Another little tip is not to be duped by some stores with sky high prices on things such as Italian olives and Italian olive oil. In my PERSONAL opinion, Italians do a much better job of marketing their cuisine and get away with higher prices. A lot of olives and olive oil that is marked "imported from Italy" is generally Greek or olives from Spain that Italian producers source for their products. Generally speaking, a product will say "product of Italy, Greece, Spain" etc if its product is fully from that region.
I usually don't do this but if anybody is interested, my family owns the little Greek grocery store downtown called Kalamata Grocery. We have an insane amount of olives from all over the world and samples are always free!! Some of my favorite olives are garlic stuffed, feta cheese stuffed and jalapeno stuffed. Prices are also very fair and much lower than almost anywhere else in the city.
If anybody has any additional questions about olives, olive oil or Greek cuisine in general, let me know.
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