Black Olive Tapenade – Crema di Olive Nere

Black olive paste from Liguria with 78% olives

La Gallinara's black olive paste is a Crema di Olive Nere made from 78% black olives, olive oil, and salt. It is not a tapenade—which requires capers and anchovies—but a mild olive cream without any additions.

The black olive paste is called Crema di Olive Nere by La Gallinara and consists of four ingredients: Italian black olives, extra virgin olive oil, sunflower oil, and salt. That is all there is on the label. Those familiar with the salty harshness of some olive pastes will be surprised, as this cream is remarkably mild.

Soft, rounded, with dark olive fruit

The paste is deep dark, almost black-purple, and thick enough to stay on the knife. Upon opening, it smells of olive and oil, without the sharp, salty brine note of cheap products.

On bread, it first tastes of ripe olive, then the oil comes through and softens the bite. The salt remains restrained; there is no bitter aftertaste and no sharpness. Fruity, oily, gentle—the cream can carry a piece of white bread all on its own.

It is precisely this restraint that makes it so useful in the kitchen. A strong tapenade pushes itself into every dish, whereas this paste stays in the background and lets the fish or meat take center stage.

On bread, under fish, in lamb sauce

It is quickest to serve pure. A spoonful on toasted white bread, a few drops of olive oil over the top, and the antipasto is ready. Paired with rosemary crackers, it becomes an appetizer platter in five minutes.

In hot dishes, it pairs well with fried fish; red mullet, swordfish, or tuna go well with it. It is a classic with lamb—stir a spoonful into the pan drippings and deglaze with a little white wine, and the sauce gains depth without any added salt.

It also works under pasta with cherry tomatoes, as a layer on a puff pastry base before the tomatoes, or as a dark smear beneath a piece of goat cheese. Served with spelt grissini, it is the dip that always runs out first.

If you add it to hot food, do so late. The cream does not need cooking time; it only needs to warm through, otherwise, the oil will lose its aroma. Once you have opened the jar, it should be kept refrigerated, and like with pesto, a layer of olive oil will protect the surface.

Liguria lives from oil, not just basil

Liguria is narrow, steep, and largely covered with olive groves. The terraces on the hillsides above the coast were built over centuries with dry stone walls because trees would not otherwise stay on the slopes. Besides basil, the olive also comes from this landscape.

With olives, "black" means fully ripe. The longer the fruit remains on the tree, the softer the flesh becomes and the milder it tastes, whereas early-picked green olives remain sharper and firmer. That is why a cream made from black olives is the gentler of the two.

La Gallinara has been working in Villanova d'Albenga since 1986 and produces a range of creams alongside its pestos. Since Marco Natucci took over the business, the approach has remained the same: few ingredients per jar and no recipe that pretends to be more elaborate than it is.

The proportions say it all here. 78% black olives means the fruit plays the leading role, and the 11% oil serves only to bind. In many olive creams, the ratio is reversed, and you can taste it immediately because the fat dominates instead of the olive.

The jar weighs 130 g and is vegan and lactose-free. On the shelf next to it, the green and red pestos from the same producer are waiting, in case you want to top your bread differently next time. Black is always a good choice.