Epityrum (Olive Relish)
Chopped olives with a dressing of olive oil, vinegar, and herbs, served with bread and feta
City/Region: Greece | Rome
Time Period: 2nd Century B.C.E.
Olive trees were a vital resource for the ancient Mediterranean world. They provided wood for shipbuilding (and Heracles’ club); olives for food; and olive oil for cooking, lighting lamps, using as the base for perfume, and anointing for religious purposes.
This recipe comes from Cato the Elder, and as with all ancient recipes, adjust the amounts of any of the ingredients to suit your taste (I do think that it’s a very balanced dish as written). If you don’t like cilantro, use some ground coriander seeds instead or leave it out, and you could use fennel bulb instead of the leaves if you like.
It’s pretty salty, as olives are, but you still get each of the herbs and spices without them overpowering each other. It’s especially good when balanced by the creaminess from some cheese (I used feta).
“Epityrum
Select some green, black and mottled olives and remove the pits. Chop them up well. Add a dressing of oil, vinegar, coriander, cumin, fennel, rue, and mint. Cover with oil in an earthenware dish, and serve. ”
Ingredients:
- 2 cups (290 g) pitted olives, whatever kind you like
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon chopped fennel leaf
- 2 teaspoons chopped rue*, dried or fresh
- 1 tablespoon chopped mint
- Feta, for serving
- Bread, for serving
*See notes below.
Instructions:
- Chop the olives as fine as you like. You could even grind them up so it’s more the texture of a tapenade and still be period appropriate.
- Mix the olive oil, vinegar, and herbs and spices well.
- Pour the dressing over the chopped olives and stir to combine.
- Use it right away or let it sit and marinate for a while so that the flavors can combine. Either way, serve it forth with some feta and bread.
Notes
- Rue is a bitter herb that was used in a lot of historical recipes. It's mildly toxic and should only be consumed in very small amounts, if at all. Do not eat rue if you are pregnant!
- Link to rue: https://amzn.to/3yErUqH
Some links on this site are affiliate links. If you buy something through them, it does not cost you anything more, but we will get a small commission which helps keep the site up and running. Thanks!