Although Greece and Italy are perhaps best known for their love of olives and beautiful olive groves, most olives eaten in the U.K. are actually grown in Spain. Fragata, created by Don Santiago Camacho Román in 1925, was founded in Andalusia, the heartland of Spanish olive production. This is where the company remains today, still run by his descendants.

If you picked an olive straight from the tree and took a bite, you’d likely spit it straight back out again. In order to be edible – and enjoyable – olives need to be cured and de-bittered. This removes a bitter tasting compound called oleuropein and transforms them into something delicious.

This means all olives – whether sold in jars, cans, refrigerated tubs or at an olive bar – have been stored in brine. You can easily recreate the herby flavour of marinated olives using jarred or canned olives by marinating them at home. Simply drain and rinse the olives and then marinate them for a few hours in a mixture of olive oil and herbs of your choosing. Fragata has a lot of suggestions for marinades such as lemon, garlic and parsley on their website.

Unlike green and purple grapes, all olives start off green and then turn a dark purple or black as they mature. However, most olives will be harvested when green, either to be sold as green olives or to be oxidised to turn them black after they’ve been picked.

The vast majority of olives are grown for use in olive oil – less than 10% become table olives, or olives for eating. Despite this, there is still a huge choice of olives available for eating, and each country in the Mediterranean has their own special varieties. Here is our guide to the types of olives you’re likely to come across in the U.K., where they're from and some of the best ways to enjoy them.

These Spanish olives are one of the most popular table olives in the U.K, and also a favourite of Fragata. If you’ve ever bought or tried some pitted black olives, it’s likely they were hojiblancas. They are also available as green olives, and used for olive oil. Hojiblancas have a slight sweetness and a mild flavour that makes them perfect for pizzas.

The Spanish name for these green olives – gordal – comes from the word for ‘fat’, referring to their huge size. Ironically however, the fat content of gordal olives is lower than the optimum for making olive oil, so they are always eaten as table olives. They are a particularly popular ingredient in tapas, served on their own, or perhaps with a simple marinade, and they also pair well with chilli and anchovies.

Unlike the queen olive, green manzanillas are popular both for their oil and as table olives, and are another olive favoured by Fragata. They are usually pitted before being sold, and so are easy to prepare for dishes like tapenades or quick salads. They are also perfect for stuffing, and are available from Fragata in a range of flavours including garlic, jalapeño and chorizo.

These large, almond-shaped green olives are from Cerignola in Puglia, Italy. If you’ve ever been to this region on holiday, you’ve likely been served some of these with a drink at a restaurant. Usually served whole with the pit in, they’re best enjoyed alongside or instead of crisps and nuts before a meal.

Nocellara del Belice olives, also known as Castelvetrano after the process developed in the town of the same name, are a highly flavourful Sicilian olive. Their rich and buttery flavour is best appreciated as a snack or with an aperitif.

Amfissa olives are a popular Greek olive which can be harvested when green or black. They have a faintly lemony flavour and would be a delicious addition to this lamb and aubergine stew inspired by moussaka.

Halkidiki are a large, green almond-shaped olive from northern Greece. They can be found pitted or stone-in, and are great for snacking or in a green olive salsa.

Kalamata olives have PDO status in Greece and are one of the most well-known olives in the UK. Dark purple and almond shaped, they pair well with feta and are perfect in a Greek salad or pasta sauce.

Whichever type of olive you go for – whole or pitted, bright green or jet black, big or small – they’re sure to be delicious. A quick way to add flavour to a meal or enjoy with an aperitif, olives are great to always have on hand.