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For a 10-minute appetizer dip, sandwich spread, or pizza “sauce,” try this easy homemade Olive Tapenade. Customize this Mediterranean spread with any variety of briny olives.
If you love olives, you’ll love the salty, briny flavor of this tapenade spread. I love to eat it on fresh bread or toasted baguette slices, something with a neutral flavor profile that doesn’t compete with tapenade.
It’s delicious on a Mezze platter too (an appetizer board of Mediterranean fare). Pile fresh vegetables, olives, nuts, and pita chips, then add bowls of hummus or roasted eggplant dip to complete your Med Feast.
Table of Contents
Olive Tapenade Ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
- Olives: Seek out mild olives that have been cured in brine. I love Kalamata and Lucques olives but picholines, Castelvetrano olives, Niçoise olives from France, black olives, and green olives are also great choices. Use one kind or a combination of a few of your favorites.
- Anchovies: These add a fantastic savory, umami flavor to dishes. However, if you don’t want to buy and handle anchovies, you can use anchovy paste. Enjoy the flavor and get used to the mental aspect of them without having to touch them. (Just like tomato paste in a tube, it keeps indefinitely in the refrigerator.)
- Capers: Buy them brine-packed or salt-packed. The salt-packed ones have a more mild (and I think preferable) flavor although I like both. If you forget to rinse them, however, the flavor can be overpowering at times.
- Garlic: Roasting garlic is optional. To roast the garlic, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the top off a bulb of garlic so the cloves are exposed. Set the bulb on a piece of foil large enough to wrap the bulb. Top the exposed cloves with olive oil and wrap the bulb tightly in foil. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes or until a knife slides easily into the middle of the bulb.
How to Make Olive Tapenade
- In a food processor, combine olives, anchovies, capers, parsley, garlic, lemon juice, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Pulse 2 to 3 times until coarsely chopped.
- Drizzle in olive oil and pulse a few more times until a chunky paste forms, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve at room temperature.
What is the best food processor?
For making smaller portions of Olive Tapenade, I like using my Cuisinart Mini Prep Food Processor, which is my favorite mini food processor. It’s small, powerful, and perfect for making dips and sauces. You can get it for $39.17 at Amazon, and I think it’s a great addition to any kitchen.
Olive Tapenade Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes about 3 cups tapenade total, enough for 6 (1/2-cup servings).
- Storage: Store leftovers in airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Olive tapenade is freezer friendly! Transfer to glass jars, leave ½ inch head space, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
- More flavors: Switch up your fresh herbs to include fresh basil, fresh thyme, fresh parsley, Herbs de Provence, or sun-dried tomatoes.
- Serving suggestion: Serve tapenade with pita chips, crostini, crackers, or chunks of sturdy bread. This olive spread is also delicious on top of deviled eggs; just add small dollops and watch them disappear. It’s also perfect served with goat cheese.
- Kalamata aioli: In a food processor, add 1 cup pitted and drained Kalamata olives, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 clove garlic, 5 large basil leaves (or 10 small), and 1 cup mayonnaise. Process until well combined. Serve with bread chunks. Yields about 2 cups.
Frequently Asked Questions
Tapenade is made with olives and capers, then flavored with other herbs and spices. The dish is finished with plenty of olive oil to give it the desired consistency.
Olive tapenade has a briny, salty flavor from the olives. This version also contains anchovies which lend a strong umami (meaty/savory) flavor.
To put this homemade Olive Tapenade to terrific use, spread it on toasted baguette, enjoy with fresh vegetables, toss with pasta, stuff it inside roasted mushrooms, use it instead of your usual pizza sauce, share as part of a charcuterie board, add a scoop to a buddha bowl or salad, or slather it on a sandwich.
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Olive Tapenade Recipe
Equipment
- Food processor (I have this one from Breville and it's amazing!)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups pitted, brine-cured olives drained (see note 1)
- 1 teaspoon anchovy paste or 2 anchovy filets, minced (see note 2)
- 3 tablespoons capers rinsed (see note 3)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons parsley coarsely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic roasted if desired (see note 4)
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine olives, anchovies, capers, parsley, garlic, lemon juice, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Pulse 2 to 3 times until coarsely chopped.
- Drizzle in olive oil and pulse a few more times until a chunky paste forms, scraping down the sides as needed. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve at room temperature.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Olives: Seek out mild olives that have been cured in brine. I love Kalamata and Lucques olives but picholines and Niçoise olives are also great choices. Use one kind or a combination of a few of your favorites.
- Anchovies: These add a fantastic savory, umami flavor to dishes. However, if you don’t want to buy and handle anchovies, you can use anchovy paste. Enjoy the flavor and get used to the mental aspect of them without having to touch them.
- Capers: Buy them brine-packed or salt-packed. The salt-packed ones have a more mild (and I think preferable) flavor although I like both. If you forget to rinse them, however, the flavor can be overpowering at times.
- Garlic: Roasting garlic is optional. To roast the garlic, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the top off a bulb of garlic so the cloves are exposed. Set the bulb on a piece of foil large enough to wrap the bulb. Top the exposed cloves with olive oil and wrap the bulb tightly in foil. Bake for 45 to 60 minutes or until a knife slides easily in to the middle of the bulb.
- Yield: This recipe makes about 3 cups tapenade total, enough for 6 (1/2-cup servings).
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
do i drain the olives before measuring 1.5 cups?
Hi Jessica, yes! I’m so sorry. I’ve clarified it in the recipe card. Thank you so much for writing, I hope you love this tapenade! – Meggan
I really loved the end product and so did my 15 yr old daughter who is a very picky eater. I did edit a bit though. For the 1 1/2c olives, I did 1c kalamata and 1/2c castelvetrano. I didn’t roast my garlic but I will try try it on my next time, which is probably going to be tomorrow by the way everyone is eating it up. I used the anchovy paste since I wasn’t able to find any anchovies at my local grocery store.
Thank you for a wonderful recipe
You’re welcome, Kendra! I’m glad you both loved it! – Meggan
This is one of my favorite recipes. I eliminated the anchovies paste and it’s still fantastic. I also mix it with my homemade hummus for a spectacular snack. Thank you.
You’re welcome, Happy Sunshine! Happy cooking! – Meggan
Just whipped this up in less than 5 minutes.
Beautiful! ❤️
Thank you for your comment, Elle! I’m so glad you loved it! – Meggan
Loved it! The only recipe I use. Everybody I know wants the recipe. I make it all the time now.
Beats store bought dips!
Hi Pat! I’m so glad you loved it! -Meggan
I’ve made this recipe numerous times and love it! However, I never get three cups.
Hi Barbara, thanks for letting me know! I’ll add it to my list to retest. Thank you again! – Meggan
Mmmm
Can this be frozen for later use?
I did not have capers or anchovies, but I forged ahead! (I’m stuck at home post-foot surgery, so a quick trip to the store was not an option.) I soaked two garlic cloves in lemon to temper the bite, leaving one raw because I like I kinda like the bite and spontaneously added a fourth clove. I used parsley from my own garden. It’s very good! How did you get the purple-y black color? Mine I s more of a mottle-y brown, even though i used all kalamata olives. It’s a lot of tapenade, is it possible to freeze half for later?
Hi Amy, olive tapenade is freezer friendly! Transfer to glass jars, leave ½ inch head space, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Hope this helps! – Meggan
I made this recipe and I like it, but the acid in the lemon juice is a bit too sharp. I don’t want to add more salt, as it’s so salty otherwise already. What can I do to make the taste smoother? Thank you!
Hi Shannon, I’m sorry your tapenade turned out too sharp! I haven’t had this issue but one reader mentioned rinsing their olives and capers first, that may help even out the taste! Otherwise, I’d suggest adding less lemon juice next time you make it. Sorry about that! – Meggan
I don’t have a food processor. Any idea how else I can make tempenade?
Carol from Hilton Head Island
Hi Carol, another reader said they made this in their blender and that it turned out great. I hope this helps! – Meggan