Walnuts look like brains and I read of an old Chinese belief
that if you eat them, you may get smarter! Whether or not you subscribe to that
idea, you must try these walnuts.
They are so cleverly done – soaked to remove their tannins (the stuff that
makes you pucker) and then oven roasted to slowly cook them. The nuts can sit
for days until an hour or so before you’re ready to serve.
The final cooking in a skillet coats the nuts with a
delicate touch of salt and sugar. While it’s dead simple, remember to watch the
skillet temp or the nuts can burn. The refined flavor remains intact, delicious
with drinks or even cheese for a cross-cultural approach.
I made these Chinese walnuts for a Lunar New Year dinner party and guests ate most of them up, along with a bunch of dumplings as appetizers. Then I made another batch just for myself to eat!
How are these like the fried candied walnuts that we usually
think of as Chinese treats? They're better, more elegant. I found the recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks,
The
Modern Art of Chinese Cooking by Barbara Tropp. There are no photos,
just some illustrations in that book. Her charming, enthusiastic prose and
detailed instructions encourage you to cook and experiment. If you have room on
your shelf for another Chinese cookbook, that’s a nice one for discoveries like
this:
RECIPE
Salted Caramelized
Walnuts
Makes 2 cups
Ingredients
- 8 ounces (225g) walnuts, mostly plump halves preferred
- 2 teaspoons canola oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
- Put the walnuts in a bowl, then cover with just-boiled
water. Let sit to soak for 30 minutes. Drain, pat with paper towel to remove
excess moisture. - Preheat the oven to 300F with a rack in the middle position.
Line a baking sheet with 2 or 3 sheets of paper towel. Arrange the walnuts on
top in a single layer. Bake for 30 minutes to gently dry and roast. Cool and
store in an airtight container for up to several days. - About 1 hour before serving, heat the oil in a large skillet
over medium heat. Add the walnuts and heat to warm, stirring and/or shaking the
pan frequently. When the nuts are shiny and little oil is left in the skillet,
sprinkle in the salt. Continue stirring and shaking to heat but not burn the
nuts. If you fear burning, lower the heat. - When the salt is no longer visible, add the sugar in 3 or 4
batches, shaking and stirring in between each and waiting till the sugar has
melted and coated the nuts. Eventually, you’ll see a bit of smoke as the sugar
caramelizes. Be more vigilant and keep stirring and shaking. When all the sugar
has melted and there are little brownish-red bubbles in the skillet, turn off
the heat. Total cooking time is about 5 minutes. - Dump the walnuts onto a piece of parchment or a clean baking
sheet. Cool to warm or room temperature. Break apart any nuts that stuck
together. Eat. These are best within an hour or so of being roasted. If you have leftovers, store in an airtight container or zip-top bag. Warm in the microwave oven or skillet over medium heat to refresh.
Abbe@This is How I Cook
You are right. They do look like brains. Never thought of that before! Have made something similar and you are right they are delicious!
masters dissertation writing
That would have been a more level playing field.My blog lay out looks much better now.
Francesca
Hi Andrea. I tried different recipes of these walnuts. I soaked, deep fried, oven roasted.
I finally got to this one. It's the one I like best. Give it a try and let me know what you think.
I mixed the instruction of Eileen Yin-Fei Lo and a recipe from egullet. I think the boiling works better than soaking.
Boil 1 Liter water for 250 g of walnuts. Once boiling dump in the nuts water and boil for 5 minutes. Repeat one more time. Refresh under running water and drain well. Wash the pot and add 60 ml of water and 4 tablespoon sugar, when bubbles add the nuts and toss them around until the syrup glaze the nuts. Add a tablespoon of peanut oil, cayenne pepper to taste and spread on the silpat. Sprinkle with fleur de sel and toast in the oven for 40 minute at 300 F
Here how they look
http://www.flickr.com/photos/35948835@N06/5542556950/