February 04, 2005
Roasting Almonds
by peterbIt's a simple problem, with a simple solution.
The problem is that raw almonds are too sweet and unfocused to enjoy on their own, while most roasted almonds you can get at the store are dry and unenjoyable. Do not speak to me of the overpriced "Marcona" almonds sold to suckers at places like Whole Foods. They're greasy and have all the character of frozen okra.
What you want to do is roast your own. Here's how to do it.
Equipment:
- 1 oven.
- 1 flat pan, such as a cookie sheet.
Ingredients:
- 1 pound whole raw almonds.
- a tablespoon or less of almond oil. Note: there's a concoction called "almond oil" that really refers to an extract of bitter almonds. A small amount is enough to ruin any dish, and a spoonful on its own will cause intense pain and burning, and for all I know will kill you. Don't use this stuff. I'm referring here to the true oil of sweet almonds, suitable for use in frying.
- Lots of table salt. Don't use kosher salt.
Preheat your oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Take your raw almonds and spread them out on the cookie sheet. Pour some oil on the pan, and swish the almonds around the pan with a spatula until they're all coated with a little oil. You can always add more oil if you didn't use enough, so start sparingly -- a teaspoon or so might be enough, if the almonds are small. Once they're coated, grab a generous handful of salt and toss it over the almonds. No need to agitate them any further. Put the pan in the oven and go play Halo 2 for about a half an hour. When the kitchen starts smelling good, they're nearly done.
Figuring out when they're actually done is somewhat problematic. Roasting nuts is a tricky business. If you under-roast them, then they will taste raw, and you will have spent time and energy for no particular reason. As they approach "perfectly roasted," they will taste better and better. Then, there is a magical, awful line across which the nuts move from "perfectly roasted" to "burnt and inedible" in a matter of seconds. Finding and avoiding that line is a matter of experience. The almonds will continue to roast for a bit after you remove them from the oven, so for your first attempts it's probably better to take them out too soon rather than too late.
Once they're out, take another big handful of salt and throw it over the almonds. The double-salting is one of my secrets to great almonds (the other is simply using almond oil, rather than the peanut or sunflower oils used to roast most commercially processed almonds). You can taste them at this point, but right out of the oven they will be soft and mealy, and not worth eating. Let them sit, and cool, and harden. When they are completely cool, transfer them to a jar, and enjoy.
Eat them however you want to. I like them with slices of apple, and oil-cured olives, and cheese.
Posted by peterb at February 4, 2005 05:34 PM | Bookmark ThisObjection, your honor!
Raw almonds on their own are just fine - if enjoyed in small doses. They're sort of like pieces of candy - one is fine, more than a few is just sickening.
(This will, of course, not keep me from trying your recipe, and probably burning several pounds of perfectly good almonds :)
Posted by Robert 'Groby' Blum at February 5, 2005 02:25 PMThis is actually quite true -- I like the occasional raw almond. But compare this to, say, raw pecans, which I can eat by the ton, and I think it's clear that roasting them is (generally) the right thing to do. You can always set aside a handful unroasted for when you have the urge.
On a side note, apparently pecan is one of the most recently domesticated crops: the pecan hickory was domesticated in 1846.
I wonder if we'll ever live in a world where oaks have been domesticated, and people are writing articles about how best to roast acorns.
I judge almond doneness by taking one out of the oven and slicing it in half. If the flesh is slightly golden, it's time to take them out.
Posted by a. at February 7, 2005 12:22 AMSo I thought that your comment about Marcona almonds being for suckers was a nice bit of hyperbole.
Then I happened to see the big display of Marcona almonds by the checkout at our Whole Foods on Sunday. For $18.99 a pound.
People pay $18.99 a pound for almonds? "Suckers" is mild.
yeah those ppl who buy marcona almonds arent just suckers...they are morons...but anyways yeah i was looking up a site for roasting my own almonds found this and seems that its exactly the same as i already thought, but thankyou anyways, i had wanted to check and make sure be4 actualy roasting them,lol, ttyl oh yeah and p.s., raw almonds are awsome and can even be very good in baked goods that use bittersweet chocolate:) yum!
Posted by Friendly Neighborhood almond muncher:) at April 12, 2005 04:51 AMWhat??? Marcona Almonds are awesome! I'd pay $40 if I had to. Call me sucker...but I prefer the term addict. If you know how to get something that good cheaper I'd love to buy it!
Posted by Almodholic anonymous at April 13, 2005 11:06 PMI am on a low salt diet. Would the same method work without salt?
Posted by bill l at August 20, 2005 12:26 PMSure, it'll work fine. They just won't taste as good.
Marcona almonds are terrific. Spend some time in Madrid and eat them with a good wine from Penendes and you'll stop feeling so smug. They taste dramatically different from other kinds almonds. Yes, they are expensive in the U.S., but only because they have historically not been exported at scale.
Posted by Jon at December 9, 2005 09:24 PMYes, but the reason they taste so good there is because YOU ARE IN MADRID.
Whoa! You just called my sweet beautiful Japanese roommate a sucker and a moron. That she could find and enjoy a treat like Marona Almonds, as little English as she speaks, is impressive. Of course fresh roasted nuts of any kind out of the oven are better than store-bought roasts. That goes from peanuts to macadamias and everything in between. There is a freshness to it. On the other hand, interesting thing I read that roasted nuts stay fresh a lot longer than raw nuts.
Overall I agree on so many points. For $20 a pound you could have some amazing things -- just think of the meat or mushrooms, etc., at that price. Love the comment about the thin line between done roasting and burnt.
Is any old table salt good? Call me crazy but in most dishes a high-quality sea salt is so much better, and given how far salt goes around it's not that expensive a proposition.
Posted by Gil S. at December 11, 2005 06:27 AMI am an old lady who sent my partner (male) to Whole Foods to get roasted almonds. He gets confused sometimes so bought the raw ones...about ten pounds of them. They tasted, well, dreadful, so I thought I would roast them but couldn't find a recipe in any cookbook. So I just toddled over to my computer, got on line, and "voila," there was your recipe. Afterwards I read your readers' comments, which were very entertaining. Instead of thinking about the scariness of Bin Laden or stupidity of GWB roasting us all in nuclear Nirvana, they are squabbling about your recipe for roasting almonds and making rude remarks about your comments on $18.99 per pound Whole Foods roasted almonds. Thanks to you and your nice recipe, I will now be roasting my own almonds, be they horrid, mediocre, or excellent. P.S. I am 98 years old next month. So there! Dr. S.
Posted by Dr. S. at August 27, 2006 07:23 PMI am an old lady who sent my partner (male) to Whole Foods to get roasted almonds. He gets confused sometimes so bought the raw ones...about ten pounds of them. They tasted, well, dreadful, so I thought I would roast them but couldn't find a recipe in any cookbook. So I just toddled over to my computer, got on line, and "voila," there was your recipe. Afterwards I read your readers' comments, which were very entertaining. Instead of thinking about the scariness of Bin Laden or stupidity of GWB roasting us all in nuclear Nirvana, they are squabbling about your recipe for roasting almonds and making rude remarks about your comments on $18.99 per pound Whole Foods roasted almonds. Thanks to you and your nice recipe, I will now be roasting my own almonds, be they horrid, mediocre, or excellent. P.S. I am 98 years old next month. So there! Dr. S.
Posted by Dr. S. at August 27, 2006 07:24 PMThat recipe didnt work for me
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