I have always loved the flavor of Brazil nuts, but they are such a pain to crack whole. Half the time you need to use a pick that comes along with the nutcracker set and then end up not being able to get all of the nut meat out of the shell or, sometimes, end up stabbing your hands trying - LOL!
Well, I finally found the secret to cracking those little puppies easily :-) All you have to do is freeze them for about six hours and then crack them width wise in the center. 99% of the time, you will have a whole nut to enjoy without effort! The reason this works is because it pulls the meat away from the shell. So, do yourself and your company a favor and freeze them before cracking open.
By Deeli from Richland, WA
This page contains the following solutions.
To crush nuts with no fuss and no clean up, I put the nuts in a heavy duty storage bag and stomp on them a few times. Does the trick quick and no mess!
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I have a hickory tree and picked up about a 1/2 bushel of nuts. I have never saved them before so I am not sure about removing the husks. Do you just peel them off? Also, I wondered if there was an easy way to crack them? I would like to make my mother's fudge recipe using these if I can figure out an easy way to do it.
Hardiness Zone: 5b
By Elaine from Belle Plaine, IA
Hi Laniegirl These two links should give you the info you're looking for and the third link gives info on how to roast them. :-)
findarticles.com/
Thanks Deeli, doesn't look like there is an easy way does it? Well, when I get snowed in, then maybe I can give it a try!
Elaine
I was born and raised in Arkansas and we had tons of Hickory trees around our house. We use to pick them up in 5 Gallon buckets and put them in my Fathers garage for Winter time. We'd crack them on a brick with our hammer and flatten the point of a med size nail to dig out the goodies.
I read that if you soak them in water first , they will crack easier
How to break walnut in one piece without making the nut in pieces?
Smarty from Bombay
Try taking two walnuts and pressing them together on the seems, makes them kinda pop.
Freezing nuts will make for easier cracking, and most will be in one piece.
Insert the tip of a pointy knife in the small hole found in the base of the walnut & twist the knife. The walnut splits neatly in half. This works very well, my husband opens all the walnuts that way.
What is the best way to crack hickory nuts to get lots of halves?
By foxygram from Combined Locks, WI
Very carefully! Sorry, couldn't resist saying that. My mom used to collect hickory nuts because she loved them so much. But boy are they a lot of work. I really don't think there is an easy way to do it.
I have soaked them overnight in water and then put them in a food dehydrator for 2-3 hours: they split open enough so you can pop in half with the twist of a sturdy knife. (Picking the meat is still a bit challenging but no "shrapnel" like you get with a vice or hammer!)
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You can either freeze really hard-shelled nuts like black walnuts or soak them in water for several hours before cracking.
