Newbie question about nuts

SarahJ

I understand that raw almonds need to be soaked before using them. I have a couple of questions though. 1. Once they have been soaked, do the brown skins come off? 2. Some recipes talk about dehydrating them after they have been soaked. Do you have to do this? 3. How do you store them after they’ve been soaked? Fridge/counter/freezer?

Any help would be really appreciated. Thanks.

flybaby

Hi SarahJ,
If they are soaked for lets say overnight, the brown skin can be easily taken off.
After that you can dehydrate them, but if you don’t feel like you don’t have to. Dehydrating is good for them, because they somewhat retain their texture and flavour.( but personally I like them after they are soaked too) Sometimes it may depend on the recipe too.
After I have soaked them I store them in the fridge, until I use them up. I don’t know exactly how long they will keep this way, but I have stored them the longest for 3 days. Dehydrating is good if you want to store them longer.
I hope it helps a bit :)

KristensRaw

Storing soaked nuts and seeds about three days in refrigerator is maximum.

You soak based on the recipe, if it calls for soaked nuts. If the recipe doesn’t call for soaking, because it requires a “dry” texture, then for optimal digestion, you’ll soak and dehydrate the nuts (don’t worry about taking the skins off – not necessary). Once they’re dehydrated, they’re easier to digest and can be used in “dry” nut recipes. You can store both soaked and soaked/dehydrated nuts in the refrigerator. Don’t put soaked nuts in the freezer. You can also store soaked/dehydrated nuts in the freezer. Soaking the nuts can be done on your counter.

There are some nuts that don’t require soaking because they don’t have enzyme inhibitors that need to be broken down and those are: cashews, brazil nuts, pine nuts, macadamia nuts and hemp seeds. Now, that doesn’t mean you won’t see recipes call for soaking these, because you will. The reason a recipe would require soaking one of these is because you need the nut or seed extra “soft” to blend and soaking helps.

Cheers!
Kristen Suzanne

SarahJ

Wow – thank you so much. That has clarified everything.