HELP! My nuts keep molding...

I know, that title is funny. :-) But its true! I am fairly new to raw and still learning, and I haven’t yet gotten the hang of soaking nuts. I soak them overnight, rinse them well, and then dry them…and each time, they end up moldy a couple days later!

The first batch I air-dried (which I had read works fine). They never really dried, so I wasn’t that surprised when the mold formed. So I tried again. Soaked them, rinsed them, and dried them on low heat in my oven with the door ajar (I don’t yet own a dehydrator, but my oven thermometer said it was about 100 degrees). This time they got bone dry, and once they cooled I put them in air-tight containers. I just looked at them and – surprise surprise – ALL of them were moldy again!!!

I can’t waste anymore of my money this way, so I don’t know what to do. I do live in a hot and humid environment (Florida)...maybe that has something to do with it? Please help – I just started soaking more nuts (this was before I realized the second batch was moldy, so it was too late), and I’d hate to see more money and food go in the trash! Any advice??? Thank you!

Comments

  • Are you storing them in your refridgerator? Once you soak the nuts, even if you are dehydrating/drying them they have germinated and are still perishable. You have to store them in the fridge and even then they are only good for about a week/2 tops. Does this help at all? I hope so :)

  • Oh…maybe that’s it! No, I was definitely storing them in my cupboard, and they molded in about 4 days!! I’ll keep this batch in the fridge and hope for the best. (I may need a bigger fridge, LOL.) Thanks!

  • rachel_akikorachel_akiko Raw Newbie

    Eww, that’s so gross. I’ve never seen a nut mold before, actually. :P

  • WinonaWinona Raw Newbie

    Even storing them in the fridge, they WILL mold if left over a week usually – use them in under 7 days.

  • TomsMomTomsMom Raw Newbie

    progressive chick, it’s possible, considering that nuts like walnuts, almonds and pecans are several months old already because we’re well past harvesting time, that your nuts are already contaminated with spores. Are the nuts rancid? I don’t know what kind of nuts you have, but if they’re pecans(for example) and they are a darkish brown instead of golden, then they are bad. Rancid. I recently got a batch of rancid nuts from a raw store and sent them back immediately without touching them. Once they’re bad, don’t even consider eating them, soaked or not. Of course, properly stored nuts last a long time, but I’m finding out the hard way that not all places store them considerately.

    Also, I don’t soak my nuts at all, unless I need them softened up for grinding(or I need to peel almonds), and then I soak them in cold water in the refridgerator for a few hours.

  • @rachel_akiko: Yeah, it isn’t a pleasant surprise…especially when it is like $30 worth of nuts.

    @Winona: Ack, this is frustrating. The soaking/drying thing is so time-consuming that I had hoped to do a large batch and have it last a while. I guess that’s not happening… :-(

    @Alix1962: Oh man, that is so gross. Maybe I won’t bother soaking the nuts either. I’d heard that it is easier to digest soaked nuts, but if it causes me so much stress it may not even be worth it, LOL. I’m glad to know there are other raw foodies who don’t bother!

    You know what is weird? I don’t seem to have the same issue with soaked/dried sunflower seeds. Knock on wood

    Thanks for all the help!!

  • This is a great forum – everyone has something of interest to add. Regarding soaking, I don’t see how that would help digestion unless soaked for a long time – there is an old but inaccurate bit of kitchen lore that advises soaking to deactivate the poison. Maybe this is where the improved digeston idea came from. There is a harmful chemical in bitter almonds but the almonds we eat do not share the genes that make bitter almonds bitter.

    On the other hand, the idea of sprouting or initaiting the sprouting process may cahnge the nutritive and other components in the almond. This might have a positive effect on the nutritive mix and maybe digestion as well. Does anyone know what happens when you sprout a seed?

    Somewhere I have suggested guidelines for almond storage. I will look arround and publish it..

    One last idea relates to sanitation. If repeated contamination occures in a food factory, everyting is checked, the incoming material, the pocess, etc. Also the factory would send in a sanitation crew in rain gear with steam hoses and disinfectant. The equipnment woujd be taken apart and then the crew would disappear in clouds of steam. Finally, they might add an ultraviolet light for good measure.

  • I soak my almonds at least 12 hours and then keep them in the fridge no longer than a week. I was determained to make flavored nuts. I soaked the almonds, coated them with honey and spices and put them out in the 90+ sun outside. No go on that. I brought them inside and ate them over the next two days but they did not dry even on the counter. I finally got a dehydrator and coated them with sprouted buckwheat processed into a batter with chili and lime added. I also did the same with horseradish, buckwheat and made some wasabe nuts. This is the way to make flavored nut snacks but they had to dry in the dehydrator almost two days. These where SAD eater approved.

  • WinonaWinona Raw Newbie

    The reason that nuts are soaked is to inactivate the enzyme inhibitors. The enzymes are necessary so that your body doesn’t need to use it’s own enzymes to digest the food (this is the main reason why raw food is so good for you!) For more info, read Enzyme Nutrition by Dr. Howell.

    That being said, I try to soak my nuts, but sometimes I don’t soak them. I recommend deciding on a recipe the night before, then just soak only the amount of almonds you need for the recipe, soak overnight then drain and pop em in the fridge. I wouldn’t worry about drying them, because in all recipes that’s not necessary.

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