Roasting Acorns

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Davian
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Post by Davian » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 4:31 pm

Roasting acorns right now...just an awesome (and massively under-appreciated) snack. Lots of work involved in it so people don't take the time to do it anymore but they're quite tasty (better than chestnuts IMHO) if you do it right. Acorn bread is pretty ridiculous too.

 
waldo lemieux
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Post by waldo lemieux » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 4:34 pm

well how about a little "how to" story ? Ive never knew you could do such a thing...

lets get crackin'
waldo

 
Davian
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Post by Davian » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 4:42 pm

waldo lemieux wrote:well how about a little "how to" story ? Ive never knew you could do such a thing...

lets get crackin'
waldo
The hardest part is finding them...especially this time of year. If you have a bunch of oak trees (or even a couple big ones) its pretty easy though. Take a bucket with you and simply grab all the acorns you can find near your oak trees...this is best done in Sept/early Oct but I came across a couple of squirrel caches when I was out hiking with my dogs a few hours ago so I grabbed them up. Once you're done, dump them all into a big pot full of cold water. Discard all the ones that float as those are the bad nuts. After that, you have to drain it and let them dry out. A couple of baking pans is a good way as you can toss them in the oven for 10-15 min on very low heat. After that, just let them sit for a bit and get cracking...literally. A hammer or nutcracker works best (putting them between a couple kitchen towels helps. Once you've shucked all of them, there are a couple options. If you are just roasting them, you can then boil off the tannins that way (http://www.livestrong.com/article/471623-how-to-cook-acorns/) or you can cold soak them for a few days (if you are making bread or flour, I recommend that way).

Note: don't eat raw acorns, they will get you sick. You have to leach out the tannins first.

You can also harvest them for the oil which is quite flavorful and it costs a fortune in specialty cooking stores. I usually do this in Sept/Oct when I would normally go acorn picking but not today as I didn't find enough to make it worthwhile.

Here's another good link on how to do it: http://www.eattheweeds.com/acorns-the-inside-story/

 
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davidmcbeth3
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Post by davidmcbeth3 » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 7:28 pm



 
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009to090
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Post by 009to090 » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 8:12 pm

Davian wrote:The hardest part is finding them...
Note: don't eat raw acorns, they will get you sick.
You have to leach out the tannins first.
Interesting, thanks for the info. Our Oak trees rained so many acorns this year, the ground was completely covered, All the way around the house!
Our dog likes to eat them green. He cracks them open with his teeth and eats the raw nut. He'll eat dozens at a time.

 
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SMITTY
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Post by SMITTY » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 8:14 pm

Same up here Chris - HUGE acorns all over the place around here.
davidmcbeth3 wrote:http://i.imgur.com/Ukh1uMJ.jpg

I don't eat acorns
HA! Nice one Dave. :funny:

I have to say ... I've lived in an area since birth that always produces TONS of acorns, and I have never heard of anyone eating them. Learn something new every day!

Interesting ... but I'll stick with my hickory nuts. :P

 
Davian
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Post by Davian » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 9:03 pm

davidmcbeth3 wrote:http://i.imgur.com/Ukh1uMJ.jpg

I don't eat acorns
ROFL.

 
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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 9:26 pm

I've heard that it's a good idea to put them into a sack that allows water to flow through it and then toss them into a flowing stream for about 4 days. That soaks the nasty tannins out nicely. Better tie a rope to the sack and tie it off to a tree.


 
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davidmcbeth3
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Post by davidmcbeth3 » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 9:27 pm

lsayre wrote:I've heard that it's a good idea to put them into a sack that allows water to flow through it and then toss them into a flowing stream for about 4 days. That soaks the nasty tannins out nicely. Better tie a rope to the sack and tie it to a tree.
But I wanna eat my acorns NOW !

LOL

 
Davian
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Post by Davian » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 9:35 pm

lsayre wrote:I've heard that it's a good idea to put them into a sack that allows water to flow through it and then toss them into a flowing stream for about 4 days. That soaks the nasty tannins out nicely. Better tie a rope to the sack and tie it off to a tree.
Yes, that is the preferred and best way to leach them. When I harvest in the early Fall, I use a cheescloth sack and the larger stream (I have two streams on my property) on my property in an area where its fast, running water. Works great actually.

If you're just roasting them, you can boil them like I did today instead of waiting a few days.

Another awesome use for acorns is as a fattening agent for hogs. If you have a few big acorn trees and its near butchering time, giving your hog a few 5 gallon buckets of acorns will significantly fatten him/her up and make the meat sweeter. The old method was to just free range the hogs in the fall if you had an oak forest nearby and then harvest the pigs after a couple weeks. Huge fat and protein source for them. Acorns are something like 1800 calories, 112 grams of fat (almost all monounsaturated "good" fat) per pound and 27 grams of protein per pound. That's why squirrels, deer and other animals love them so much...and why an oak tree makes a great deer stand location.
Last edited by Davian on Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 9:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.

 
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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 9:39 pm

Davian wrote:Yes, that is the preferred and best way to leach them. When I harvest in the early Fall, I use a cheescloth sack and the larger stream (I have two streams on my property) on my property in an area where its fast, running water. Works great actually.

If you're just roasting them, you can boil them like I did today instead of waiting a few days.
I've never tasted them, but would like to give them a try.

 
Davian
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Post by Davian » Tue. Nov. 11, 2014 9:42 pm

lsayre wrote:
Davian wrote:Yes, that is the preferred and best way to leach them. When I harvest in the early Fall, I use a cheescloth sack and the larger stream (I have two streams on my property) on my property in an area where its fast, running water. Works great actually.

If you're just roasting them, you can boil them like I did today instead of waiting a few days.
I've never tasted them, but would like to give them a try.
They kinda taste like chestnuts or walnuts...slightly sweet and "nutty" if that makes sense.

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