Brazil Nuts

Brazil nuts are the long, crescent shaped kernels most people pick out of a mixed nut bowl first. The texture is dense and faintly waxy, closer to a piece of fresh coconut than to an almond, and the flavour is creamy and gently sweet with a rich, oily finish that stays with you. One or two is usually enough in a sitting.

These are shelled kernels, so there is nothing to crack. They come from the towering Brazil nut tree of the Amazon rainforest, and because they carry so much oil they turn stale faster than most nuts. That is the one thing worth knowing before you buy: keep them cold and buy the size you will actually get through.

How to use them

Chop them into halwa, sheer khurma and other milk and nut sweets, or set them out whole on a tray with dates, dried apricots and figs. They grate well, and a fine grating over firni or rice pudding gives a coconut like note. In baking they keep their shape in brownies, banana bread, biscotti and fruit cake. Soaked and blended they make a thick nut cream for sauces. If you want to toast them, use a low oven for six to eight minutes and watch closely, because the oil browns much faster than in an almond.

Details

Also known as

Brazil nut kernels, Amazon nuts, Para nuts, cream nuts, castanha-do-Para, nuez de Brasil, noix du Bresil, Brazilnoot