Raw Natural Almonds

Raw Natural Almonds are whole almonds in their unroasted state, skin still on. The flavour is mild and clean with a light sweetness, and the bite is a hard, dry snap rather than the oily crunch of a roasted almond. This is the almond you start from when you want to control the roast, the salt or the soak yourself.

Natural here means the brown skin has not been removed, which is the difference between these and blanched, sliced or slivered almonds. The skin adds a slight tannic edge and keeps the kernel firmer, so these hold up in cooking and in cold liquid better than a blanched almond does.

How to use them

Eat them plain, or toast and salt a batch yourself. Chop them into halwa, sheer payra and baklava, use them whole for noql, or slice them over Kabuli pulao and qabili. They grind into almond flour for cakes and macaroon-style biscuits, blend into almond milk, and work in granola, trail mix, energy bites, oat porridge and green salads. Technique tip: soak them overnight in warm water and the skins pinch off cleanly, giving you blanched almonds for garnish and a softer, milkier nut for blending.

Details

Also known as

Natural Almonds, Raw Almonds, Whole Almonds, Sweet Almonds, Almond Kernels, Badam, Badaam, بادام (Dari, Persian and Urdu), لوز (Arabic), Mandorla (Italian), Amandes (French), Almendra (Spanish), Mandeln (German), Prunus amygdalus, Amygdalus communis