Slivered Almonds (Almond Sticks)

Slivered Almonds are blanched almonds cut into slim matchsticks, pale cream with no skin, thicker and more solid than a flat almond flake. They keep a real bite in the middle, so you notice them as a separate texture in a mouthful of rice or a spoonful of pudding rather than as a crisp dusting on top.

Slivered is a different cut from sliced. A sliver is a stick with a squared cross section that holds its shape and stands proud in a dish, while a slice is a wide flat oval meant to lie down and cover a surface. When a recipe wants almond you can see and feel scattered through it, this is the cut it means.

How to use them

This is the classic garnish for Kabuli pulao and qabili, tossed with slivered carrot and raisin over the rice, and for zereshk polo and shirin polo with barberries and orange peel. Fry them briefly in ghee or oil until pale gold first, which is the traditional step. They also go into sheer khurma, firni, halwa and baklava, into biryani and korma, and into granola, salads, green beans and rice stuffings. Technique tip: fry them separately and add them at the end, so they stay crisp instead of steaming soft in the pot.

Details

Also known as

Almond Slivers, Slivered Almonds, Almond Sticks, Almond Julienne, Blanched Almond Strips, Badam Slivers, Amandes effilees (French), Almendra fileteada (Spanish), Mandeln Stifte (German)