Beech nuts - edible fruits of the forest
In times of need, beechnuts were always a welcome addition to the menu. Beech seeds enjoyed great popularity when pressed as oil, roasted as a coffee substitute or ground to stretch flour.
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- Be careful when consuming raw beechnuts!
- The slightly poisonous beechnuts are not suitable for dogs
- Collect beechnuts for delicious dishes in the kitchen
In the last few decades, collecting beech nuts has been forgotten. The seeds have many minerals and some vitamins. The fat content is quite high at 50 percent.
100 grams of beechnut oil contains around 15 grams of saturated fatty acids, 50 grams of oleic acid and 35 grams of linoleic acid.
Do not eat beechnuts raw
Beech nuts contain the toxins fagin and hydrogen cyanide as well as oxalic acid. Consumed raw, larger amounts of fagin and hydrogen cyanide can cause severe stomach aches, headaches or other complaints. Children in particular should never eat beechnuts raw.
You may only eat a few fruits raw. However, if you consume too much, fatal symptoms of poisoning can occur.
If you plan to process and enjoy large amounts of beechnuts, you need to break down the toxins beforehand.
Using heat to make beechnuts edible
Fagin and hydrogen cyanide are not heat-resistant. The poison can be broken down by using the beechnuts
- Roast
- Scald with hot water
Toast the blown beechnuts in a pan without fat. This breaks down the toxins and the aromatic taste of the fruit is only really released.
You can also scald the beechnuts with hot water before you release them. The shell then comes off much more easily and the toxins are neutralized at the same time.
Bind oxalic acid
Like many fruits, beechnuts contain oxalic acid. To bind the acid and make it easier for the body to tolerate, combine it with dairy products.
Beech nuts can be processed for this
- Vegetable and fruit salads
- Nibbles
- cake
- oil
Addition to salads or as a tasty snack
You will probably no longer want to make coffee from the beechnuts, as our grandparents still did.
You can refine autumn salads with the roasted fruits. Fruit and fruit salads are pleasantly hearty thanks to the aroma. Scatter the toasted, chopped beechnuts over the salad like nuts.
You can make beechnuts for nibbling by rolling the nuts in salt after roasting.
Baking with beechnuts
Cakes get an aromatic taste if you mix roasted and then ground beechnuts into the flour.
Tips & Tricks
To get to the edible seeds of the beechnuts, the hard shell must be opened with a knife. Inside there are white kernels, the actual seeds. The brown skin that surrounds them can be eaten. It usually falls off by itself when roasting.
