Chili-Spiced Walnuts with Sea Salt & Olive Oil
The first time I made popcorn with chili powder and olive oil, I thought I’d found snack nirvana…but last week I tried the same combination on crispy walnuts and ascended to post-nirvana sublimity. The butteriness of the walnut perfectly compliments the spiciness of the chili powder; in the meantime, the fruitiness of the olive oil provides the perfect backdrop for the sea salt. All in all, one of the tastiest things I’ve ever concocted. And since preparing the nuts this way involves soaking them overnight, the nutrients in the nuts become much more available to us and are much easier to digest. (Ideally, all grains, nuts, legumes and seeds should be soaked, fermented or sprouted before consumption.) The saltwater soak also makes the walnuts somehow…walnut-ier. It’s hard to describe–you’ll have to try it and see what I mean!
Crispy Spiced Walnuts
Soak raw walnuts overnight–just place in a bowl with 1 tsp. of sea salt and enough warm water to completely cover the nuts. Leave on the counter overnight. (You may want to cover the bowl with a clean handtowel.) In the morning, dump them into a colander and let drain. Spread them out on a baking tray/sheet and toast them at a very low temperature for several hours, occasionally stirring to keep them from sticking to the pan. (The lowest my oven goes is 170 degrees F; you can go as low as 150 degrees.)
When the nuts are pleasantly crisp, remove them from the oven and let cool. Place in a glass jar and shake in about 1/2 tsp. to 1 tsp. each of chili powder and sea salt (depending on how spicy/salty you like it). Pour on a tablespoon or so of high-quality olive oil, screw on the jar lid, and shake to coat nuts with spices and oil. You can either store the nuts in the fridge for several weeks or leave in a cool, dark place.
Note: you could toast a batch of nuts and combine them with any spice you’d prefer. Or coat them with cinnamon and maple syrup to make a healthy dessert, or add a pinch of cayenne and serve them with a creamy cheese for contrast, or simply eat them plain. They’re great to take on trips as road snacks or keep in your desk at work! This recipe also works beautifully with pecans.
Enjoy!
Print This Post
I absolutely LOVE your recipes!
Warm regards,
Jan Bills
Two Women and a Hoe
The Fine Art of Soul to Soil
This recipe sounds great to have or take to small parties. Can you tell me how many cups of walnuts you used in your recipe to go with the other measured ingredients? Thanks, Margaret
Margaret – probably 4 cups.
I just did a version of this with 4 cups each of 5 different kinds of nuts – cashes, pecan, walnut, pistachio meats, & brazil. Doesn’t matter how many – just cover them with the water when soaking.
I did 1 TBSP sea salt per every 4 cups.