Black Walnuts pickin but not grinnin

From Ground to Goodie, what's the easiest route you've traveled?

Depends on how many you have to work with? I usually have several 5 gallon buckets picked up from under the trees. I pour them onto the ground where they will be ran over by our vehicles. Then I put on my gloves and grab the rake and rake out the ones that have had the outer hull taken off by the vehicle. I repile the others to continue being ran over. I like to put the ones that were hulled from the outer shell into a mesh bag to dry a while. Then I repeat picking up the ones that have the outer hull taken off. When the weather is not suitable for outside activities, I crack a batch of black walnuts (with hammer or vice) and pick them out. Then I freeze them for later use. Hope this is helpful.

Brend,

I thank you for the response and information.

I’ve picked up about a bushel, unhulled, thus far. I’ve hulled some of them, cracked and picked out a few, and taste tested. They definitely passed. Wow! There’s another bushel or so on the ground, I estimate, and a few left to fall.

Out of a gallon of hulled black walnuts, say, what measure of goodie do you end up with? I don’t want to overdo a labor intensive thing–there’s other fish waiting to be fried–even though the picking up and hulling, to me, are enjoyable. The cracking and picking out are not.

What do you usually do with the goodies? Help Meet loves to cook, especially bake. She’s good at it.

Happy pickin!

I try to get the outer hull off of the walnut soon after I pick them up. Before it dries hard.

After they are out of the outer hull, I let the walnuts dry for more than two weeks before I start cracking them (preferably in the sun). I still have a mesh bag with about a five gallon that are still good from fall 2012. Sometimes I get generous and crack a few for the birds - they love them about as well as the squirrels.

If you bought black walnut goodies at the store, they would probably cost from $7 to $9 per pound.

You mentioned that you had already cracked and picked out a few - hope they were dry and not still green - persay.

Not everyone like the taste of black walnuts. I especially like them in divinity, applesauce cake, BROWNIES, oatmeal cookies, chocolate chip cookies and I have a bar cookie I make with them, etc.. Don't plan on substituting black walnuts for any recipe that calls for pecans. Not always a good idea. There are just certain things they are good in.

As for how many goodies to expect from a gallon of cracked walnuts - My guess would be between a cup and a pint, assuming most of the walnuts are good.

Try and get all the nut hulls out when picking then out - you don't want to crunch down on a piece of wood when you are eating a brownie.

I don't always sit and pick out all I crack at once, I may pick off and on for a couple days. It is kind of like putting a jigsaw puzzle together. Then I freeze the goodies I've picked out.

Happy pickin!.

Brend,

I’ve been experimenting with the walnuts. I underestimated the crop on that tree. It has produced at least twice as many as my original estimate. I’m still picking up on pretty days.

I’ve picked out probably a half gallon. But “pickin out” is really not the right term anymore. That’s the main reason for my getting back with you. I’m “splittin out.” Being a knowledgeable walnut hand, you might have already split.

I use dike pliers to split the shell from around the meat. It’s a more aggressive action than pickin, and the meat bowl fills quicker. I use nine inch dikes. The jaws must open wider that the thickness of the walnut shell.

I can identify with your jigsaw puzzle statement, even more so when using the dikes rather than a pick. Figuring what cut (split) will produce the largest goody is somewhat of a challenge, and there’s the accompanying snip-snip sound of the dikes doing their work–not bad while sitting near a wood-burning heater on a cold, rainy day.

Happy snippin.

Sounds like a better term, that "splittin out". I would like to give that a try, and I am confident that there are no nine inch dikes around this place. I'll have to keep my eyes open and look for a pair perhaps at an electric supply? YOU MAKE IT SOUND SO EASY. MAYBE EVEN FUN!

So do you have hulls flying in all directions while your cracking/splittin there by the wood-burner? You need another tree!! At the rate you are going, you are going to run out of something to do this winter. HA! So if I go for the 9" dikes, will that work for me as well? The shell is so hard, I usually use a hammer or a vice to crack a pan full at a time. So, even if I'm a wimp - will I be able to crack them easily with the dyke?

Just curious, how did you get the outer hull off and how do you plan on using the goodies you have split out?

AdamAgain,

I searched and searched for the 9 inch dyke's and decided that $40 was a little much for me to pay for the experiment. So, guess I'll not give that a try, but it was sure an interesting thought. I liked your strategy. Thanks for sharing. At least now I know where the local electrical supply places are now. So there - I learned something about electricity instead of black walnuts.

I sold some of my black walnuts, so will not have as many to crack/store.

Brenda, now that you know what the 9" dykes looks like, keep an eye out for them at garage sales or anywhere you can buy used tools.

BTW, sure liked your method for dehusking the walnuts...necessity is the mother of invention, lol!

You should be able to find a pair for less than 40 bucks–less than half that, I’m thinking. Around here, electrical supply houses are high, but they usually carry top end. Try the big boxes’ hand tool section: Home Depot, Lowes, and the old standby Wally World. World will probably need to be a Super Center, and some of theirs will probably be low end, but they will work.

They don’t have to be nine inch; the longer the handles the more the mechanical advantage, of course, and a walnut’s can be a tough shell to split. The main thing is the jaws must open wide enough to grip the thickness of the shell.

You will like the method, I think. Here’s a teaser: Every once in a while I will split-out a whole half. When I do, it makes me grin. How many whole black walnut halves have you picked-out in your career?

Keep your eye peeled and have a blessed Thanksgiving.

So, in the mean time - while I'm keeping my eyes open for the dykes, I'll give this blacksmith tool a try on cracking the black walnuts. Maybe a nutting stone would be a good thing.

You asked how many, what - whole halves I had picked out. Well - probably NONE. Yes, I will keep my eyes open.

Yesterday p.m. I saw 6” dikes for less than $7. I checked their movement and jaw width, both of which were fine, but didn’t have a walnut in my pocket in our local small town Wal-Mart to give them a true test.

To me, it looks like the smithy tool will have too much flex.

Try this for breakfast some frigid morning, proportions to your liking:

100% oats
Raisins
Black walnuts (moisture content lowered)
A bit of honey
A sprinkle of cinnamon
A little banana, maybe
A splash of milk

I’m still splittin and grinnin. I still have about a half bushel of hulled nuts to go. They’re drying in the Great Outdoors. This year’s production from that tree is nearly unbelievable.

Stay alert.

I printed the recipe and I will give it a try one of these morns.

Glad you are still splittin & grinnin. I have about 1/4 bu yet to crack and shell. I'm still keeping in mind those 9" dykes, but like you say - A walnut in the pocket would eliminiate guessing if the tool will work - when, in fact, it usually will not. I've about decided that AZ black walnuts have thinner shells than IL. Mine walnuts are also in the garage and our temp was 9 degrees early, they should be well dried by now in the great outdoors. Unheated garage.

Yep - staying alert. Haven't given up yet.

Woops,

Just had your powered up oatmeal but forgot the cinnamon, it was still great. This is my second time making your oatmeal with the black walnuts - glad you shared the recipe.

I'm going to have to get crackin as my walnut stash is getting low.

I'm now packin a black walnut in my pocket when I antique - looking for your ultimate nut cracker.

Top of the day,

I might have misled you a little bit with the Walmart visit. Before I could have seen if the dikes would split the shell, I would have had to crack the walnut–gain an entry, get a toe hold, obtain a leverage point, if you will. But there was a nice display of hammers just down the aisle, and I was standing on a concrete floor.

The last of this year’s crop, about twenty-five cracked nuts, is on a cookie sheet on the coffee table, waiting to be diked.

I’m glad that you enjoyed the doctored oats, hard to beat on a frosty morn.

Stay alert.