Contents
Juglans regia, the English or Persian walnut, and J. nigra, the black walnut native to eastern North America and much stronger in flavour. In cold food they are the crunch slot, and they bring a slight tannic bitterness that is useful against sweet and creamy things — apple, dried cranberries, blue cheese.
Toasting
Non-negotiable, and it takes four minutes. Dry pan over medium heat, or 8–10 minutes in a 175 °C / 350 °F oven, until they smell of walnut rather than of nothing.
Cool them completely before they go into a dressed bowl. Warm nuts go soft immediately — this is the most common reason a nut in a salad is disappointing.
The bitterness
Most of it is in the papery skin, which is high in tannins. Toasting mellows it; rubbing the toasted nuts in a tea towel removes much of the skin if you want them sweeter. Some bitterness is desirable — it is what stops barley salad tasting like dessert.
Rancidity
Walnuts are the most fragile common nut, roughly 65 % fat and unusually high in polyunsaturated omega-3, which oxidises fast. A rancid walnut tastes sharply bitter and faintly of paint, and it is the single most likely reason someone believes they dislike walnuts.
Buy them from somewhere with turnover, and keep them in the freezer. A sealed bag in the freezer keeps a year; a cupboard keeps them a couple of months at best. They need no thawing.
Notes
- Black walnuts have a hard shell and a much more assertive, almost medicinal flavour. Worth using deliberately, not as a substitute.
- Direct swaps in the recipes here: pecans (sweeter), almonds (milder, crunchier), pumpkin seeds (nut-free).
Elsewhere on the site
Used in: barley salad · chicken salad sandwich · pesto
Related: pumpkin seeds · sesame seeds · dried cranberries · Nuts · Nuts And Seeds