Hazel is a multi purpose champion of a plant that is super easy to grow, produces delicious nuts, pliable wood that can be crafted into a variety of products, provides early fodder for bees and an encouraging spectacle when flowering during the mid winter.
I read that putting the nuts in the freezer for a few minutes changes the structure of the shell so it breaks easier. Or in the oven at 150 Celsius or something like that. Gonna try that in combination with your hammer method.
Hi Judith. There are machines available, mostly from the US, that can be used for a variety of nuts including hazelnuts. this video provides a good demo of the machine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4N6QmbeFz4. (Hazelnut cracking starts at 2.57)
Placing them on a table, covering with a cloth and gentle tapping them with a hammer is faster than individually cracking them but still requires manually removing the shells and i've heard but not tried that placing the hazelnuts in a blender and pulsing can also work but again requires the manual separation of shell and nut.
I read that putting the nuts in the freezer for a few minutes changes the structure of the shell so it breaks easier. Or in the oven at 150 Celsius or something like that. Gonna try that in combination with your hammer method.
Sounds good, let us know how it works please.
Is there a tool for opening hazelnuts, apart from the common one where you have to open one after another?
Hi Judith. There are machines available, mostly from the US, that can be used for a variety of nuts including hazelnuts. this video provides a good demo of the machine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4N6QmbeFz4. (Hazelnut cracking starts at 2.57)
Placing them on a table, covering with a cloth and gentle tapping them with a hammer is faster than individually cracking them but still requires manually removing the shells and i've heard but not tried that placing the hazelnuts in a blender and pulsing can also work but again requires the manual separation of shell and nut.