Unripe or green almonds are one of those earliest ingredients after the winter where anything green and fresh seems exotic and delicious. They are good and unique raw. I’m not sure the hype of any of the fresh nuts are as good as the mature ones - but I do get swept up in the buzz of new season ingredients after the cold and hunger gap.
Green almonds are still jelly inside the shell so the main part eaten is the shell while its still soft. The green shell is sour, astringent, very grassy, quite tannic, a nutty flavour is a stretch.
They are a unique products, sliced thinly and mixed into a salad, served with fresh cheese and a sweet relish or with fish and butter they give a good texture and grassy contrast to their companions on the plate.
For my money unripe almonds really come into their own pickled.
I use an umami pickle for to boost the rich flavour and the benefits that the almond brings to the plate, the pickle brine removes some of the tannin but keeps the grassiness.
Other spices can be added to the pickle mixture, but I would recommend a subtle hand as not to over shadow the almond to much.
The first step in to pierce the shell of the almond in two places using a skewer. Then to soak the almond in salt water for 8 hours. This allows the almond to leech out excess tannin and to season the nut. By salting the almond you shrink the cells inside the almond itself keeping the texture firmer once it is under vinegar, keeping it edible for longer.
The next step is to cover it with the pickle liquid in a jar and seal it. Leave for 1 week before serving. Will keep for about 6 months before the quality will decline (start to soften and lose grassiness and flavour, but still edible).
The umami pickle is a great variation to pickle recipes, there are many different versions/ directions they can take, from adding bonito flakes, soy sauce, msg powder, shiro dashi, kombu or mushroom dashi, miso or koji. They really boost simplicity in a dish, probably a bit too addictive as most ingredients taste plain afterwards. They are a fun way to bring out ingredients in a simple dish either as the pickle or using the left over pickle liquid as a dressing or to boost a sauce.
If you wish to keep this recipe vegetarian or the idea of a fishy pickle doesn’t appeal leave out the bonito flakes, you can also choose to season the pickle with white soy or a little light soy if you prefer.
Unripe almond pickle
Recipe for 500g unripe almonds
Brine
200g table salt
1kg water
pickle
1 piece kombu (approx 20cmx10cm)
4 dried shitake mushroom
5g bonito flakes
1kg water
200g white wine vinegar
20g honey
1/2 star anise
1/2 bay leaf
Using a skewer pierce the shell of each almond in two places, I prick them at the stem and the opposing tip.
Mix the salt and water until dissolved, then soak the almonds in the brine for 8 hours.
While the almond are curing make the dashi base for your pickle. (for more information on making dashi and extracting umami click here)
Heat 1 kg of water to 65 degrees C with kombu and maintain the temperature between 65 and 70 degrees for 1 hours. Remove the kombu from the liquid.
Add dried mushrooms to the kombu liquid and allow to soak for 6 hours, then heat again to 70 degrees and hold for 15 minutes, before removing the mushrooms from the pot
To finish the dashi, heat the kombu stock base to a low simmer (90 degrees C) and add the bonito flakes and remove from the heat. Let the flakes settle to the base of the pot and steep for 3 minutes before straining out the bonito.
For the pickle mixture you won’t need to use the whole amount of dashi, but there is no point in making less than a Ltr.
Mix together 400g dashi stock, 200g white wine vinegar, 20g honey, star anise and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Season the pickle mixture to taste, the more salt the more the umami will come through in the final almonds to be as courageous as you can be without over seasoning.
Strain the soaking almonds from their salt brine and place in a jar or pickling container.
Pour the warm vinegar mix over the almonds making sure they are all covered in the pickling solution.
Allow to sit and marinade for 1 week before using to get the full benefit of the dashi pickle.
Serving suggestions.
These are great with any meat or rich fish sliced thinly. Also as an accompaniment to fresh or hard cheese. Mushrooms or as the recommendations for the raw nuts, mixed through salads and roast veggies. They are very addictive.
As for ideas for umami pickles, green chilli, green beans, mushrooms and asparagus are all winning contenders, not ingredients I would necessarily want to pickle for 12 months, more ingredients which are nicer used within 6.
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