Storage And Use Of Almonds

Almonds make for an incredibly easy snack - all you do is grab and go. While you do not need to worry about any special storage procedures during the day until you consume them, long-term it is a good idea to take into consideration how they should be stored. By following the storage suggestions you can be sure that they are going to retain their best taste and will last as long as possible.

All almonds should be stored in cool and dry conditions, somewhere that is below ten degrees Celsius and less than 65% relative humidity. You will also want to keep them somewhere where they are away from other strong odour producing foods, as it is possible for the almonds to take on these odours as well. If follow these recommendations you can expect the almonds to last up to two years without losing any quality.

Any roasted almonds should be protected from oxygen as well, therefore keeping them in their vacuum packaging before consuming is the best thing to do.

When it comes to incorporating your almonds into your dishes, you can get very creative and versatile with it.

Whole almonds are great in cocktail mixes, with fruit and cheese or eaten alone as a snack. Blanched almonds are most commonly seen as a garnish, or then roasted to bring out their color and flavour. After that process you can then use them in cakes, cookies or other sweet deserts. Simply sprinkling them on top of some of your favourite foods is a great option as well.

Sliced almonds also offer a lot of options ranging from being sprinkled over green salad, served with hot or cold vegetables or added to a creamy soup for additional flavour and crunch. You can also use these to make granola by adding other of your favourite ingredients like oatmeal, dried fruit, walnuts, and other grains. If they are a blanched version of sliced almonds, these will commonly be used as decoration on frozen desserts or sprinkled on top of pastries.

Slivered blanched almonds will be slightly thinner than sliced and are great for use in stir-fries. Simply add them to the wok for the last minute before you are about to serve them. You can also add these to rice or pasta dishes for additional flavour and to make it more of a complete meal. Often times people will serve pasta, a vegetable and grilled chicken or fish, however they are forgetting to include the healthy source of fat in there as well. This will take care of that issue.

Diced almonds are often used in stuffings and coatings and those who make their own homemade bread will sometimes put them in there as well. It adds for a very nice texture when you are using a multi-grain bread mix as the extra crunchiness will blend really nicely.

You can also use diced almonds as a coating for fish fillets or chicken breasts along with bread crumbs and an egg white.

Finally, almond milk is best used in foods and recipes where you would normally use regular milk but are looking for something with a bit more flavour. This could be in your morning coffee, your afternoon smoothie or a before bed snack of cocoa powder mixed with sweetener in almond milk for a variation of hot chocolate.

Once you get a chance to play around with a few recipes and different almond forms you'll likely get a good idea of the taste of each and what they will work well with. Don't be afraid to try adding almonds to recipes that don't call for them either. They can definitely work great as an accompaniment to a variety of dishes that you would normally not think of adding them to.