Black walnut is a wild walnut native to North America. Unlike the English walnuts commonly sold in grocery stores, black walnuts have a stronger flavor and are more difficult to remove from the shell. If you want to harvest these flavorful nuts properly, wait until early fall and collect the seeds when they are ripe. Once the walnuts are collected, remove the tough shells and dry the walnuts with the shells before you break them to remove the flesh.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Collecting Walnuts
Step 1. Put on gloves to avoid staining your hands
Black walnut shells contain an ink that can stain clothing and skin. Before harvesting and handling, protect hands by wearing thick garden gloves.
You may also need to wear a helmet to protect your head from falling walnuts
Step 2. Harvest black walnuts in late September or early October
Black walnuts begin to ripen in early fall. Usually the walnuts will ripen in late September or the first few weeks of October.
When it's harvest season, the walnuts will start to fall from the tree
Step 3. Collect the walnuts when they are green
Black walnuts have a green outer shell with a slightly soft texture. Collect the walnuts when they are green so the flesh is fresh and not bitter or rancid.
Walnuts are yellowish green when ripe. Do not let the fruit turn brown or mottled
Step 4. Do a "pressure test" to see if the peel is soft
When ripe, the walnuts are slightly soft to the touch. Take a walnut and press the peel with your thumb. If the skin softens, it means the walnuts are ready to be harvested.
Warning:
When the black walnut shell begins to rot, the flesh will grow poisonous mushrooms that are harmful to humans, livestock and dogs. Don't eat walnuts where some of the skin has started to rot.
Step 5. Collect walnuts straight from the tree whenever possible
Black walnuts are ideally harvested straight from the tree, before they fall to the ground. However, the easiest course of action is to collect the fallen walnuts. Make sure you pick up any fallen walnuts before they grow mold or be eaten by animals.
You can also shake the tree or hit the fruit with a stick to knock the walnuts out
Part 2 of 3: Removing Walnut Skin
Step 1. Remove the walnut shells as soon as you harvest them, if possible
The longer the walnut shell is not removed, the more bitter the flesh will be. To maintain good taste and quality, remove the skin no later than two weeks after harvesting.
Flesh that remains in the skin for a long time will turn black and taste rancid
Step 2. Remove the skin with the plywood method
Black walnut skin is difficult to remove. If you only want to remove a few walnut shells at a time, try using a hammer to force the walnuts out through the hole you made in the piece of plywood. Use a drill to make a 4 cm diameter hole in the plywood board. Hit the walnuts hard with a hammer to push them into the holes, leaving the shells on the board.
You can also crush the walnuts with a heavy board or boots to remove the shells
Warning:
Don't forget to wear gloves when removing walnut shells. It's also a good idea to wear old clothes and place newsprint or rags so that the work area doesn't get dirty.
Step 3. Squeeze the walnuts placed on the gravel road to remove the skin
If you handle a lot of walnuts, pile them in the middle of the driveway. Run the walnut several times with the car to break the peel.
This method will remove the outer shell of the walnut, but keep the hard inner shell intact
Step 4. Take the walnuts to the mill if you are handling large amounts of walnuts
If you harvest a lot of walnuts and have trouble peeling them yourself, take them to the mill. There, the walnuts are processed in a milling machine to remove the skin.
- You can do an internet search to find out which mills are in your area.
- In the West, most of these mills are owned by companies that buy the walnuts the farmers harvest. You can earn extra money by selling walnuts to this place if your harvest is bountiful.
Part 3 of 3: Drying and Removing Walnut Shells
Step 1. Wash the peeled walnuts with water
Once the husks are removed, place the walnuts (which are still in the shell) in a bucket of water. This is to clean the juice, dirt, and lint from the walnut shells.
Discard the walnuts that are floating on the surface of the water. Good quality walnuts will sink in the water
Step 2. Dry the walnuts in a mesh bag for 5 weeks
After washing, place the walnuts in a mesh bag with loose holes (such as an onion bag) to allow airflow. Hang the bag outside in a well-ventilated area, but protected from direct sunlight and rain. Walnuts will dry within 5 weeks.
- Alternatively, you can spread the walnuts thinly over the soil until they dry. However, you should place it in a location protected from animals and other elements, such as on a screened veranda.
- To see if the nuts are dry, shake the shells. You will hear the crunch of the walnut flesh and the shell.
Step 3. Crack the walnut shells with a strong peeler
Black walnut shells are very difficult to crack. Once the walnuts are dry, open the shells using a strong nutcracker, a nutcracker that works like a vise. You can also crack the shell with a hammer, a heavy board or a hand vise. Once the shell is cracked, remove the flesh with a nutpick.
- You probably won't be able to crack the black walnut shells with a regular nutcracker.
- To crush multiple walnuts at once, place up to 100 walnuts in a burlap sack, then pound the sack a few times with a hammer to crack the shell. You'll need to separate the walnut flesh from the cracked shell by hand.
- If you don't have time to crack the shells right away, put the walnuts in a bag and store them in a place that has a temperature of 0–4 °C.
Tip:
Try soaking the walnuts for 1-2 hours first to soften the shell. Place the damp walnuts in an airtight container overnight before you break them. You can make the shells softer by soaking them in hot water right before you break them.
Step 4. Discard any damaged and rotting walnuts
When breaking walnuts, inspect the shell and flesh carefully. Discard walnuts whose shells are cracked or damaged because they may have been exposed to mold or microorganisms. Discard walnuts that are black, bright yellow, or streaked with blue as these are signs that the meat has been contaminated.
Healthy walnuts should be light brown to dark brown on the outside, and pale white or cream on the inside
Step 5. Store walnuts in the refrigerator or freezer
Once the shells are removed, allow the walnuts to dry for a day or two before placing them in an airtight container. Walnuts will stay fresh for 1 year if stored in the refrigerator, and can last up to 2 years or more if placed in the freezer.
- If stored in the freezer, place the walnuts in a jar or plastic freezer bag and write down the date.
- If you want, you can also directly use the walnuts.
Tips
- You can eat walnuts fresh, roast them, or add them to salads or baked goods.
- Once the shell is removed, the black walnut flesh will float in the water, while the shell will sink. After breaking the shell, put the walnut flesh and shell fragments in warm water. Take the flesh of the seeds that float on the surface of the water, and discard the shells that have sunk at the bottom of the bucket.
