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Thanksgiving: Glittering Spiced Walnuts

Source of Recipe

From "Thanksgiving 101" by Rick Rodgers


Recipe Introduction

"It makes no difference how many of these addictive nibbles I make, they are always gone by the end of the evening. They have many irresistible qualities. The unusual deep-frying procedure gives them a delectably thin glaze, and the seasoning mixture is so much better and fresher than any Asian five-spice powder you can buy in a bottle. I've changed the recipe a bit over the years, increasing the spice mixture to reflect our collective palate's growing appreciation of bold seasonings. Walnut halves, not pieces, give the best results, as the smaller pieces tend to burn. They can be found at most supermarkets, or look for them at specialty food stores or online."

List of Ingredients

Asian Spices:
â—¦ 1 whole star anise (use 6 or 7 "points" if pod is broken)
â—¦ ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
â—¦ ¾ teaspoon coriander seed
â—¦ ¾ teaspoon whole Sichuan peppercorns
â—¦ ¾ teaspoon fennel seeds
â—¦ 6 whole cloves
â—¦ â…› teaspoon cayenne pepper or more to taste

â—¦ Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
â—¦ 1 pound walnut halves
â—¦ ½ cup sugar
â—¦ Salt, for sprinkling (use fine sea, plain, or iodized salt)


Recipe

To make the spice mixture, finely grind the spices in a spice or electric coffee grinder. Set aside.

Place a rimmed baking sheet next to the stove. Line a second baking sheet with paper towels. In a deep Dutch oven, add enough vegetable oil over high heat to come halfway up the sides, and heat to 365° F.

Meanwhile, bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil over high heat. Add the walnuts and cook for 1 minute. The water does not have to return to a boil. (This heats the walnuts and removes excess bitterness.) Drain in a large colander. Do not rinse. Immediately, toss the walnuts in the colander with the sugar until the hot water clinging to the walnuts melts the sugar to form a thin glaze.

In two batches, carefully add the nuts to the oil and deep-fry them until they are golden brown, about 3 minutes. Using a large wire mesh skimmer, transfer the walnuts to the unlined baking sheet (the hot walnuts would stick to paper towels) and cool completely. When cooled, transfer the walnuts to the paper towels to drain excess oil.

Place the walnuts in a bowl. While tossing the nuts, sift the spice mixture through a fine-meshed wire sieve over them. Discard the hulls in the sieve. Season with the salt. (The walnuts can be prepared up to 2 weeks ahead, stored in an airtight container at room temperature.)

Makes about 4 cups,
8 to 12 appetizer servings



• Note:
If you want to make more than one batch, have extra oil on hand. The sugar on the nuts "caramelizes" the oil after deep-frying a pound or two, and makes it necessary to use fresh oil.