The market · Nuts and seeds · The Middle East, Southern Europe, North Africa
Green almonds
Almonds picked young, while the furry green hull is still soft — eaten whole with salt in Iran and Turkey, or split for the jelly-soft white kernel inside.
grassy · sour · crisp
Kinds
- Very young
- Early in the season: eat the whole thing, hull and all — crisp and sour.
- Later
- The hull toughens; split it and scoop out the soft white nut, which tastes of fresh almond and cream.
Knowing it
- Where to buy
- Turkish, Persian and Middle Eastern grocers in spring, and some specialist greengrocers. Bright green and firm, with no brown patches.
- Worth knowing
- Dip the young ones in flaky salt and eat them raw, or slice them into a lamb stew for sourness, as in Persian khoresh-e chaghaleh badam. Later kernels go raw onto crudo or a spring salad with oil and lemon.