You should be aware of this

Beechnuts - edible fruits of the forest

In times of need, beechnuts were always a welcome addition to the menu. Pressed as oil, roasted as a coffee substitute or ground to stretch flour, they enjoyed Beech seeds great popularity.

In the last few decades that is Collecting beechnuts fell into oblivion. The seeds have many minerals and some vitamins. The fat content is quite high at 50 percent.

100 grams of beechnut oil contains around 15 grams of saturated fatty acids, 50 grams of oleic acid and 35 grams of linoleic acid.

Do not eat beechnuts raw

Beechnuts contain the toxins fagin and Hydrocyanic acid as well as oxalic acid. Consumed raw, larger amounts of fagin and hydrogen cyanide can cause severe stomach aches, headaches or other complaints. Children in particular should never eat beechnuts raw.

You may only eat a few fruits raw. However, if you consume too much, fatal symptoms of poisoning can occur.

If you plan to process and enjoy large amounts of beechnuts, you need to break down the toxins beforehand.

Using heat to make beechnuts edible

Fagin and hydrogen cyanide are not heat-resistant. The poison can be broken down by using the beechnuts

• Roast
• Scald with hot water

Toast the blown beechnuts in a pan without fat. This breaks down the toxins and the aromatic taste of the fruit is only really released.

You can also scald the beechnuts with hot water before you release them. The peel then comes off much more easily and the toxins are neutralized at the same time.

Bind oxalic acid

Like many fruits, beechnuts contain oxalic acid. To bind the acid and make it easier for the body to tolerate, combine it with dairy products.

Beechnuts can be processed for this

• Vegetable and fruit salads
• Nibbles
• cake
• oil

Addition to salads or as a tasty snack

You will probably no longer want to make coffee from the beechnuts like our grandparents did.

You can refine autumn salads with the roasted fruits. The aroma makes fruit and fruit salads pleasantly hearty. Scatter the roasted, chopped beechnuts over the salad like nuts.

You can make beechnuts to nibble by rolling the nuts in salt after they have been roasted.

Baking with beechnuts

Cakes get an aromatic taste if you mix roasted and then ground beechnuts into the flour.

Tips & Tricks

In order to get to the edible seeds of the beechnuts, the hard shell has to be opened with a knife. Inside there are white kernels, the actual seeds. The brown skin that surrounds them can be eaten. When roasting, it usually falls off on its own.