Pickled Green Almonds

By
Leda Meredith
Leda Meredith
Leda Meredith
Leda Meredith is a food writer and certified botanist who has written five books on foraging and preserving food.
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Updated on 06/17/21
Almonds in a dish on a garden terrasse
Gilles Le Scanff & Joëlle-Caroline Mayer / Getty Images
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 1 mins
Canning Time: 15 mins
Total: 26 mins
Servings: 8 servings
Yield: 1 pint

Green almonds are simply the immature fruits of the almond tree. The nut, or seed, has formed inside but it still lacks the hard shells, and is instead encased in a fuzzy green hull.

When the almonds are so young that the seed inside is almost jelly-like, you can pickle them whole, hull and all. When they are slightly older but still lack any hard shell around the seed, you can pickle the kernel without the hull, as in this recipe. The result is a slightly tart and crunchy treat.

Ingredients

  • 2 quarts green almonds

  • 1/3 cup water

  • 1/3 cup white wine vinegar

  • 1 teaspoon honey

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 1 to 2 sprigs fresh dill

  • 1/2 teaspoon dill seeds

  • 2 to 3 whole black peppercorns

  • 1 small hot chile pepper, optional

Steps to Make It

  1. Slice off just the tips of the pointy ends of the green almonds. Look for the seam that the hulls have along one side, similar to that of apricots or peaches. Run a paring knife along that seam. Split the hull apart along the slice, revealing the cream-colored, shell-less kernel within.

  2. Bring the water, vinegar, honey, and salt to a boil, stirring once or twice to completely dissolve the honey and salt.

  3. Meanwhile, load a clean glass jar (it is not necessary to sterilize the jars for this recipe) with the green almond kernels, tucking in the herbs and spices as you go. The herbs can be an attractive part of the presentation of your pickled green almonds, especially if you are planning to give them as a gift. Use a chopstick to tuck the dill or fennel sprigs and the chile pepper (if using) in between the sides of the jar and the green almonds so that they are visible.

  4. Once the vinegar brine has come to a full boil, skim off any foam that may have formed. Pour the hot brine over the green almonds, herbs, and spices in the jar. Make sure that the almonds are completely covered by the liquid.

  5. If you will be storing your green almonds as a refrigerator pickle, you can fill the jar all the way to the top. Pickled green almonds will keep for at least 2 months in the refrigerator.

  6. For longer term storage at room temperature, pack the ingredients into a pint-size canning jar (or 2 half-pint jars) leaving at least 1/2-inch headspace between the surface of the brine and the rim of the jar. Secure canning lid and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes (adjust the processing time if you live at a high altitude).

Tips

  • You can use another non-iodized salt in this recipe.
  • Once canned, pickled green almonds will keep, unopened for years. But after you open a jar, they need to be stored in the refrigerator.
  • Whether you make your green almonds as a refrigerator pickle or take the extra step of canning them, be sure to wait at least a week for the flavors to develop and mellow before sampling.

Recipe Variation

  • For the herbs, use fennel leaves to replace the fresh dill, and either fennel or wild carrot seeds instead of dill seeds.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
830 Calories
73g Fat
30g Carbs
29g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories 830
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 73g 93%
Saturated Fat 6g 28%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 845mg 37%
Total Carbohydrate 30g 11%
Dietary Fiber 15g 54%
Total Sugars 7g
Protein 29g
Vitamin C 0mg 0%
Calcium 372mg 29%
Iron 5mg 29%
Potassium 987mg 21%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)