Thai-inspired flavored nuts

[baroness]

I am finishing up making my food gift items and would like a savory Thai-flavored nut to complement the vanilla-spice pecans already made.

Here is some of what's in house now: coconut (unsweetened and sweetened), coconut milk, ginger (fresh, ground, crystallized), lime leaves, green curry paste, sriracha and other chile sauces, dry chiles, various other Asian condiments and a huge battery of 'Western" spices and herbs -- and almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, pine nuts, peanuts...

Ideas dearly welcomed!

[mkayahara]

I am finishing up making my food gift items and would like a savory Thai-flavored nut to complement the vanilla-spice pecans already made.

Here is some of what's in house now: coconut (unsweetened and sweetened), coconut milk, ginger (fresh, ground, crystallized), lime leaves, green curry paste, sriracha and other chile sauces, dry chiles, various other Asian condiments and a huge battery of 'Western" spices and herbs -- and almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, pine nuts, peanuts...

Ideas dearly welcomed!

I think peanuts would be the way to go, since they're found in Thai cuisine anyway. You can get commercial Thai-flavoured peanuts that are quite addictive, but I've never tried making them at home. If I did, though, I'm sure I'd try to work fish sauce, lime (either Persian or keffir), galangal and chilies in there somehow...

[JAZ]

Cashews are also common in Thai cuisine.

[nakji]

If the vanilla spice nuts are a little sweet, then a spicy nut would provide an excellent contrast. How about lime and chili? Thai flavours always balance salty-sour-sweet-bitter, so how about a mix of lime juice, chili powder, fish sauce/salt, and maybe the coconut and a little more sugar to add sweetness. Either peanuts or cashews would be an excellent choice. Lemongrass would be a nice flavour, also, but it'd be hard to get onto the nuts - maybe by infusing a sugar syrup...

[baroness]

I stocked up on raw peanuts and limes today; also remembered that I have palm sugar here.

As far as the bitter goes, is the lime sufficient to cover that as well as the sour note?

[nickrey]

No real need to worry about the bitter. Thai cooking is typically a balance of sweet, sour, salty, and hot (at least that's what David Thompson and his proteges always say in cooking classes).

[baroness]

The first iteration is cooling now:

12 oz. raw peanuts

2 T. peanut oil

1/4 c. brown sugar

2 T. lime juice

1 tsp. sriracha

1/4 tsp. cayenne

1 tsp. kosher salt, plus more to finish

I pan-roasted the nuts a bit, removing the loose peanut skins, then took them out of the pan and made a syrup with the other items. The nuts then returned and were stirred until the glaze was attached to them. Nuts were spread out to cool and a little more salt added.

Initial impressions: nice amount of heat and salt; the peanuts with the skins on are a lovely glossy dark brown and have more flavor than the bare ones. Both the lime and the sugar are NOT noticeable. I don't mind the lack of sweetness but do want a little tang.

I have lime OIL, but that would not be sour; also more limes if zest would be a good idea. Hmmmmmmm?

[mkayahara]

I have lime OIL, but that would not be sour; also more limes if zest would be a good idea. Hmmmmmmm?

I can't imagine a little lime zest or lime oil would be a bad addition to the glaze; if you don't want to add all the extra liquid involved in raising the amount of lime juice, lime zest and a little pure citric acid might give you both the flavour and tartness you're looking for.

[baroness]

I found some "Tart & Sour Fruit Flavor Enhancer" (contains: citric acid, water, malic acid, sodium citrate) in the cupboard -- or perhaps adding the lime PULP bits to the juice would be enough to tang it up.

I'll try another experimental batch of peanuts when all the cookies are done.

[nickrey]

Thinking about a sour flavour in powder form, you could try the Indian ingredient Amchur (Amchoor) powder. It is a sour-tasting powder derived from dried and powdered unripe green mangos. It's not traditional Thai but could give the flavour profile you are seeking.

[baroness]

Nick, I do have amchoor. I think I'll try pairing it with some tamarind AFTER the holidays!

In the meantime, I tried another batch with the following alterations:

increasing the lime juice by 60% (including the pulp),

adding 1.5 tsp. of fish sauce,

omitting the cayenne,

and adding 3 T of toasted, chopped unsweetened coconut.

The result was surprisingly similar to the first batch in terms of tartness/tang (rats!) and saltiness. Of course, it was less hot/spicy (better for my recipient audience). The coconut was a good addition.

[gwendolyn]

Have you considered using those lime leaves? Do you have any lemongrass? I would make more than one version- why not try a tamarind-garlic roasted almonds (in the style of tamari roasted almonds, with fish sauce, tamarind concentrate diluted in water, garlic, shallots, palm sugar, etc.) and green curry coated cashews?

An old housemate of mine who was himself Thai used to regularly prepare fried peanuts, sometimes adding dried anchovies and kaffir lime leaves, shrimp paste, plum sauce, or other condiments. The recipe seems similar to this: http://books.google.com/books?id=QoJJPYIxr3AC&lpg=PA69&dq=%22fried%20chili%20peanuts%22&lr=&as_brr=3&client=firefox-a&pg=PA19#v=onepage&q=%22fried%20chili%20peanuts%22&f=false

[baroness]

The Trader Joe's 'Thai' peanuts have lime leaves and dry chiles -- or did; I don't know if they still sell them.

I still have three bags of peanuts to experiment with in the new year. Tamarind-something and green curry will be making (separate) appearances when I resume experimenting. Thanks for the link!