Fruit
Hazelnut
AvellanaAvellanaCorylus avellana
The hazelnut is the almond's quieter cousin: less famous, more fragrant. Toast a few and the whole kitchen smells of autumn.
When
Around: Sept–Nov · At its best: Sept–Oct
Around: Sept–Nov · At its best: Sept–Oct
Around: Mar–May · At its best: Mar–Apr
Around here
Catalonia is Spain's hazelnut country, and almost all of it comes from the Camp de Tarragona. That's home to the Avellana de Reus PDO, with varieties such as Negreta, small and full of flavour. It's essential in romesco and picada, and it goes into turrón and plenty of local sweets.
At the market
- In the shell: glossy, heavy, no holes or cracks, and they shouldn't rattle about when shaken.
- Shelled: whole, firm, no blemishes and no rancid smell.
- Toasted and skinned, if they're for picada or baking: you skip the fiddliest step.
- Look for the Avellana de Reus PDO seal if you want to be sure they're local.
At home
- In the shell, somewhere cool, dry and dark, for several months.
- Shelled, in an airtight jar; in the fridge if it's warm, as they turn rancid sooner than almonds.
- Toasted, in a tightly closed jar, and use them within a couple of weeks.
If you have too much
- Freeze them shelled, in a well-sealed bag: they keep for close to a year.
- Toast a big batch: about ten minutes in the oven, rub them in a tea towel and the skins come off almost by themselves.
- Homemade hazelnut spread: toasted and blitzed with a little cocoa and sugar.
- Ground hazelnuts for cakes and biscuits: blitz them cold and don't overdo it, or you'll get paste.
In the kitchen
- Romesco: toasted hazelnuts and almonds with roasted tomato and ñora pepper, garlic and fried bread.
- A hazelnut picada for a mushroom stew or chicken with saffron milk caps.
- In a salad with endive, pomegranate and goat's cheese.
- Toasted and chopped over roast pumpkin.
- With baked apple and a drizzle of honey.
What it brings
Per 100 g, raw.
- Energy
- 628 kcal
- Water
- 5% water
- Carbs
- 16.7 g
- Sugars
- 4.3 g
- Fibre
- 9.7 g
- Protein
- 15 g
Stands out for
- High in vitamin E15 mg · 125% of what you need in a day
- High in folate113 µg · 56% of what you need in a day
- High in magnesium163 mg · 43% of what you need in a day
- High in vitamin B60.6 mg · 40% of what you need in a day
- High in potassium680 mg · 34% of what you need in a day
- High in iron4.7 mg · 34% of what you need in a day
- Source of vitamin K14.2 µg · 19% of what you need in a day
- High in fibre9.7 g
Data from the USDA (FoodData Central). See the full table ↗ · How we decide what stands out
Goes with
- AlmondAug–OctHalf the Catalan recipe book has almonds in it, even when you can't see them: they're hiding in the picada, the sauce and the pudding. In the shell, they keep for almost a year without asking for anything.
- PomegranateSept–DecA jewel box with hundreds of seeds. There's a trick to getting them out, and once you know it you won't stain your shirt again.
- PumpkinSept–FebIt's harvested in autumn and, whole, keeps for months without a fridge: it was the vegetable that lasted till February. In Spanish, «giving someone pumpkins» means turning them down.
- Saffron milk capSept–DecCut it and it bleeds orange milk; handle it too much and it bruises green. Both are normal, and both help you recognise it.