Easy and Simple: 4 Proven Ways to Quickly and Easily Shell Walnuts 0 8

But before taking advantage of these beneficial properties, the nuts need to be shelled. And no special tools are required for this.

The easiest option is to buy already shelled walnuts — no one disputes that. But, firstly, they are significantly more expensive, and secondly, they last longer in the shell. So why pay extra when you can shell a mountain of nuts at home with little effort? Just use the hacks listed below!

Method One: Boiling Water

This method requires no supernatural devices or ingredients. Just a deep bowl, boiling water, and a knife.

Place the unpeeled nuts in the bowl and pour boiling water over them so that they are completely submerged.
Leave them for 10 minutes, then carefully drain the water and wait a bit for the nuts to cool down.
Once it is comfortable to hold them, remove the softened shell using a knife or simply with your hands.

Method Two: Oven

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees, spread the walnuts on a baking sheet in a single layer, and place them in the oven for 10-15 minutes. This heat treatment will make the shell more brittle and pliable. Once the time is up, take out the baking sheet and let the nuts cool down a bit. Then put on fabric gloves to avoid burns and remove the shell by hand.

Method Three: Microwave

If you don’t have the opportunity or desire to deal with the oven, place a handful of walnuts in a bowl and put it in the microwave. There is just one caveat: the device must be set to "convection" or "grill" mode — if such functions are not available, it’s better to skip this method as it may be dangerous.

After setting the appropriate mode, heat the nuts for 2-3 minutes, then shell them by hand or with a knife after slightly cooling them down.

Method Four: Garlic Press

Modern garlic presses are unlikely to handle the challenging task of shelling walnuts, but the good old Soviet devices can easily crack even the toughest shell!

All you need to do is place the nut in the garlic clove container and gently squeeze the handles. Press down on the shell a few times until it cracks. Then accessing the contents will be easy.

How to Remove the Bitter Skin

Have you noticed that some walnuts can have a bitter, unpleasant taste? It’s all due to the brown skin on the nut, which can also be removed in two quick ways.

Pour boiling water over the shelled nuts for 5 minutes, then take them out of the water, let them cool, and remove the bitter skin by hand. After that, they will return to their pleasant "milky" taste.
Another option is to simply roast the walnuts in a pan for 5 minutes. The skin will start to come off during roasting. Just keep a close eye on the color and smell to prevent the nuts from burning.