- Season
- Hazels are harvested in September and October. Hazelnuts in the shell are easiest to find in Czech shops in autumn and in the weeks before Christmas, and some stores sell them all year.
- Price
- Medium
- Nutrition per 100 g
- 602 kcal
- 13.5 g protein
- 53.5 g fat
- 26.5 g carbs
Unpeeled Hazelnuts
Nuts and dried fruit
Unpeeled Hazelnuts
In Czech shops, lískové ořechy neloupané are whole hazelnuts still inside their hard, smooth brown shell, and you crack them yourself. The shelled kernels are sold separately as loupané.
In practice
How to store
- On the counter
Keep in a breathable cotton or net bag in a cool, dry, dark and well-ventilated place, such as a pantry or cellar, away from heat and humidity. Under these conditions nuts in the shell keep for several months. Damp makes them mould, and warmth makes the oils go rancid.
- In the fridge
Cold storage at about 0–4 °C in a dry container slows rancidity and keeps nuts in the shell fresh for up to about six months. Once cracked, kernels keep less well: store them in a closed container and use them within a few weeks.
- In the freezer
Nuts in the shell or shelled kernels can be frozen in an airtight bag or box for up to about a year with little loss of quality. Thaw them at room temperature in the closed bag so condensation does not settle on them.
How to choose
Choose nuts that feel heavy for their size and have dry, intact shells with no cracks, holes or dark mouldy patches. Shake a few: a loud rattle can mean a shrivelled or dried-out kernel. Small round holes are usually the exit holes of the hazelnut weevil larva, and those nuts are empty or spoiled. Buy from the current season's harvest where you can, which in Czech shops means autumn. Check the label for country of origin, because supermarket stock is often imported while farm shops may sell Czech nuts. After cracking, throw away any kernel that is mouldy, discoloured, shrivelled or bitter. Mould on nuts can produce mycotoxins.
What to swap in
Best swap
Shelled hazelnut kernels (lískové ořechy loupané) are the same nut without the work. Allow roughly 400–600 g of nuts in the shell for every 200–250 g of kernels a recipe needs.
In a pinch
Walnuts (vlašské ořechy) or almonds work in baking and toppings. They change the flavour, and ground almonds give a milder, less aromatic result.
Preparation
Crack the shells with a nutcracker. Alternatively, put the nut on a hard surface and tap it with a small hammer or a heavy pan. Covering it with a cloth stops shell fragments flying. Hit the pointed end or the seam rather than the flat side. Pick out all shell fragments before cooking, because they are very hard on teeth. You can eat the kernels raw with their skins. To remove the skins, roast the kernels on a baking tray at about 160–180 °C for 8–12 minutes until fragrant, then rub them in a clean tea towel while still warm. Watch them closely, because they burn quickly. Let them cool before grinding, or they turn oily.
Don't toss it
Dry hazelnut shells burn well. Use them as kindling in a wood stove, fireplace or barbecue, or add small amounts to garden compost or as a mulch, where they break down slowly. Rub the skins left after roasting through a sieve and add them to granola, or simply compost them.
In the kitchen
Cooking
In Czech kitchens, hazelnuts cracked from the shell usually go into baking. They are ground into doughs and fillings for Christmas biscuits (vánoční cukroví) and nut fillings, and chopped into cakes, buchty and homemade muesli. Many households also put a bowl of nuts in the shell on the table at Christmas time for people to crack and eat as a snack. Dry-roasting in the oven or in a dry pan deepens the flavour before you grind or chop the kernels. Blend roasted kernels into a paste for spreads, or chop them roughly over salads, porridge, roasted vegetables and game dishes.
Goes well with
- Chocolate
- Cocoa
- Honey
- Apples
- Pears
- Plums
- Oats
- Butter
- Coffee
- Caramel
- Cinnamon
- Dried Fruit
- Goat's Cheese
- Wild Mushrooms
What it is
In Czech shops, lískové ořechy neloupané are whole hazelnuts still inside their hard, smooth brown shell, and you crack them yourself. The shelled kernels are sold separately as loupané. They are the nuts of the common hazel (Corylus avellana) and of large-fruited hazel cultivars. The leafy outer husk (košilka) has already been removed and the shell has been dried. Inside each shell is a single kernel covered in a thin brown skin. In Czechia they are sold loose, by weight or in net bags of roughly 0.5–1 kg. They come from supermarkets, online grocers such as Rohlík.cz, farm shops and nut specialists, and many people also gather them from their own garden hazels. Retailers usually sell them as a raw product that has not been heat-treated.
How it tastes
A freshly cracked kernel is crisp, mildly sweet and creamy, with a gentle woody note from the brown skin. Nuts from a recent harvest taste fresher and milder than shelled kernels that have been stored for a long time, because the shell protects the oils from air. Roasting brings out a much deeper, toasty, almost caramel-like flavour and loosens the skin.
Common questions
What is the difference between 'neloupané' and 'loupané' hazelnuts?
How many hazelnuts in the shell do I need for 100 g of kernels?
How long do hazelnuts in the shell keep?
How do I get the brown skin off hazelnuts?
Are there any safety concerns with hazelnuts?
Deep dive
3 min read
Varieties
Wild common hazel (líska obecná)
: Corylus avellana grows wild across Czech hedgerows, woodland edges and gardens. It bears small, rounded nuts that people gather in autumn for their own use.
Garden cultivars
: Czech nurseries sell large-fruited cultivars for gardens and small orchards. Well-known ones include the hardy, round-fruited Halle giant (Hallská obří) and Webb's prize cob (Webbova), an English cultivar with longer, flattened nuts. Lombardy white (Lombardská bílá) is another. Farm-shop nuts in the shell may come from cultivars like these.
Imported nuts in the shell
: much of the hazelnut supply in European shops comes from large producing countries. In Czech retail, the label must state where the product comes from.
Related but different products
: shelled hazelnuts (loupané) are sold raw with the skin on, blanched without the skin, roasted, chopped or ground. These are different products from nuts in the shell and keep for a shorter time. Turkish hazel (líska turecká, Corylus colurna) is common as a Czech street and park tree. Its nuts are edible but small and very hard-shelled, and it is not a commercial nut crop.
History
The common hazel is native to Czechia and much of Europe. People across Europe have gathered hazelnuts from the wild since prehistoric times. In the Czech lands, as elsewhere in Central Europe, hazelnuts have long been gathered from hedgerows and grown in gardens. Along with walnuts, they are a traditional ingredient in home baking, especially at Christmas.
Science
The hard shell is a woody layer that protects the kernel from light, oxygen, moisture and insects. This is why nuts in the shell keep better than shelled kernels. The kernel is rich in oil, mostly monounsaturated fatty acids, and that oil goes rancid through oxidation when exposed to air, warmth and light. Cool, dry, dark storage slows this down.
When you roast the kernels, Maillard reactions and the browning of sugars produce the typical roasted-hazelnut aroma. The heat also dries the thin seed coat until it cracks and flakes off. Nuts that are harvested or stored damp can grow moulds, and some of these moulds can produce aflatoxins. EU law sets maximum limits for aflatoxins in hazelnuts sold commercially.
Sourcing and ethics
Much of the world's hazelnut crop is grown in a small number of countries. International reports have raised concerns about working conditions, including child labour, during the harvest in some producing regions. Shoppers who want to know more about their nuts' origin can check the country of origin on the label, look for organic or other certified products, or buy Czech nuts from farm shops and local growers.
Hazel is a hardy, low-input shrub that suits Czech gardens and hedges. Growing your own or gathering responsibly from the wild, where permitted, are simple local options. Leave enough nuts for wildlife such as dormice and squirrels.