Finally the secret to perfectly salted DIY roasted almonds (not just salted on top) that are SO much better than anything you can buy!
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You may remember when I mentioned that I had discovered, by accident (because I’m cheap frugal smart with money), that DIY roasted almonds are WAY better than roasted-salted almonds from the store.
Way. Better.
As in, you may find you have trouble eating only a few. But that’s where your small bowls for portion control will come in to play – we don’t need to suffer through blah food in order to practice portion control, do we?
This is just fair warning that you will not want to start eating these straight from the jar!
Now, before you go all “can’t we just buy anything for convenience anymore?” on me, let me explain that I don’t make these DIY roasted almonds because they are any more healthier or more ‘real food’ than basic roasted nuts you can buy (though if you were soaking and sprouting them, they might be, but most raw almonds seem to be already steam-pasturized…).
So if you’re needing convenience, buy away.
No, I make these because they save me a couple dollars (and we all eat a lot of nuts around here, so it adds up), but more importantly they taste amazing.
Really, I had no idea there would be such a difference between home-roasted almonds and store-bought!
And it’s not just me – everyone I serve them to agrees, too. I’ve had guests be so surprised that they “had” to go back for seconds – and thirds.
Make DIY Roasted Almonds
I’ve made a lot of flavored nuts (this spicy one is great) but I’ve not been happy with basic roasted nuts, mainly because the salt never wanted to stick to the nuts after cooking.
So when confronted with the price difference between roasted and raw almonds, I started researching and I learned from this recipe that the secret to a salted flavor all the way through roasted nuts is to dissolve salt in hot water first, and then coat the raw nuts with this mixture and cook them.
I adapted the recipe to cook fully in an oven to be easier and to be able to make a large batch.
TIP: By the way, I LOVE using a little glass tablespoon measuring cup in recipes like this calling for more than one tablespoon – so easy!
Ingredients
- Almonds
- Fine grain sea salt (or use a pink Himalayan or other pure, non-additive salt)
- Olive oil
Equipment Needed:
- Roasting pan
- Glass tablespoon measuring cup
- Silicone baking mat or parchment paper
- Large metal or wooden spoon
Directions
Dissolve salt in water as much as possible and then pour onto raw nuts, stirring thoroughly. Spread onto a lined baking sheet.
Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes, stirring at the halfway mark.
After baking, coat the warm nuts with a bit of olive oil and a couple shakes of sea salt and let them cool. They soak up all that goodness and then look like the perfectly roasted almonds that they are.
To flavor or not?
I don’t often add any flavoring because I usually want a basic nut I can then use to top salads and in my favorite granola, as well as for snacking.
Any herb can be added, though, and garlic powder or seasoned salt would probably make them even harder to stop eating as a snack – if that’s possible – so flavor as you’d like.
This basic DIY roasted almonds recipe has changed our nut-eating life, though, so I just had to share with you how easy and amazing it is to roast your own almonds at home.
The one thing you have to be careful of is burning – it’s literally a minute between perfect and slightly burned nuts.
And, yes, I’ve experienced it first hand – but you know what? Brian and I agree that even the slightly “too-browned” almonds are better than commercially roasted. Go figure.
I’d love to know what you think of these!
Perfectly Salted DIY Roasted Almonds - seriously the BEST!
Ingredients
- 4½ cups raw, whole almonds
- 1½ tablespoons HOT water
- 1½ teaspoons sea salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- sea salt to taste
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375 degrees and line a large baking sheet with silicone or parchment.* Place the raw almonds in a large metal or ceramic mixing bowl (we'll be adding the hot nuts back into it, so don't use plastic).
- Stir 1½ teaspoon of salt into the hot water until mostly dissolved (it hardly ever completely dissolves for me - it's okay if it doesn't), pour over the nuts in the bowl and mix until all are coated.
- Transfer to prepared baking sheet, spreading the nuts in a single layer.
- Bake for about 8 minutes, stir well and spread back into a single layer. Bake for 6-8 minutes more, depending on how your oven cooks (Ours are usually perfect at about 15 minutes total, but your oven may vary, so may take 5-10 minutes longer). To test doneness, the nuts should be nicely browned, inside and out (you can cut one open to see if it's browned inside). Keep an eye on them, this is when they can burn quickly - but you don't want them undercooked either or they won't be crisp (once you've made them, the timing is easier).
- When they are done baking, put the hot nuts back into the large bowl and pour the olive oil over them. Toss well until all the nuts are coated, shaking on sea salt as you go. You can taste one, but they're very hot, so be careful (I usually just like to see a bit of salt on the outsides and that seems to be enough with the original salt-water coating).
- Leave the nuts to cool in the bowl, or spread out on the pan again if you need them to cool more quickly. The nuts will soak up the oil as they cool.**
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition
Other healthy snack recipes you may like:
Healthy Maple Sweetened Chili Pecans
Healthy Homemade Chocolate Covered Pecans
Cashew, Cranberry and White Chocolate Granola Bites
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Susan K says
I made these they turned out great, thanks so much!
Just letting you know in the video it says after you add the salt and water mixture to bake for 8 min??? then remove and add the oil & salt. Also it shows you adding the oil but not the salt or did you put the salt in with the olive oil?
Neelie says
I discovered this about a year ago and always make a new batch when I run out. I was busy when making them last time, and went a few minutes over on timing (15 min is perfect in my oven) so they’d got a little too toasted, but still delicious. I planted 4 hazelnuts last Spring and look forward to trying those.
Jami says
I’m so happy you enjoy this recipe, Neelie – thanks for reviewing.
Davina says
Thank you so much for this amazing recipe. You’re right – they are the best!! 🙂
Jami says
🙂