How do you dry walnuts?

Drying walnuts is a lengthy multi-day process involving hulling the nut, power-washing the hulled nuts and then setting them on drying screens in high-temperature conditions. Once they have dried, walnuts can be stored for up to 2 years if they are salt-brined and properly sealed in airless packaging or in sealed jars.

Walnuts can also be cracked and eaten. Their hulls and husks are very tough, so a hammer and chisel or vise grip is needed to break them and remove the nutmeat.

1. Hull the nuts

The first step is to hull the walnuts slated for drying. Hulls are dense and thick, so letting them soften for a day or so ahead of time is advisable. Nuts can then be hulled with a hammer or with a press or vise grip.

2. Wash the hulled nuts

Once the requisite number of nuts has been hulled, they must be washed. This can be done with a high-powered hose or a power washer. Either works to blast away detritus and get the nuts ready for drying.

3. Dry the nuts

The final step is to lay the nuts, evenly spaced, on wire racks in a location with an ambient temperature of 95 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The nuts will dry in 3 to 4 days and will then be ready to store.