# Pine nut question



## angel101 (Aug 31, 2004)

I found a pine nut crusted salmon recipe, on the recipe form.but I have never tried pine nuts before.do they taste more piney or nuttie?I have salmon steaks out for dinner tonite and need a good recipe for a coating.                        angel


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## Silversage (Aug 31, 2004)

I don't think they taste "piney" at all.  

I think they're really a seed, not a nut, but the closest I can think of a description of taste is a mild, slightly sweey nut.


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## GB (Aug 31, 2004)

Pine nuts are delicious. They do not taste like pine at add. I have been eating them as a snack lately. I toast up a bunch and sprinkle a little salt on them and just eat them as is.


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## -DEADLY SUSHI- (Sep 1, 2004)

Pine nuts are neither pine-EE or nut-EE. They are more like if tiny grapes joined a gang..... thats what they taste like.


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## SeleneSue (Sep 2, 2004)

More nutty than piney, particularly when toasted a little.  Yum!

For the love of heaven, thought, TAKE THEM OUT OF THE SHELLS FIRST.  I cannot overemphasize this tooth-breaking detail.  I've had a bad experience tasting a dish by a pine-nut neophyte who did not know this.  Ow.


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## Barbara L (Feb 12, 2005)

I always thought they tasted too piney.  I haven't had them in years.  I guess I will have to try them again!

 Barbara


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## GB (Feb 12, 2005)

Don't forget to toast them to really bring out the nutty flavor.


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## SierraCook (Feb 12, 2005)

As the resident Forester on the board, I think I have a little experience on this subject.  Pine nuts are an edible seed of the Pinus species of conifer trees.  Pine nuts grow inside of pine cones.  They are very difiicult to harvest because removal from the pine cone usually takes heating.  All of the pine trees have edible seeds.  Pine nuts are also called Pignoli.   Click on the link below for a picture of a singleleaf pinyon.

http://plants.usda.gov/cgi_bin/topics.cgi?earl=plant_profile.cgi&symbol=PIMO&photoID=pimo_2h.jpg


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## Jikoni (Nov 14, 2005)

SierraCook said:
			
		

> As the resident Forester on the board, I think I have a little experience on this subject.  Pine nuts are an edible seed of the Pinus species of conifer trees.  Pine nuts grow inside of pine cones.  They are very difiicult to harvest because removal from the pine cone usually takes heating.  All of the pine trees have edible seeds.  Pine nuts are also called Pignoli.   Click on the link below for a picture of a singleleaf pinyon.
> 
> http://plants.usda.gov/cgi_bin/topics.cgi?earl=plant_profile.cgi&symbol=PIMO&photoID=pimo_2h.jpg



Thanks that has really helped. I have always wanted to make my own pesto sauce and needed pine nuts, but had no idea what they looked like and couldn't ask in the shops either as I don't even know what they are called in French.


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## buckytom (Nov 14, 2005)

a little more on pine nuts, aka pignon, noix de pin (en francais, ha-huuuuuhhh) : http://www.theworldwidegourmet.com/nuts/pinenut.htm


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## Constance (Nov 14, 2005)

"All of the pine trees have edible seeds."
Thanks for the info, Sierra. I have always wondered if I could harvest the seeds from our local pine trees. It's no big deal to heat the cones...I used to stick them in the microwave to open them up and melt the sap to make them shiny for wreaths. The seeds would just fall out. 
By the way, dawgs, all nuts are seeds.


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## licia (Nov 14, 2005)

The nuts in our pine cones are so small it would take ages to get a spoon ful. The only way I've ever eaten them is to put the brown petal containing the nut between my teeth (like an artichoke) and pull it thru. It taste a bit like peanut butter to me. If that was the type we had to depend on, they would be even more expensive that they already are.


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## Piccolina (Nov 14, 2005)

I've found that organic pine nuts have more of a pine hint to them than non-organic, but neither tastes like a pine tree (lol, or what I would imagine a pine tree to taste like). I love them to pieces and use them in everything from salads to pasta to muffins (raspberry or blackeberry pine nut muffins - yum!)


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