In recent weeks, I have become reobsessed with Nutella which prompted me purchase a bag of hazelnuts (aka filberts) which had their skins intact. One of the recipes that I was playing around with called for peeled hazelnuts, but I figured they would be a cinch to remove – however, I quickly realized that was not the case. Hazelnut skins are stubborn – mighty stubborn.
Since picking papery peels off of 1 cup of hazelnuts sounded less than awesome, I did a little research and decided to use the roast and rub method. Essentially you roast the hazelnuts at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the nuts have darkened a bit and you can smell the nutty goodness wafting through your kitchen. Next, you place the hot nuts into a slightly dampened kitchen towel and rub the skins off using the towel. Apparently the combination of moisture and heat helps to loosen the skins. Well, this worked – sort of.
After rubbing and rubbing and rubbing, many of the hazelnuts were still flecked with pieces of brown skin which pretty much annoyed the heck out of me. I knew there had to be a better way. Again, I turned to Google and happened to stumble upon a method from Alice Medrich.
Basically you boil the hazelnuts in baking soda and water for a few minutes then immerse them in cold water before you peel the skins away. This technique enabled my perfectionist self to easily remove every single piece of hazelnut skin with ease! Now don’t get me wrong, this is still a bit of process, so don’t expect the skins to magically disappear, but I will tell you it works like a charm and is actually kind of fun!
Alice Medrich demonstrated this method to Julia Child while making Hazelnut Biscotti – you catch the entire process and Julia’s reaction to this method by watching the YouTube video below.
How To Peel Hazelnuts
Ingredients:
2 cups boiling water
3 tablespoons baking soda
1 cup hazelnutsDirections:
1. In a medium saucepan with high sides, bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add 3 tablespoons of baking soda to the water – the water will foam up.
2. Add the nuts to the boiling water and boil for about 3 minutes. The water will turn black – don’t be alarmed. While the hazelnuts are boiling, prepare a medium bowl of ice cold water. After three minutes, use a slotted spoon to remove one test nut, placing the nut into the prepared bowl of ice water. Use your fingers to remove the skin, if the skin doesn’t come off easily, boil the nuts 1-2 minutes longer and try another test nut.
3. When a test skin rubs right off, add the rest of the nuts to the ice water and peel them with ease.
4. Place peeled nuts into a kitchen towel or paper towels and dry them thoroughly.
5. If desired, toast the peeled and dried hazelnuts at 350 degrees F for about 15 minutes - trust me it's so worth it!
Method from Alice Medrich
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{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }
OMG I’ve ruined 3 tea towels rubbing those freakin nuts and never got all the crap off. Thank you from the bottom of my hazelnut loving heart!
I’ve heard of the roast and rub method, but never the boil method. I have never had a need for skinning hazelnuts, but it’s a good thing I’ve learned for future cases
Thanks, and nice tip!
I love that you posted this and I can’t WAIT to see what you’re using hazelnuts for!!
Awesome. Now I can make my own Nutella at home.
I’ve used this boil and chill method to remove the skins from almonds and it does work like a charm.
Yes!! I love these quick tips! Soooo incredibly helpful. I won’t be scared anymore when a recipe calls for these whole nuts.
Thank you soooo much for sharing this video. I was about to make some “Opera” French Macarons again which call for skinned hazelnuts. I used the toast and rub method before and that drove me crazy and made a mess with all the loose skins everywhere on my counter-top and kitchen floor! I’m going to give this method a try. Thanks for sharing!
THANK YOU !!!! i could not get this figured out and made something over the holidays
and just gave up and left them on..
now i want to make some Biscotti..
Very ambitious. I’m not sure I would have the patience
Thanks for the great post.
When I worked at a bakery they would toast the nuts and then I rubbed them around on a mesh strainer. It wasn’t any cleaner than the towel rub method but it did get the job done pretty well.
hi! OMG this is amazing I had the hardest time peeling skins from nuts, do you might know if it works for almonds too?
Oh my goodness I need to try this, I’ve been doing it the old way and it’s just such a pain. This reminds me of blanching almonds.
love your pictures. Especially the raw look of the wood surface with the hazelnuts!
That works great but then you have to wash the dishtowel…if you happen to have a large grain seive (metal preferable) you can just throw them in and roll them around with palms of hand…works great…the dishtowel serves underneath for the skins(which you then shake away). No mess, no fatigue! hugs from the WEST PORTICO, P
I too am a hazelnut paste fan! I buy a 46% hazelnut paste that is wonderful and puts Nutella to shame tastewise.
Also, it is possible to buy already peeled off nuts (the raw Turkish type). Sometimes they come in large bulk bags. Last, I heard that some of the most famous hazelnuts come from Piedmont in Italy. Some companies in Italy sell ready to use hazelnut paste in 50 lb bucket or so. This is of course for the hazelnut (paste) freak like me
Finally the secret has been revealed, thank you for sharing this! Nettie
such a great tip!
I was making a hazelnut filling for a wedding cake last July when I had the same issues. I am way too anal…ahem I mean a perfectionist to deal with flecks of skin. The boil method saved my life LOL I will never use any other method again.
I need to try this! I’ve heard of – and tried – the boiling method, but not with the baking soda. The method I used still didn’t work that well, so the baking soda must be the secret!!
Jamie, thanks so much for this interesting post! Never heard of the “baking soda method” before; of course, I had to try it. Sooooo much easier!! Thanks for the enlightenment!!
I’ve used this technique many times…. interesting how the water turns a deep black color, don’t you think?
ButterYum
Wow thats great to but oddly enough I love all nuts, but not a huge fan of hazelnuts, weird I know!!
Interesting…I’ve done the rub them clean method and you’re right…no way it gets rid of all the skins. Which doesn’t bother me like it does you.
But I have to try this. Just cause…maybe I want to see that dark water!
I’ve used hazelnuts in many of my cookie recipes for family and friends. They are great crushed up in many yummy treats!!! Thanks for the great tips!
This is good information to have!
Wow, I’ve never peeled them this way before. Thanks, Jamie!
Very interesting….I always do it the first way..never get all the peels off.
So awesome! I’m going to turn my mother onto this method…then she can make me her amazing hazelnut cake..
Like you I rekindled my love for hazelnuts this fall! Boy did I have big plans to use anew bag I bought for holiday baking. Well, like you I detest skinning them. Every time I went to make something with them I just grab my walnuts, almonds, or pecan instead! Why the whole processes of removing the skins, thanks for digging deeper and finding and sharing this simple method. Something old is new again and now I can start baking/cooking with my hazelnuts.
I love this!! I usually end up paying the extra money to buy the peeled filberts, but this is great for when I can’t find those! I’ve never heard to boil them with baking soda, awesome.
Works like a charm. If it didn’t work for you, go back and reread it or look at the video again. This is basically fool-proof.