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Toasted pine nuts add a nutty crunch to salads and pastas! Here’s how to toast pine nuts to bring out their unique nutty flavor.
Toasted pine nuts are our little secret to making recipes taste amazing. They add a warm, nutty essence and crunch to everything from salads to pasta to crostini. These Italian nuts are delicious on their own: but toast them up and they’re next level! As is true with any nut: toasting enhances the flavor.
Here’s how to toast pine nuts! Once you’ve tried it once, you’ll find yourself using it again and again to enhance all your meals.
How to toast pine nuts on the stove
Make toasted pine nuts on the stovetop when you have a small quantity of nuts and want to make them quickly. Just a few minutes in a hot pan, and the flavor is even warmer and nuttier. Here’s what to know:
- Pros and cons: This method is fast and it takes only 3 minutes! However, toasting nuts on the stovetop can cook unevenly, and it’s harder to toast large quantities.
- How to do it (go to recipe): Place the nuts in a dry skillet—don’t add oil! Heat over medium heat for about 3 minutes, until golden and fragrant. Do not leave the stove because the nuts can burn very easily.
How to toast pine nuts in the oven
Make toasted pine nuts in the oven when you have time to preheat the oven! Choose this method if you want to make more than 1 cup toasted pine nuts.
- Pros and cons: This method cooks the nuts more evenly than the stovetop method, and you can cook lots of nuts at once. It does take longer to cook, and you’ll need to wait for the oven to preheat first.
- Basic oven method (go to recipe): Preheat to 350°F. Place the nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet, then bake 5 minutes until golden and fragrant. Don’t leave the oven unattended because they can burn easily.
Ways to use toasted pine nuts
Now for the fun part: how to use your toasted pine nuts! The sky is the limit with these babies. Alex and I have tried them on all the recipes below and highly endorse all of them. (Really!) Here are some ideas to get your creative juices flowing:
- Risotto: Try them on risotto (like asparagus risotto) to take it to the next level.
- Sauteed Greens: They feature with Parmesan in this sauteed rainbow chard. Or try them on sauteed spinach or Tuscan kale.
- Veggies: Top roasted cauliflower or roasted broccoli with pine nuts for a glam side dish.
- Hummus: Throw a handful on top of hummus or beet hummus.
- Salad: Sprinkle a few onto on arugula beet salad, asparagus salad, arugula salad or kale salad.
Storage for toasted pine nuts
Once you’ve got those beautifully toasted pine nuts (and your kitchen smells amazing), you can use them immediately! Here’s how to store leftovers, if you have them:
- Cool fully and place in a sealed container. We use a small glass container with lid.
- Store at room temperature for 1 week or refrigerated for 2 months.
- Freeze to extend the life to up to 6 months or more.
Another use for leftover toasted nuts? Make homemade nut butter!
Pine nuts fun facts
Lastly, here are some things to know about pine nuts:
- Pine nuts are the seeds of pine trees! Yes, they literally come out of pine cones!
- They’re also known as pignoli, the name in Italian.
- Pine nuts are notoriously expensive because they’re difficult to harvest and only grown in a few regions of the world. If you can’t find them, here are several substitutes!
How to Toast Pine Nuts
Toasted pine nuts add a nutty crunch to salads and pastas! Here’s how to toast pine nuts to bring out their unique nutty flavor.
- Prep Time: 0 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 cup 1x
- Category: Essentials
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 cup pine nuts (or any quantity; for any more than 1 cup use the oven method)
Instructions
- Stovetop method: Place the nuts in a dry skillet (no oil) over medium heat. Heat, shaking the pan and stirring often with a wooden spoon, until the nuts are fragrant and golden brown, about 3 minutes. Stay at the stove because the nuts can easily burn! Remove immediately from the heat and transfer to a plate to stop the cooking.
- Oven method: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the nuts on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for about 5 minutes until fragrant and golden brown, stirring once. Do not stray far from the oven, since the nuts can go from toasted to burned quickly. Remove immediately and transfer to a plate to stop the cooking.
- Use immediately. Or, allow to cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 week and refrigerated at least 2 months. (You also can extend the life by freezing nuts.)
More toasted recipes
So many foods taste better toasted! Here are all our our methods on how to toast nuts and seeds (and even bread):
Thank you for this information. I love there is no added oil or salt. Why ruin an already good thing! Appreciate the storage info. That’s the part I was uncertain about.
The oven method was prefect! Thank you😀
Hi. Love the recipes and I will be trying them soon; especially the Caponata! Sounds yummy!
I grew up in New Mexico and you can now get pine nuts from New Mexico. They come from the Pinone Pine (the first n with a tilde over it) and are available in most southwest grocery stores now and on line. They are truly amazing in recipes.