Pickled walnuts used in recipes, commonly cooked in beef dishes. Pickled walnuts are made from the fruit of both common walnut tree varieties: "Juglans regia", the Persian, royal, English or common walnut, and "Juglans nigra", the black or American walnut. The first stage is to pick the walnuts whilst they are still green and before the shells have set. Most recipes say that late June is about the best time to pick them. The soft walnuts are then soaked in brine (salt water) for at least ten days. The walnuts are then drained and left to dry in the air. Soaking the
Castanea sativa the plant can’t pollinate itself, making cross-pollination necessary. Some cultivars only produce one large nut per cupule, while others produce up to three nuts. The nut itself is composed of two skins: an external, shiny brown part, and an internal skin adhering to the fruit. Inside, there is an edible, creamy-white part developed from the cotyledon. The tree requires a mild climate and adequate moisture for good growth and a good nut harvest. Its year-growth (but not the rest of the tree) is sensitive to late spring and early autumn frosts, and is intolerant of lime. Under forest conditions, it