Hazelnuts

Hazelnuts are one of the world’s most widely enjoyed tree nuts, prized for their distinctive sweet, buttery flavour and satisfying crunch. They pair naturally with chocolate — a combination immortalised in praline and spreads like Nutella — but are equally at home in savoury dishes, salads, and dukkah.

In the kitchen, hazelnuts benefit enormously from toasting, which deepens their flavour and loosens the papery skin. They can be used whole, roughly chopped, or ground into meal for cakes and biscuits. Hazelnut meal makes a useful gluten-free flour substitute in many baking recipes.

While most of the world’s supply comes from Turkey and Italy, hazelnuts are also grown in parts of southern Australia. They store well and are available year-round, either in-shell or as blanched kernels.