I want fancy nuts out of shells
November 6, 2020 10:53 AM Subscribe
Piggybacking on this question: what is the best, reasonably priced, household-grade manual nutcracker for an adult person with weak lil baby hands that still allows for the satisfaction of nutcracking? Bonus points for nut mess solutions.
I am a fan of the Drosselmeyer Nutcracker, which does a nice job of cracking nuts, while reducing the disbursal of shell fragments.
posted by whisk(e)y neat at 11:28 AM on November 6, 2020
posted by whisk(e)y neat at 11:28 AM on November 6, 2020
I've collected about 30 lb of pecans from my trees this year, so this is a question near to my heart.
I've got one of these. It's a bit scary-looking, but it works well. With pecans, at least, I find the trick is nipping the ends before cracking the center. I've also got one of these. It's terribly messy (I only use it outdoors), and in my experience it's a good way to make a first crack a lot of nuts, but they'll still require more work. The ideal tool may depend on the type of nut you're trying to crack.
I don't have one of these, but it looks like it gives a lot of mechanical advantage, and might be worth a shot.
posted by adamrice at 12:29 PM on November 6, 2020
I've got one of these. It's a bit scary-looking, but it works well. With pecans, at least, I find the trick is nipping the ends before cracking the center. I've also got one of these. It's terribly messy (I only use it outdoors), and in my experience it's a good way to make a first crack a lot of nuts, but they'll still require more work. The ideal tool may depend on the type of nut you're trying to crack.
I don't have one of these, but it looks like it gives a lot of mechanical advantage, and might be worth a shot.
posted by adamrice at 12:29 PM on November 6, 2020
This style of nutcracker is great for force amplification and very controllable.
posted by porpoise at 3:44 PM on November 6, 2020
posted by porpoise at 3:44 PM on November 6, 2020
I've been keeping a Channellock style 10" groove-joint pliers in my kitchen at home (...and previously in my restaurant) for the last fifteen or so years. I recently upgraded to an dishwasher-friendly all Stainless Steel model to make cleaning easier. (~$40 on the big online store...)
I use it for opening stubborn jars and bottles, cracking bones/deboning, and cracking nuts. I've also used it to re-arrange hot cast iron pans and oven racks when I didn't plan properly. It's not the most-used tool in my kitchen, but it is extremely useful.
Only thing I would suggest is getting a 12" model rather than 10". The wider opening makes it even more useful.
posted by Anoplura at 6:53 PM on November 6, 2020
I use it for opening stubborn jars and bottles, cracking bones/deboning, and cracking nuts. I've also used it to re-arrange hot cast iron pans and oven racks when I didn't plan properly. It's not the most-used tool in my kitchen, but it is extremely useful.
Only thing I would suggest is getting a 12" model rather than 10". The wider opening makes it even more useful.
posted by Anoplura at 6:53 PM on November 6, 2020
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posted by zamboni at 11:01 AM on November 6, 2020