One of the things that comes to my mind when I think about fall is acorn flour! Acorns are an amazing survival food that has been used during hard times in Europe and the United states. It’s abundant, free, and easy to gather lots of them quickly.

There are many tricks that can help you turn this wild nut into a delicious meal.

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Identification

1. First of all, it’s good if you can tell different oak species apart. Each one has different acorns with different tannic acid levels. Oddly, one of the smallest acorns also has a high tannic acid level, but that acid is more easily leached out entirely. That is the red oak acorns.

I prefer gathering chestnut oak acorns because time is more important to me than anything else. Chestnut oak acorns are MUCH bigger than nearly every other oak species. The only one that is bigger is the burr oak.

Harvesting Time

Make sure you harvest early. I’ve heard folks say you can harvest any time in the fall and winter when acorns are on the ground. In a true survival situation, sure, it’s worth trying that, but my experience is after the acorns are on the ground for a couple of weeks, they are all full of worms. It doesn’t take too long for the acorn to become inedible.

Process

There are a few different methods of leaching acorns, but the easiest is probably the cold water method. Here are the steps: and add nut meat to a cuisine art.

1. Put the acorns on a towel and smash each one with a hammer. You can also use a nut cracker or a something like this mechanized Nutcracker to same time.
2. The next step may seem bizarre, but it will save you a lot of time. Dry the nut meat, skin, and shells either on a tray in the sun or in a dehydrated.
3. Shell the acorns, removing both the skins and the shells. It should be easier now since the nut meat shrank during the drying process.
4. Put only healthy-looking acorn meat into a blender or cuisine art. Grind acorns to a pulp.
5. Put ground acorns into a mason jar and add water. Put in your fridge for 3 hours or so. Pour the water off through cheesecloth, then add more water.
6. Repeat 3 times then taste the acorns. If it’s still bitter, do it again and taste it again. Keep going until the bitterness is almost entirely gone.
7. Next, spread the acorn starch on a tray and put it in the oven at the low or in a dehydrator until thoroughly dry.
8. Use to make pancakes, noodles, or regular bread or mix in with your all-purpose flour in your favorite recipes.

Health Benefits

Nutritional Information (Source: Healthline) shows that acorns have:

• Calories: 144
• Protein: 2 grams
• Fat: 9 grams
• Carbs: 15 grams
• Fiber: 4 grams
• Vitamin A: 44% of the Reference Daily Intake (RDI)
• Vitamin E: 20% of the RDI
• Iron: 19% of the RDI
• Manganese: 19% of the RDI
• Potassium: 12% of the RDI
• Vitamin B6: 10% of the RDI
• Folate: 8% of the RDI

Sources:

• Meixner, Makayla. “Are Acorns Edible? Everything You Need to Know.” 4.17.2019. Healthline. Accessed: 10.22.20. <https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/can-you-eat-acorns&gt;

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