Acorns Are Nature’s Food

Acorns are nature’s food, unfortunately, in California, the Oaks are falling to the hands of developers and agriculture. It is a great loss. Besides producing tons of food, there’s always the charming silhouette of your favorite oak against the horizon. Acorns can help local economies. They are there for the taking. They’re everywhere! In the parks, on school grounds, along the roads, maybe right outside your door.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:

What is a Tan Oak Tree? An Oak or a Chestnut? Tanbark Oak?

Sho’-kish (Yuki Indian name for this acorn)

Ha’-ha (Concow Indian name for this acorn)

This tree is thought to form a “connecting link” between oaks and chestnuts. Botanists are not considering it a “true” oak. According to several sources, the acorn of the Tanbark Oak was highly prized by California Native Americans. This attractive and slender evergreen grows abundantly along the west coast, from about a 300-foot elevation to 4,000 feet. Growing up to 100 feet tall, it can grow up to six feet in diameter. You may find it growing alongside redwoods and Douglas fir. The oblong leaves of Tan Oak are light green with “rusty hairs” on the underside, medium in size, sharply toothed, not divided or lobed, not bristle-pointed. The leaves are regularly toothed. The oblong acorns are set in shallow cups.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:

California Black Oak Acorns

All the Indian names for this Oak ought to give you a pretty good idea how well loved this tree was and still is. This Oak is deciduous; the leaves are four to six inches long. The leaves are sharp and the lobes are bristle pointed. The acorns reach an inch or so in length, and the acorn cups are heavy and thick. Over and over again, I read that Black Oak acorns make the best bread. I’ve made bread with them and it was good. Once, I somehow got the tiniest bit of peppermint into the recipe, by accident, and it was a surprise how delicious it was.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns:

Best Way to Crack Acorns

Let’s face it… most acorns are hard to crack. Here are my two favorite methods:

Get a large tin cookie sheet and a river rock that weighs a couple of pounds. Watch your fingers and crack away.

The second way is my favorite. Get a Texan Nut Sheller. It will get your acorns cracked. Be CAREFUL. This nutcracker is razor sharp. Literally. So, keep it away from children.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Acorns and Eat’em, a how-to vegetarian cookbook and field guide for eating acorns: