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The problem starts with the girl who picks out all the cashews in the mixed nuts tin. Grains of salt glitter for a brief mortal moment on guilty fingers before dissolving behind the pearly gates. So, the feeding frenzy begins. The shapely almonds are the next to go, followed by thehazelnuts, and the macadamia. After the hungry claws have retreated, all that is left lying at the bottom are the pale and half-broken bodies of peanuts. The moral of the story is to never get involved with a mixed nuts tin. Not only does it bring out the mediocre in nuts and people, but it also leaves a sad stale aftertaste.

Now, a moment of silence for those forlorn peanuts, peas trying tocompete in a world of nuts. Too often the peanut is used as cheap filler in snack foods, found rattling around in trail mixes and nestlingsneakily in candy bars.The popularity of peanuts in processed foods may stem from its relatively long shelf life. However, months in a warehouse will wear on any legume, so the taste diminishes even when the bean is encased in salt, sugar, and chocolate. Biting into a peanut M&M with a rancid heart is a particularly unpleasant experience that epitomizes the problem with peanuts in processed foods.

Before encountering any peanuts sheathed in colorful crinkly plastic wrappers,I was accustomed to consuming them in their natural casing, lumpy pods the color of undercooked waffles. The really fresh ones still have a sprinkling of dirt clinging to the shells. Peanut flowers bloom bright in the summer sun, but the beans burrow and mature in the dark underground.In early autumn, peanut plants are turned upside down, roots and “nuts” up in the air to dry, then they are threshed and packed for the market.During this time of year, the street stands in Chinatown are covered in them, pale dunes shifting under their own weight.

Fresh raw peanuts have a pleasant earthy taste, but they really should be cooked to bring out the sweetness and fine texture. Instead of the customary roasting,I like boiling them in seasoned brine as it is done in the South (where they really know their peanuts, as almost all peanuts produced in the U.S. hail from southern states) and in China (world’s largest peanut producer). Shelling salty, sweet, earthy, and subtly spiced boiled peanuts is an enjoyably laid-back and social affair, a natural scene in both beerhouses and teahouses.

Unfortunately, I have yet to see this simple snack on any menu in New York, but it is easy enough to make at home, unlike salt fried peanuts with crunchy black moss, a great dish that is impossible to find even the ingredients for.Boiled peanut is very much like edamame (boiled soybeans) in both the cooking and the eating. To cook it, all you need are a big pot of water and salt. To eat it, all you need are your hands: split the shell and extract the goods, but watch out for the squirting. Even the texture of boiled peanuts is similar to edamame, though if you use young peanuts, the texture is even smoother, akin to baby fava beans.Fresh peanuts are very flavorful on their own, but there is something intensely satisfying in the punch of saltiness spiced with bay leaves, cloves,star anise, and black cardamomthat boost the natural sweetness of the peanuts. There is no need to reinvent the peanut; it is justthe perfect time to taste it afresh.

If you have any comments, suggestions, questions, or other tasty tidbits, contact DuanDuan at SnackBar.Kitchen@gmail.com.

Spiced Brine Peanuts

Ingredients

1 pound fresh peanuts in the shell, washed

water

salt

8 bay leaves

4 star anise

1 black cardamom, cracked

1 tbsp five-spice powder

1/2 tsp black peppercorn

1/2 tsp cloves

Method

In a large pot with lid, add peanuts and enough water to cover. Turn heat on high.Add salt and stir to dissolve. The brine should taste as salty as tears. If you have never tasted tears, go cut an onion. Add remaining ingredients and cover.

Let boil for at least an hour. Add more water if necessary to keep the peanuts submerged. Taste at 10-minute intervals after one hour for doneness. The texture should be tender but not mushy, similar to edamame.

Once done, remove from heat and let peanuts cool in brine at room temperature, preferably overnight (keeps for a week in fridge, brine and all). Serve at room temperature.

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