One fine day, over a glass of beer with pistachios, an interesting idea came to my mind – not to throw away the shells, but to use them as an ingredient in my tinctures.
I have already used nutshells and partitions in my recipes, and the final product has always pleasantly surprised me.
Therefore, the next day I already started preparing the main component, and today, after 3 months, I can proudly present to your attention one of the most successful impromptu of my “moonshine” field!
The story was sent by blog subscriber Leonid.
Ingredients and equipment
With the equipment, everything is very simple: we need a liter jar (bottle) and a filtering device (I always take gauze folded in 4 layers, it is very convenient to use it if the ingredient should also be squeezed out).
And to prepare the tincture, we need the following ingredients:
- moonshine or distillate – 0,5 l;
- pistachio shells – 50 g;
- honey – tbsp.
I add honey to tinctures almost always. This component sets off the alcohol strength very well and makes the taste more pleasant.
Immediately let’s talk about the cost of our future tincture:
- 0,5 liter of moonshine costs from 75 rubles;
- 0,5 pure distillate from 125 rubles;
- 1 st. l. honey costs about 20 rubles;
- 50 g of shells in my case cost like 150 g of salted pistachios – 200 rubles;
As a result, the cost of pistachio shell tincture will be from 295 to 345 rubles, depending on the chosen alcohol base.
And now let’s get started!
The cooking process
As I said, pistachio shells remained with me after a beer snack, that is, they were salty. Therefore, the first step is to prepare the shells:
- The shells must be soaked in clean water for 3 days.
- When all the salt is gone, the shell must be boiled for several minutes, then drained and dried.
- We complete the preparation stage by sending the shell to a hot stove and fry without oil until the shell is well browned.
Roasted pistachio shells
Then everything is very easy:
- Pour our shells and honey into the prepared container.
- Fill with alcohol, close the container and shake.
- Leave in a dry dark place for 1 month.
After a month, the tincture must be filtered, corked and left alone for at least another 1 month. It should be noted right away that the longer the tincture is kept, the finer and more interesting the aroma and taste of the drink.
Result
The drink has the color of tea with lemon, brown with a hint of yellowness. Something close to whisky.
The smell is very interesting, I would even say complex. There are also nutty notes, and some sweetness akin to vanilla or almond milk. Very pleasant, languid bouquet. I wouldn’t say no to this perfume!
Pistachio shell tincture
The taste of the tincture exceeded all my expectations! As I already mentioned, honey shaded the strength of alcohol. On inhalation, a nut with woody bitterness is well felt, but on exhalation, the pistachio opens up in all its glory! I am surprised that such a result was achieved with the shell and not the nut itself.
With what to submit
I always present all my new tinctures to a group of friends, in which, by the way, there are big lovers of nuts!
Before that, I had fun with dried fruits and mangoes, and, apparently, my company got a little tired of sweet fruity flavors. And here is such a delicacy! The tincture itself is very good, and it turned out that it is very difficult to find a decent snack.
Favorite nuts as a snack this time did not fit at all. But blue cheese, grapes and lemon showed themselves perfectly.
Usually grapes interrupt the bouquet of fruit tinctures, but this time it favorably emphasized the pistachio aftertaste and, with its sweetness, seemed to put an end to this wonderful combination!
Have you ever made nutshell tinctures? Share your experience in the comments!