Description
Fresh Oklahoma Native Pecan Halves. Sweet and small, with a rich buttery flavor. Native trees grow wild all over the state. Most Okies will know the familiar flavor of this pecan, as it is a common backyard tree!
Native Pecans are perfect for baking, snacking and topping salads. Native pecans are hardy throughout much of the southern USA, and are the parent stock of the paper shell varieties.
Our native pecans are grown in Oklahoma!
Bake a delicious pie with Nut House pecans! Check out this classic pecan pie recipe
Or make it easy and grab one of our delicious pecan pies and claim you made it yourself.
We won't tell!
Tips For Storing and Using Pecans
- Shelled pecans properly stored in the refrigerator are good for up to nine months. If stored in the freezer from 10 degrees to 31 degrees, they will keep for two years. If stored in the freezer at 0 degrees, they can be stored for up to five years.
- "Cool and Dry" are the most important things to remember about storage. If using right away, there is no need to refrigerate pecans. If it will be a while before you need them, they should be packaged in plastic or glass containers to keep the best flavor. Pecans are oily and might absorb flavors from other items stored nearby. Pecans can be thawed and re-frozen to use in recipes and for eating.
- The nut-filling stage for pecans is usually from mid-August to early October, with harvest occuring between September and December, depending on the variety. Freshness and flavor depend more on the storage and care after harvest than the timing of the harvest itself.
- Once pecans get older and start to turn dark or dry, they are still safe to eat but flavor is lost. If your pecans are squishy or moldy, discard them.
- If picking and shelling your own pecans, they will benefit from being rinsed off and dried in the oven- or even toasted- to remove any stray pieces of shells and dust. If buying the pieces, they are ready to use right out of the bag!
- To make a pie, many people like to use the pieces or smaller sized halves which makes it easier to cut. The top can be decorated with a variety of other colors and shapes of pecan for a unique look. Most recipes call for between 1 1/2 to 2 cups of pecans. A pound sized bag is enough to make a pie plus have leftovers to snack on.
Interesting Native Pecan Facts
- "Pecan" comes from an Algonquin word, meaning ‘a hard to crack stone.’
- Native pecans are definitely harder to open, with the shell offering some protection against animals and insects (and people!)
- Without specialized equipment, native pecans are difficult and time-consuming to open, yet they make some of the best desserts.
- The pecan is the only major tree-nut indigenous to North America.
- Native trees can live to be over 200 years old. Many were planted by rivers overflowing and carrying nuts downstream, or by wild animals.
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Native pecan varieties are hardy! Wild pecans are resistant to higher temperatures and common diseases such as Pecan Scab.