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Anyone who knows beechnuts and knows how to use them is in good hands. Because the nutritious and tasty forest fruits are a great addition to a natural and self-sufficient menu. You can read about the nutrients it contains, possible uses and any risks in this article.

Beechnuts are tasty and very nutritious

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  1. Portrait of beechnuts
  2. sow beechnuts
  3. Use beechnuts for culinary purposes
  4. Recipes with beechnuts
  5. frequently asked Questions

    6. Botanical portrait of beechnuts

    The nut fruits of beech (botanically Fagus), more precisely of red beech, are called beechnuts. Because the red beech is the only common type of beech in Germany, so that the name Buchecker is only reserved for its fruits in terms of folk etymology. Other types of beech, such as the Crimean beech or the American beech, produce similar nuts that can also be used in a similar way. In this article, however, we want to focus on the fruits of our native red beech, i.e. on the real beechnuts.

    digression

    Hornbeams are not beeches!

    Incidentally, hornbeams are only related by name, but not botanically to beech trees. They do not belong to the genus Fagus, but to the genus Carpinus and belong to the birch family instead of to the beech family. Only at the taxonomic level of the order do the threads of copper beech and hornbeam come together, because both belong to the beech family (Fagales). Nevertheless, the hornbeam really looks like a smaller copper beech and that's why it got its name. It even forms similar nut fruits, which are also edible.

    Beechnuts - the fruits of beech trees

    Beechnuts are the fruits of the red beech

    The common beech, botanically Fagus sylvatica, is one of the most widespread deciduous trees in Central Europe. Not only does it occur naturally in large populations in local deciduous and mixed forests, it has also been used by humans for a long time. It is not only their very hard, solid and homogeneous wood that is valued, which is ideal for building purposes and as fuel. Their fruits also played a more important role as a food source for humans and their pets for a long time.

    The fruiting phase of beech trees

    European beeches do not start fruiting until they are around 40 years old and stop growing again after around 80 years of age. In view of the entire lifespan, which can extend to around 300 years and more for a copper beech, this is a relatively short fruiting phase.

    As with many other trees, the fruiting phase itself is characterized by a cyclic cycle. This means that there are years with a great abundance of fruit at fairly regular intervals. In the case of beech trees, such rich fruit productions come about every 5 to 8 years. In the forest language one then speaks of a fattening year, a term from earlier times when domestic pigs were driven into the forest to be fattened with beechnuts and acorns.

    Apart from the basic cyclical rhythm, the abundance of fruit also depends on the climatic conditions in the individual years. After a very hot year, a beech likes to form a particularly large number of corners, unless it has just completed a mast year and is initially exhausted.

    digression

    The amazing mast year strategy

    The periodically recurring fruit overproduction in beech and other fruiting trees is a fascinating survival strategy. Because in order to be able to multiply effectively via the fruits, some of them must always have the opportunity to settle in the soil. And with the large, hungry contenders for the nutritious beechnuts in the forest, that is not so easy to guarantee. So that enough fruit is left over, the European beech has resorted to making the great effort of fruit overproduction in individual years and recovering from it between the fattening years.

    Appearance and ecology of beechnuts

    Before we turn to the diverse culinary uses of beechnuts, let's first look at their external appearance - because it's definitely worth a little appreciation. With their fine, distinctly triangular, pointed shape and their shiny reddish-brown color, the beechnuts not only have an unmistakable, but also a charming and very pretty character.

    The egg-shaped beechnuts are about 1.5 centimeters long and are usually surrounded in pairs by a 3 to 7 centimeter long fruit cup. When the fruit ripens in September, its 4 soft prickly lobes spread open and the two nuts appear.

    Let's take a look at the identifying characteristics of the beechnuts in their various stages:

    beechnut on the tree beechnut on the ground seed under the shell
    size In the fruit cup 3-7 cm long 1.5 cm long without the fruit cup about 1 cm long
    Look closed fruit cup usually still greenish, soft prickly, brown when cracked open Ecker usually detached from the fruit cup, shiny reddish brown, oblong-ovate, pointed at the front, four-edged, indented in between greenish before fruit ripening, white when germinating

    Grow red beeches from beechnuts

    Of course, beechnuts are there first of all for the propagation of the common beech. If you want to grow your own red beech, you can do so with beechnuts. But it's not that easy. It takes a lot of care and patience until a fully grown tree has really emerged. One can be all the more proud when it is a success and the specially grown beech tree stands in the garden. The sowing process can be divided into the following steps:

    1. Collect seeds in early autumn
    2. Sort fruits according to germination capacity
    3. Prepare (stratify) seeds
    4. Sowing

    collect seeds

    From September you can either collect seeds yourself in a beech forest or buy them from a seed farm. Seeds collect and process beechnuts on a large scale.

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    Of course, the red beech rearing project is only completely self-sufficient if you not only sow the seeds yourself, but also collect and prepare them yourself. If possible, collect fruit that is still hanging on the tree and is in the closed fruit cup, as well as fruit with cracked fruit cups from the ground. So you have a higher chance that there are many viable ones.

    An indication that the seeds in the shells are germinable is a white coloration of the seeds. Because you should not open the corners you have chosen to take with you when you collect them, you can test the white coloration and thus the germination capacity on other corners of the mother tree on a random basis.

    Sort seeds

    At home, put the beechnuts in water to sort out empty fruit husks. You can recognize them by the fact that they swim upwards. The pericarp containing seeds must then be stratified for germination.

    Stratify seeds

    In seed production, stratification is the imitation of the natural dormancy of the seed after it has fallen off the mother plant. So that the seed does not sprout in harsh winter conditions, it goes into a kind of hibernation. As a seed grower, you emulate this by storing it in a cool place protected from light, temperature fluctuations and microorganisms. The best way to stratify beechnuts is to store them in the garden soil and cover them with beech leaves, loose soil and maybe a few spruce needles. Soil that matches that of the mother plant is ideal for seed dormancy and subsequent germination.

    It is important, however, that you protect the beechnuts from squirrels and mice, which would hardly spurn such a find during the awake phases of their hibernation. You can fence and cover the area with close-meshed rabbit wire.

    Sow

    Beechnuts need frost to germinate

    If you have already conveniently stored the seeds directly at the desired seeding site for stratification, you really only have to wait for spring with warmer temperatures. If it is reliably getting warmer, ensure that the water supply is regular if possible in order to attract the seedlings. If they show up, be sure to keep your chicken wire protection up and reinforce it if necessary. Especially if red deer or wild boar like to get lost in gardens in your area, which appreciate young trees as spring food.

    Incidentally, in order to get a red beech in the garden, you can also search in spring in forests with red beech stocks for self-shooting seedlings, dig them up and transplant them into the garden. But here, too, you have a better chance of the tree growing well if you take some soil from the forest for transplanting and protect the young tree from predators by fencing it in.

    Culinary use of beechnuts

    Beechnuts are highly valued by forest dwellers. Wild boar, squirrels, birds and mice use them to build up a safe supply of energy before winter and store them for their intermediate boosts during hibernation.

    What animals do intuitively has of course long been documented by us humans with facts. From a nutritional point of view, beechnuts are indeed extremely energy-giving nutrient suppliers:

    • Lipid content of over 40% (fatty acids)
    • Vitamins (B vitamins)
    • many valuable minerals (e.g. sodium, potassium, sulphur)
    • rich in trace elements (e.g. zinc, iron)
    • amino acids

    With this composition, beechnuts are real sources of energy. It was not for nothing that they were always a popular collectible for people in times of need. During and after the great wars, for example, people collected them to process them into flour or to use them roasted as a substitute for coffee. At times, oil was even extracted from the lipid-containing beechnuts.

    Today, in a time of food abundance, beechnuts only play a role as food for those interested in nature and self-sufficiency. In the course of the trend towards regionality, seasonality, natural nutrition and also anti-consumptionism, the Buchecker should deservedly receive noticeably more attention again.

    Things to note when eating beechnuts

    Beechnuts should only be eaten raw in moderation

    Beechnuts are nutritious and really tasty with their nutty aroma. However, you should not consume large amounts of them raw. Because they contain trimethylamine, which is also called fagin according to the generic name of the beech 'Fagus', alkaloids and a lot of oxalic acid. This makes beechnuts slightly poisonous when raw.

    However, the symptoms of poisoning only occur in sensitive people and only when large quantities are consumed and are limited to abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. In extreme cases, symptoms of paralysis and cramps are said to have occurred. If you are healthy and not overly sensitive, you can taste a few beechnuts directly during a walk in the forest. When heated by boiling or roasting, the toxic substances are broken down, so that there should be no risk of poisoning even for more sensitive people if larger quantities are consumed.

    Toxicity to pets

    However, care should be taken with pets. For certain species, the toxicity of beechnuts can be fatal. Horses, calves and guinea pigs in particular are susceptible to the toxins and can react with breathing difficulties, tremors, dilation of the pupils, vomiting, diarrhea and symptoms of paralysis. As little as 300-1000g is considered potentially lethal for horses.

    Dogs are less mentioned in the relevant literature on beechnut toxicity, but they should not eat large quantities either. With very curious and carefree four-legged friends, you should be careful when walking in beech forests.

    Delicacies made from beechnuts

    If you know what to look out for, you can very profitably enrich your diet with beechnuts. Beechnuts are particularly recommended for the following delicacies:

    • bread
    • cake
    • Cookies
    • coffee substitute
    • Pesto
    • Salad and spread garnish

    Baking with beechnut flour

    The recycling method that was widespread for a long time was grinding it into a kind of flour. Of course you can still do that today. However, before grinding, for example in a grain mill, the fruit should be heated in some way. On the one hand, to break down the toxins and make them more digestible, on the other hand, to be able to process them better and improve their taste.

    On the one hand, you can scald the nuts with boiling water. This ensures an initial breakdown of toxins and bitter substances and also makes it a little easier to remove from the shell. Above all, however, any empty shells can be separated from the full ones, because the empty ones float to the surface of the water and can be skimmed off from there. Roasting in a coated pan without fat (the fruit itself contains enough of it) or baking in the oven is even better for reducing toxins and making peeling easier. In addition, a pleasant roasted aroma is created.

    After peeling, the nuts can be roasted again if necessary. This increases the digestibility and the roasted aroma. Furthermore, some of the fine skins and thus more bitter substances are also loosened. The peeling off of the skins is also a sign that the nuts are roasted. If possible, wait for the moment when the nuts are already exuding a pleasant roasted aroma but have not yet burned. Then you can let them cool and then grind them in a grain grinder, with a simple hand coffee grinder or in a mortar.

    Bread and cakes made from beechnut flour can be made savory or sweet and can be flavored with blackberries, dates and pears, aromatic herbs such as Schabzigerklee and fennel seeds or with kefir.

    Mix in the beechnut flour if necessary

    In general, the beechnut flour is only suitable as an addition to grain flour. Baked goods made solely from beechnut flour taste quite palatable and are significantly less bitter than baked goods made from acorn flour. However, due to the lack of gluten, the results do not hold together well. If you want to enjoy the tangy taste of the beechnut flour unadulterated, you can use binding agents such as egg.

    Coffee made from beechnut flour

    A lot can be made from beechnuts

    Even a coffee substitute should not necessarily be brewed from pure beechnut flour. Like coffee made from roasted and ground acorns, it tastes just too bitter. In order to achieve a pleasant-tasting result, it is better to add grain coffee and/or slightly sweetening spices such as cinnamon or cocoa.

    Pesto with beechnuts

    Beechnuts can also be used wonderfully for pesto. But here, too, it is true that they should only be used as a supplement. Chopped and roasted, they can form the oily base together with pine, walnut or cashew nuts. For the fresh, green seasoning, wild garlic or other flavor-intensive wild herbs such as groundweed, garlic mustard or meadow sage are of course the classic choice.

    Salad and spread garnish

    We also highly recommend chopped and roasted beechnuts as a garnish for autumn salads with lamb's lettuce and grated carrots or as a crunchy addition to a hearty spread made from quark, tomato paste, pumpkin and turmeric.

    frequently asked Questions

    Which tree do beechnuts belong to?

    Since the name Buchecker comes from German (Ecker from Ahd. ekarn and mhd. ackeran, ecker(n)), it also refers to the only beech species that occurs naturally in Germany. This is the common beech, botanically Fagus sylvatica. Other types of beech, such as the Crimean beech or the American beech, do bear similar fruit with similar properties, but because of their non-German distribution areas they are not actually referred to with the original German word Bucheckern.

    How do I recognize beechnuts?

    Beechnuts have a characteristic appearance: their approx. 1.5 cm long, ovate shape, pointed at the top, their three sharp longitudinal edges with indentations in between and their reddish-brown color are unmistakable. Outside they are covered by a soft, prickly fruit cup, the four lobes of which spread open when the fruit ripens. You can usually find them under the red beeches on the forest floor. However, some of them also detach themselves so that they can also be picked up loosely.

    Can you eat beechnuts?

    Beechnuts are edible and have repeatedly played a role in human nutrition, especially in times of need and war. They can be used, for example, as flour and grist for bread, cakes or as a coffee substitute, as well as processed into a mush in pesto or roasted whole as a crispy garnish for salads.Because of their slight toxicity, beechnuts should not be eaten raw in large quantities. Heating in the form of boiling, roasting or baking breaks down the toxins (trimethylamine, alkaloids and oxalic acid)

    Are beechnuts poisonous?

    Beechnuts are slightly poisonous and if eaten excessively raw, they can cause slight symptoms of poisoning, especially in sensitive people. These include rejection reactions of the digestive tract such as abdominal pain, vomiting and nausea, and in rare cases paralysis and cramps. The toxins it contains, especially trimethylamine, alkaloids and oxalic acid, can be broken down by heating. In the case of pets, it is mainly horses and calves for whom beechnuts can be poisonous and even fatal. Guinea pigs and dogs should not eat the fruit either.

    Is it also possible to buy beechnuts and beechnut products?

    If you are interested in using beechnuts outside of the season or want to plant a red beech, you can also buy beechnuts with patient research. They are mainly marketed as seeds, so you can find what you are looking for in seeds. You can also buy the tasty and healthy beechnut oil from selected oil mills. Specialist dealers for natural handicraft materials or florists sometimes also offer handpicked beechnuts or their empty fruit cups for decorative purposes.

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