Pinenuts

[Luckyfeather]

I'm growing basil for the first time, plan to make pesto for the first time, and need to buy some pinenuts for the first time. Whew! My question is: when I go to the store for the pinenuts, where should I look for them? Would they be with the spices? (I'm hoping my local grocer even carries pinenuts...I don't recall seeing them before.)

Thanks for any advise you can give me to help my grocery shopping go smoothly. And, wish me luck! I can't wait to try pesto...I've heard so much about how wonderful it is...hope we like it.

[AmyMcP]

I have found pinenuts in the bulk foods section if your store has that. Sometimes the bulk bins are located in produce. But I think you can now get small packages of pinenuts where the other nuts are - snacks and chips section.

Hope this helps!

[Valerie226]

If you have a Costco, look there. on the main shelves. If you have a a store with bulk foods, try there. they are expensive & go rancid. tast whatever you buy first to be sure they are not already rancid. Otherwise in the baking aisle with the bagged nuts. I buy a lg bag at Costco & freeze them. I make pesto without nuts. (Opinions will vary). basil, olive oil, & garlic are the dominant flavor. Occasionally I use pine nuts but mostly make pesto without. I love pesto! Hope you will too.

[AmyMcP]

Sometimes they are called pignolis - I may have spelled that wrong!

[lindrusso]

I find them either in the produce section (maybe near the sun-dried tomatoes) or in the condiments aisle - I think near the olives.

Our grocery store sells them in tiny little jars and they are very expensive. As Valerie mentioned, you can get large bags for a reasonable price at Costco.

If you cannot find pine nuts, you can substitute any kind of nut. I like pesto with pecans - they are cheaper and I can always find them! :)

[valchemist]

I have found them in the produce section, too.

Usually right near the basil and/or tomatoes.

[Ralph]

Originally posted by AmyMcP
Sometimes they are called pignolis - I may have spelled that wrong!

Correct spelling.

I've also seen them in the Italian ethnic section where they sell fancier Italian stuff like marinated mushrooms, higher quality grated parmesan; brands like Dell'Alpe.

[Luckyfeather]

Thanks for all the great advise. No, I'm not near a Costco (Sams is our wholesale store and even that's about an hour & 15 minutes away), so my local grocer is my only option for this weekend. And, since I've never been exposed to pinenuts, I didn't know you could substitute. I have pecans in the freezer so that will be "Plan B." But, I'd like to try my recipe as written the first time to see how it tastes (unless the pinenuts will cost me an arm & a leg!).

Thanks again!! Now, maybe I won't be wandering too aimlessly around the store tonight:)

[LaraW]

Originally posted by lindrusso
If you cannot find pine nuts, you can substitute any kind of nut. I like pesto with pecans - they are cheaper and I can always find them! :)

I like using toasted walnuts.

[Peggy C.]

I've seen them in the produce section also, near some gourmet envelopes of stuff. I believe the brand around here is Melissa's, and she sells things like dried mushrooms, shallots, cinnamon sticks.

[Curleytop]

I needed pinenuts (pignolis) for a recipe. I found them in an open bin in a store. I TASTED THEM, AND DECIDED "NOT FOR ME". Unless you have had them before, they taste like turpentine to me.
I think Trader Joe has them, also Whole Foods, and Cost+. :p

[Peggy C.]

Originally posted by Curleytop
I needed pinenuts (pignolis) for a recipe. I found them in an open bin in a store. I TASTED THEM, AND DECIDED "NOT FOR ME". Unless you have had them before, they taste like turpentine to me.
I think Trader Joe has them, also Whole Foods, and Cost+. :p

I wonder if the ones your tried had gone bad? I think they have a very mild taste, kind of buttery and nutty all at once.

[Searcher]

We have plastic tubs of pine nuts in our produce section then small jars of them in the Goys section, and in two other ethnic sections of the supermarket. I don't notice that pine nuts taste anything like terpentine or pine.

[Vanessa]

Curlytop:

That terrible taste was because they went rancid. I keep mine in the freezer but before using I taste. Yesterday made my first batch of pesto and I did throw out a small bag of pinenuts (that turpentine taste-yikes!) I made it with a freshly open bag of pinenuts.