Saturday, May 15, 2010

Goober Peas - Cajun Boiled Peanuts


Cajun Boiled Peanuts

♫Sitting by the roadside on a summer's day
Chatting with my mess-mates, passing time away
Lying in the shadows underneath the trees
Goodness, how delicious, eating goober peas.

Peas, peas, peas, peas
Eating goober peas
Goodness, how delicious,
Eating goober peas.♫

Boiled peanuts - or country caviar as they are often referred as - are a decidedly Southern thang, and even amongst us Southerners, there are two factions. You either love them. Or you hate them. There is rarely a middle ground with boiled peanuts.

Boiling peanuts requires using either green or raw peanuts. The growing season for fresh green peanuts runs between May and September, with major harvests happening generally between August and October each year. You can pretty much find raw peanuts at your local market anytime of the year. What's the difference?

It's all in the timing.

While both are raw, green peanuts come fresh from harvest, are harvested a tad bit early, and much like Southern peas (which like the peanut are actually beans), have a high water content and must be refrigerated after harvesting to keep them fresh. You almost have to live near a peanut farmer to find green peanuts, but if you do find them locally, you will find them in a refrigerator at a roadside stand or in the refrigerator section of a local market, and rarely at a major chain grocery store - unless you live in Georgia. There are, of course, online resources where you can have green peanuts shipped to you as well, and generally they are available from a quarter bushel up. Green peanuts will cook quickly, generally under 2 hours for a large 5 pound batch, a little less for a single pound.

HOT WET GOOBERS from Southern Foodways on Vimeo.

Raw peanuts, which you'll see everywhere in the South, have been allowed to air dry to reduce the water content and make them much less perishable. They will take significantly longer to boil. I was hoping to wait and find some freshly harvested green peanuts before posting my recipe, but, to be honest, most of us just don't have access to green peanuts anyway, and when we do, we're much more likely to be in Georgia for a visit and just buy them already boiled from a roadside vendor.

The best flavor, by far, is gonna be a freshly boiled green peanut, no doubt. No different that the taste of a fresh garden tomato from the backyard or the farmer's market versus a grocery store hot house tomato. That said, logically it makes much more sense to write the recipe for the most common ones around for most of us, the raw grocery store peanut. They are still pretty darned good y'all. Just know that if you are lucky enough to get your hands on freshly harvested green peanuts, you'll be enjoying yours much faster than the rest of us!




The problem with out of season, raw peanuts is, that they are generally last year's crop and over time become quite dehydrated, meaning that they can take forever to cook. While fresh green peanuts can be ready in less than 2 hours, older raw peanuts can take 8 hours, and even much longer, so as long as you are prepared to stew them literally all day long {and sometimes into the next day} you can still have boiled peanuts any time of the year.

For older peanuts, you'll also need to use lots of salt, primarily because you will likely find that you are having to refresh the boiling water continuously to reach the level of softness you want. Otherwise, they will not be seasoned enough. The biggest key to boiling raw peanuts is that you'll just need to continually sample from the pot to taste them as they cook, until they reach the desired level of tenderness you like. Remember if you're out of season with your boiling, that is, somewhere been November and July, you're likely using last season's leftovers. The older your raw peanuts are, the longer they will need to boil.



Recipe: Cajun Boiled Peanuts

©From the Kitchen of Deep South Dish
Brine time: 24 hr |Cook time: 4 hours or more | Yield: 1 pound

For the Brine:
  • About a gallon of water
  • 1-1/4 cups of kosher salt
  • 1 pound fresh raw peanuts in shells
For the Boil:
  • Water to fill the pot
  • 1 tablespoon crab boil, or to taste

When ready to boil, remove the weight and the lid and add additional water to the brining water, to bring it up to a full pot. Stir in the crab boil, Cajun seasoning and peppers and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for at least 4 hours for raw, checking first at 2 hours if peanuts are very fresh and in season, and up to 6 hours for older, adding water as needed to keep peanuts covered. If additional water is added, bring back up to a boil, then reduce heat back to a simmer. Taste one for texture and flavor and continue cooking, as needed, checking in 30 minute increments until they reach your desired consistency. Some people like them with a bit of a crunch still, others prefer them to be very soft.

Grab a cold Barq's root beer in a bottle, ice cold beer, or tall glass of Southern sweet iced tea. Use a kitchen spider to extract those peanuts into a small bowl so that they can sit in their own little hot tub of salty juiciness while you enjoy them! Leave the rest of them soaking in the water to increase saltiness and heat level. Transfer to a covered container with the liquid and refrigerate for 2 to 3 days; warm in the microwave in a covered container in one minute intervals, until heated through. Will not keep longer than a few days, however they can be frozen. To freeze, place cooled peanuts into freezer containers.

Recipe may be multiplied for cooking outside on a boiler if desired.

For Green Peanuts: Fresh, green peanuts will require much less salt and a quicker cooking time. Skip the overnight brine, and place peanuts in a full pot of water with 1/4 cup of salt. Check first at 1 to 1-1/2 hours and continue cooking to desired tenderness.





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©Deep South Dish
Check These Snacks Out Too!

Homemade Baked Potato Chips
Homemade Tortilla Chips
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Posted by on May 15, 2010



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  8. OMG I am so excited about this blog!

















  20. I grew up in GA right across fro a vegetable stand that sold hot boiled peanuts. Love them! Moved to MI about 10 years ago and really miss them. Almost impossible to find raw peanuts. Found some at a farmers market about an hour and a half away. Drove out today and picked up 25 lb. Have 5 soaking now and will cook tomorrow out side on a burner (like a turkey fryer burner) in a large pot. I can't wait and neither can my daughter!!

    1. And I'm wishing I was there Pat! Just remember, the key is to keep tasting until they get where you want them. Enjoy!!




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