Green boiled peanuts

[MillCreek]

So I was at my local Wal-Mart the other day, buying canned sweet potatoes to make sweet potato casserole for Thanksgiving dinner.  My parents were born and raised in NE Arkansas, moving to Seattle in 1950, so we had a lot of classic Southern dishes when I was a kid.  I have noticed that Wal-Mart is a good place to go for some foods that are usually found only in the South.  On the shelf right above the sweet potatoes was a can of green boiled peanuts.  Thanks to my reading of the Civil War and other sources, I knew that green boiled peanuts are very popular in the South.  So I bought a can of them.  My wife, who spent a lot of time in southern Georgia with her first husband's family, only chuckled when she saw the can on the kitchen counter.

I opened the can and the peanuts in the shell were packed in brine.  So I shelled one of the peanuts and popped the soggy nut kernels into my mouth.  My first thought was that I was eating a rehydrated dried green pea, and it was salty and vegetal.  Just to make sure that I had not gotten a bad one, I ate four more peanuts.  They all tasted the same, and I did not like them.  There was no peanut flavor to them at all.  My wife tried one, told me that she had them in Georgia, and this is how they were supposed to taste, and she did not like them either. 

So I am guessing that this is an acquired taste.

[charby]

Funny, I saw those yesterday in Walmart also. I ate some last spring in Mississippi, wasn't my favorite.

[BobR]

Green peanuts, green tomatos, collard greens..... what is with the south and green food?   
 
bob

[mtnbkr]

I love them and have loved them since my first taste.  Unfortunately, I try to avoid nuts due to my diverticulitis. My last attack came on the heels of eating nearly an entire can of boiled peanuts. :(

I've been told you don't shell them, but eat them whole.  However, I always peel them.

Chris

[230RN]

Acquired taste, I guess, sort of like green olives.

I loved tongue and headcheese sandwiches, but nowadays you can't hardly find either anywhere around here.

Same thing with evaporated milk and Spam.  Some folks love either, others can't stand the thought of them.

Me, I can't stand turnips in any form, and the only time I had collard greens, I hated that, too.

Just goes to show you how wide the gene pool is. Which is a good thing. :)

Terry

[KD5NRH]

Green peanuts, green tomatos, collard greens..... what is with the south and green food?

Long growing seasons mean more vegetables overall, which also means coming up with more ways to use them at other stages of growth besides fully ripe.  If you can get 2-3 crops per year, you have 2-3 times as much time when your veggies aren't fully ripe yet but you still need to eat.

[French G.]

Only thing I know about boiled peanuts is you have to find the roadside stand that looks like it met no code or permit ever. Those peanuts are good. Not so sure about canned peanuts. Sounds a bit like redneck edamame, but I'll steam some soybeans for the real thing.

 I typically eat roasted peanuts shell and all but am considering stopping that. A little mold on a nut shell goes a long way.

[charby]

Acquired taste, I guess, sort of like green olives.
Terry

Wut? I've liked green olives since I was a wee little lad, I still get excited when my mom puts them out for family dinners.

[Chuck Dye]

The canned boiled peanuts I have tried are good but pale in comparison to those sold by roadside stands, especially those with smoked ham hocks in the boil.

If you try boiling your own, please, please, start with RAW peanuts!

For a slightly different effect, try the Chinese style boiled without the shells and dressed with soy, white vinegar, and finely sliced scallions.  Yummy stuff!