Aegina Pistachios: Lardy???

[Jim Leff]

A friend brought me back Aegina pistachios from Greece. Tiny, pointy, and intense, they're also unbelievably rich and unctuous. My first thought was that they'd somehow had lard added to them!

But then I returned to them, and y'know, I'm willing to bet they truly ARE lardy. They're redolent of pork chops.

Is that possible?

[rachelfc]

When I was 17 I spend a couple of lazy weeks on Aegina, eating feta and fresh fruit, and piles and piles of pistachio nuts and olives. I always thought they tasted so good because I was right there, sitting on the stpes of a taverna, looking at the sea... but maybe they'd have tasted as good at home- who knows...? Maybe that lardy thing is just a salty umami type taste that wires you into porkchops.

[KRS]

Jim -

Do you know of any NYC source? Sahadi seems obvious, but they seem to have only a choice between domestic and imported. With so much fat, they'll probably go rancid even faster than the ordinary ones, so I'd hesitate to order from Greece.

[Jim Leff]

I had mine brought back by hand from a visitor to greece. he says he's seen (expensive) sources for the things on the internet, but I haven't checked that out yet. If anyone googles, please share your findings!

[BobB]

Haven't seen the Aeginas but I did find a source a while back for Sicilian pistachios - pricey but superb! http://www.buonitalia.com/index.cfm?a...

[BobB]

I very much doubt it. The Greeks are far too proud of their pistachios (especially Aegina's!) to goop them up. I think it's probably the natural fattiness you're tasting. Some nuts have an extraordinarily high fat content; I remember a science experiment in high school about food energy where we mounted a shelled Brazil nut on a pin and lit it on fire, and the little sucker burned for what seemed like an insanely long time!

[goodhealthgourmet]

actually, pistachios have a lower fat content than most other nuts. brazil nuts, on the other hand, are among the fattiest [along with pecans & macadamias].

[BobB]

Thanks, I didn't realize that. But I still find it hard to believe the Greeks would grease their nuts. So to speak.

[Jim Leff]

Oh, I find it hard to believe, too. What I'm tasting in my mouth does not match what I know in my brain.

[BobB]

Well, if you go back far enough (WAAAAAAAY far enough!) pigs and pistachios do share a common ancestor. Not to mention they both start with P. ;-)