Where to bulk buy decent walnuts?
Where to bulk buy decent walnuts?
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Discussion

ChemicalChaos

Original Poster:

10,697 posts

181 months

Thursday 2nd December 2021
quotequote all
I'm in a bit of a dilemma - most PH middle class problem ever, here.

I love taking walnuts as part of my lunch at work, usually about 100g a day so a decent amount. Not a fan of peanuts, cashews or almonds - walnuts are my one and only. I buy pre-shelled ones as I definitely don't have time to be shelling hundreds of nuts a week. However I'm not a fan of the dark and bitter ones - I much prefer the light, sweet and creamy ones. It's also nice to have ones that are an entire "half" rather than a pile of smashed bits as I eat them with a sandwich rather than stirring them into anything.

Unfortunately, it seems the only place on the high street I can find that sells light, inctact walnuts is M&S - they are described as "chandler walnuts" which seems to be a particular variety? At nearly 5 quid for a 200g ziplock packet it's getting an expensive (and wasteful) way of buying them.

Naturally, I've turned to Amazon Pantry and others to see if there is a decent alternative but it's a total minefield of unknown taste, quality and food safety.
Can anyone recommend please a good quality supplier they know of that sells something like a 1 or 2kg bag of said variety of walnuts?

Thanks in advance!


hyphen

26,262 posts

111 months

Thursday 2nd December 2021
quotequote all
Are Holland and Barret ones any good? Wait for their sales and buy, or have a look on their site to see if they have any subscriber deals.

Also check any indian/arabic stores near you, as those cultures eat a lot.

moorx

4,370 posts

135 months

Thursday 2nd December 2021
quotequote all
Not the amount you want, but a bit cheaper for 200g:

https://www.aldi.co.uk/walnut-halves/p/70255637245...

OH came home from Aldi with these today. I've never seen them in a bag this size before - I only use them for the occasional cake, so they'll keep us going for a while.

PorkInsider

6,334 posts

162 months

Thursday 2nd December 2021
quotequote all
Bought these a few weeks back and they were pretty much intact.

https://groceries.morrisons.com/products/morrisons...

£2.99 for 350g seems pretty good, too.

Zumbruk

7,848 posts

281 months

Thursday 2nd December 2021
quotequote all
I've bought brazils & pecans from these people, might be worth trying them;

https://www.grapetree.co.uk/

av185

20,464 posts

148 months

Thursday 2nd December 2021
quotequote all
Lidl.

Harfi88

470 posts

83 months

Thursday 2nd December 2021
quotequote all
Do you have a Costco card ? I buy a big bag from there every so often for my dad. Not sure on weight or price though.

Evoluzione

10,345 posts

264 months

Thursday 2nd December 2021
quotequote all
Makro/Booker.
You find ones in bits much cheaper than whole halves.

andyA700

3,452 posts

58 months

Friday 3rd December 2021
quotequote all
Lidl and Aldi are the best bets for buying walnuts. However, we always have a good stock of foraged walnuts - SE England. You really can't beat freshly foraged walnuts for their creamy texture.
All you need to know about walnuts

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-w...

Pastor Of Muppets

3,784 posts

83 months

Saturday 4th December 2021
quotequote all
It's not a common tree up here in Scotland but over the years I have managed to find several big mature trees in scattered locations which I visit every autumn, and with the owners permission (of course!) I usually manage to harvest enough to fill a few large hessian sacks and often have enough to share widely to friends, family and the local wildlife. Hardly a day goes by without crushed walnuts in some dish or other, more often than not my morning porridge!, wonderful.

ChemicalChaos

Original Poster:

10,697 posts

181 months

Sunday 5th December 2021
quotequote all
Thanks for all the suggestions people!

I don't have a costco account but I'll follow up the other leads (and see if there's any trees near me!)

omniflow

3,551 posts

172 months

Sunday 5th December 2021
quotequote all
I think that supermarkets have their nuts in more than one location, and it can take some hunting around to find the ones you're looking for.

I find Tesco to be generally the best value for money. Macadamias are my go-to nut - try some and you might never go back to walnuts again.

They have them in the baking section, and then they have a bigger selection a bit further up the same aisle (well they do in the one in Amersham). The place you don't need to bother looking is with the crisps and snacks. It's worth spending 10 or 15 minutes hunting around a large Tesco store to figure out what you can find.

Zumbruk

7,848 posts

281 months

Sunday 5th December 2021
quotequote all
omniflow said:
I
Macadamias are my go-to nut - try some and you might never go back to walnuts again.
I daren't keep them in the house. I'd be 25 stone.


hyphen

26,262 posts

111 months

Sunday 5th December 2021
quotequote all
omniflow said:
Macadamias are my go-to nut - try some and you might never go back to walnuts again.
Different nuts have different nutritional profiles. Best to eat a variety of nuts for this reason.

vaud

57,602 posts

176 months

Monday 6th December 2021
quotequote all
ChemicalChaos said:
I love taking walnuts as part of my lunch at work, usually about 100g a day so a decent amount.
Check - walnuts contain oxalates and that is quite a pile of walnuts. Bad for your kidneys, IIRC.

dontlookdown

2,331 posts

114 months

Monday 6th December 2021
quotequote all
We buy quite a lot of nuts - brazils, almonds, hazelnuts and walnuts - for jazzing up cheap muesli. Got fed up of paying 5 quid for ever smaller boxes of Dorset muesli. I toast a batch and add a handful to each bowl.

The German discounters - Aldi and Lidl - are the best places I have found. Decent prices and good sized bags.

sean ie3

3,189 posts

157 months

Monday 6th December 2021
quotequote all
Another nut lover here looking forward to the shell on xmas bonanza although I'm finding them hard to come by, Covid? Anyway I have some Brazils to cover in chocolate along with the dates and Pecans. Lidl and Aldi are where I buy my nuts.

MrJuice

3,770 posts

177 months

Wednesday 8th December 2021
quotequote all
I have a mature walnut tree in my garden and every year the squirrel takes every single last one. They just all vanish over a few days in late summer.

Richieboy3008

2,058 posts

204 months

Wednesday 8th December 2021
quotequote all

Mobile Chicane

21,746 posts

233 months

Tuesday 14th December 2021
quotequote all
ChemicalChaos said:
I'm in a bit of a dilemma - most PH middle class problem ever, here.

I love taking walnuts as part of my lunch at work, usually about 100g a day so a decent amount. Not a fan of peanuts, cashews or almonds - walnuts are my one and only. I buy pre-shelled ones as I definitely don't have time to be shelling hundreds of nuts a week. However I'm not a fan of the dark and bitter ones - I much prefer the light, sweet and creamy ones. It's also nice to have ones that are an entire "half" rather than a pile of smashed bits as I eat them with a sandwich rather than stirring them into anything.

Unfortunately, it seems the only place on the high street I can find that sells light, inctact walnuts is M&S - they are described as "chandler walnuts" which seems to be a particular variety? At nearly 5 quid for a 200g ziplock packet it's getting an expensive (and wasteful) way of buying them.

Naturally, I've turned to Amazon Pantry and others to see if there is a decent alternative but it's a total minefield of unknown taste, quality and food safety.
Can anyone recommend please a good quality supplier they know of that sells something like a 1 or 2kg bag of said variety of walnuts?

Thanks in advance!
Here:

https://www.wgbuchanan.com/food-service/culinary-n...

I am a chef (these days) and this is the supplier I use for all nuts and dried fruit. Probably where M&S get theirs, in all honesty.