How to Crack a Walnut

The walnut is a great source of Omega-3 oils, which are heart healthy. They are also a great alternative to eating potato chips with a meal. But if you've ever tried to crack the darn things you know how hard it is to do. Here are some clever ways to crack a walnut.

Things You'll Need

• Nutcracker

Instructions

1. Crack the nuts using a nutcracker. While this is the most obvious method, it's also the easiest. Nutcrackers can be purchased at most grocery or home stores like Target, Wal-Mart or K-Mart. This is also a great task to give a little one when you need to crack a bunch of walnuts for a recipe.

2. Place the walnuts in a freezer. Once the water inside the walnut freezes, it expands and therefore cracks open the shell. This method does take a couple of hours, but it also saves your hands from all of that hard squeezing.

3. Put them in a vice grip. This is a great idea if you are in a pinch. Place the walnuts in a vice grip and simply turn the handle (or squeeze depending on the vice grip model) and the walnuts will crack right open.

4. Swing a hammer to crack your walnuts. Make sure the walnut is on a hard surface, then knock it with a hammer forcefully. If the shell does not crack all the way open, insert a screwdriver and pry the shell apart.

Resources

• This site has all sorts of info on agriculture, including how to crack walnuts after you grow them.
• This site is full of info on natural foods that are good for you, including walnuts and how to crack them.