Sauce Walnuts

Sauce Walnuts

　　Sauce walnuts were first created in the 1920s and are a traditional famous product of Chongqing, ranking alongside the city’s Risheng Peach Slices and Spiced Salt Peach Slices. The walnut kernels are fragrant yet not astringent, with a pure sweetness that is not cloying, and are particularly crisp and delicious—these are the hallmarks of this product. It is now one of the signature products of Chongqing Lanxiangyuan Instrument Factory.

　　Specification: All products consist of half a walnut kernel, fully coated in sugar, with a honeycomb appearance on the surface.

　　Color: White, with a ivory-colored cross-section.

　　Texture: Crisp and melt-in-the-mouth, with the sugar coating tightly bound to the walnut kernel.

　　Taste: Fragrant, crisp, and sweet, with a slight sauce flavor and no raw or astringent taste from the walnuts.

　　Production Method of Sauce Walnuts

　　Ingredients: Walnut kernels, sweet bean paste, Sichuan white sugar, salt, peanut oil, maltose.

　　1. Ingredient selection: Walnut kernels should be free from insect damage, oil leakage, or rancid smell; sweet bean paste should be golden in color with a pure flavor; maltose should preferably be high-quality rice maltose with good color and taste. For frying the walnuts, use peanut oil (lard can also be used).

　　2. Preparing the walnut kernels: First soak the walnut kernels in water at around 90°C for about 1 minute, then fry them in oil at 170–180°C for 4–5 minutes until crisp.

　　3. Coating with syrup: Boil a syrup using 10% of the Sichuan white sugar listed in the ingredients. The ratio of sugar to water is 10:2. Boiling temperature: 120–125°C in summer, 110–115°C in winter. Once the syrup reaches the desired temperature, remove from heat, add the sweet bean paste, and stir well to evenly coat the walnut kernels.

　　4. Coating with surface syrup: Boil a syrup using 90% of the Sichuan white sugar listed in the ingredients. The ratio of sugar to water is 10:2. When the syrup reaches 110°C, begin coating the surface. Continue boiling while coating to gradually raise the temperature. The final coating temperature should not exceed 135°C in summer or 125°C in winter.

　　Key points for making sauce walnuts: When coating with syrup and surface syrup, work meticulously and slowly to ensure the walnut kernels are evenly coated, guaranteeing consistent quality.