55 Sweet and Savory Pecan Recipes - You Should Grow (2024)

FAQs

What is the best tasting variety of pecan? ›

Elliot Pecans

This species grows well, too, offering excellent quality, flavor and consistency. The nut itself has a buttery, rich flavor with a subtle hint of hickory. Elliot pecans are an excellent snacking variety when eaten on their own, but they're also ideal for pies and other sweets.

Type I (protandrous) pecans have male flowers that release their pollen before their female flowers are receptive to pollen shed. Type II (protogynous) pecans release their pollen after their female flowers were receptive.

Pecans find their way into delicious cheesecake recipes, classic Christmas cookies, and holiday treats galore. Some of the recipes you'll find here like the pecan pralines, candied pecans, and pretzel turtles even make the perfect homemade food gift for Christmas!

Why Georgia Pecans? Georgia is the leading pecan-producing state in the U.S. In particular, Albany, GA is known as the "pecan capital of the world" due to the number of pecan trees (more than 600,000). Beyond that, Georgia is the home of the National Nut Growers Association, which was established in Albany in 1901.

For pecan trees to bare nuts you will need two or more different cultivars, as they require cross pollination for maximum productivity. Pecan trees do not bear fruit until they are between the ages of four and 12 years old and that is determined by the cultivar.

COLOR THE STATES WHERE PECANS ARE GROWN

Georgia, New Mexico, and Texas are the top pecan-producing states. The U.S. is the world's leading producer of pecans, producing about 80% of the world's pecan supply. It takes 7 years for the pecan trees to grow and start producing nuts.

Pecan shell mulch is slightly acidic and is especially good around acid-loving plants such as azaleas. Pecan shells will eventually decompose and are therefore, good candidates for your compost bin. And why not replace the mesquite and hickory chips you use to flavor your barbecue with pecan shells?

Therefore, you many need to add another healthy tree to assist in pollination and hence nut production. (See the UC Davis link below for a list of pecan varieties, with early and late pollen shed.) Pecans are wind pollinated, so trees should be planted in relatively close proximity to ensure adequate pollination.

The pecan tree produces pendulous green spikes of male flowers, called catkins, that produce pollen. Pecan catkins grow in groups of two or three laterally along wood that is a year old. The smaller, green spikes of female flowers that receive pollen grow at the end of the current year's growth.

What is the life span of a pecan tree? ›

Pecan trees typically grow 75-100 feet tall with a large, distinctively wide spreading crown (canopy). The lifespan of these behemoths can be up to 300 years! The Carya genus includes nearly 20 species. Most are native to North America, including all of those in the Arboretum's living collections.

Elliott (a Type II variety) has long been a reliable, scab-resistant producer of high quality, though small, nuts and is a staple variety for many commercial pecan growers in Louisiana. It may take 8 to 12 years for nut production to begin.

Webworms can be managed with contact insecticide sprays. If you use sprays on pecan trees, read the label to be sure the product is safe to use on pecans because they are a food crop. Look for one of these active ingredients: permethrin, carbaryl, cyfluthrin, cyhalothrin, Bts, or spinosad.

“Eating a handful of pecans each day can help satisfy cravings for unhealthy snacks and provide a nutritious boost to any meal. Furthermore, pecans can also be included as part of a healthy diet when combined with other nutrient-rich foods in moderation.”

You'll find out fast that boiling pecans lessens the likelihood of the shell shattering into a lot of smaller pieces. Boiling shouldn't affect the taste of the pecan, though.

Northern varieties have been selected or bred to ripen their nuts by or before the first hard freeze each year. Southern varieties have been selected or bred to fit the conditions of a longer season with more heat and humidity.

Pecan growers

In central Texas, San Saba calls itself the "Pecan Capital of the World" and is home to the world's largest and oldest pecan tree, known as Mother Pecan. The tree is close to 200 years old.

Georgia's pecans are highly desirable due to their size, meatiness and flavor. Delicious right out of the shell, Georgia pecans can be smoked, toasted or roasted, but more and more companies are thinking beyond pecans as nibbles.

Native northern pecans have a higher oil content and more flavor than the southern, easier to crack pecans. But southern pecans won't grow too far north and northern pecans won't grow too far south. If you are in a pecan growing region you can probably find a farm store that will crack them for you.