Kashmiri Almonds

Whole raw Kashmiri almonds from the orchards around Pulwama, unsalted, unblanched and sold by weight in a 500 g pack.

Almonds are graded on size and on how many kernels arrive broken or shrivelled, neither of which a photograph shows. Ours are sorted for size after shelling, so a pack is uniform rather than a mix of large kernels stretched with small ones.

Packed in sealed, opaque bags against the harvest, with the packing date on the label. Nuts go rancid through their oil, faster in warmth and light than most people expect, and an opaque bag with a date on it is the honest way to sell them.

Everything on our nuts shelf is from single lots. We do not blend a good lot into a weaker one to stretch it, which is ordinary practice in this trade.

For soaking overnight, for badam milk, for a raw handful — and for anyone who has bought "Kashmiri" almonds before and been unsure that they were.