What to use instead of almonds
It depends entirely on what it's doing in the dish. Here's the job, what else does it, and what to skip.
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Ground nuts that thicken and enrich a sauce
Almonds are around half fat, so ground into a gravy they emulsify and thicken it while rounding off the spice, with no flour or dairy involved.
Cashews, soaked 20 min and blendedRan out
1:1 by weight
Smoother and sweeter with no skin grit at all, and the sauce goes paler and creamier. This is what most restaurant kormas use.
Almond flourRan out
1:1 by weight, whisked in and simmered 10 min
No blender needed and the sauce is smoother. It tastes raw if you rush the simmer.
Sunflower seeds, toasted and groundNut-free
1:1 by weight
Thickens the same and tastes greener with a slight bitterness. The sauce turns a dull grey-green, so use it where colour hides.
TahiniNut-free
1/4 cup tahini per 1/2 cup ground almonds
Thickens and enriches immediately with no grinding. Sesame bitterness is louder than almond, so add a pinch of sugar.
What doesn't work: Almond butter straight from the jar. It is roasted, often salted and sometimes sweetened, so a korma made with it tastes toasted and sticky rather than fresh, and it seizes into a lump in the hot gravy unless you thin it with liquid first.
Crunch in a stir-fry, salad or bake
The nut has to keep its snap next to sauce or dough. Toasting drives out moisture, which is what makes the crunch last through the meal.
Roasted peanutsRan out
1:1 by volume
Sweeter and softer, and more traditional in kung pao anyway. They go soft faster once the sauce hits them.
Roasted cashewsRan out
1:1 by volume
The bite gives way rather than snapping, and they soak up sauce and go creamy at the edges.
Hazelnuts, toasted and rubbed free of skinsRan out
1:1 by volume
Firmer and much more aromatic, and darker in a biscotti. Skins left on turn the bake bitter.
Pumpkin or sunflower seeds, toastedNut-free
3/4 cup seeds per 1 cup chopped almonds
Smaller pieces, so the crunch is finer and spread more evenly. They burn faster in a hot pan, so toast them last.
What doesn't work: Flaked or sliced almonds in a stir-fry. They are too thin to hold up, go limp within a minute of meeting the sauce and burn in the wok before the aromatics are done.
Blanched almonds matter wherever the sauce should stay pale. The skins are what turn a korma grey and give ground almonds a faintly bitter edge.