Shelling Pecans

In the post the other day about shelling purple hull peas, it reminded me that I needed to shell some pecans.  We have a record pecan harvest coming up and I still have some, believe it or not, left over from the fall crop that I never finished shelling.  I never finished because my "old timey" (Is that a word?) pecan sheller broke.  The shaft on the lever broke in the threads and so it had to be drilled out and have new threads made.  I brought it to a very mechanically inclined individual at work and he got Old Betsy working again.  Old Betsy is a family heirloom that is many years old, but is still looking good and working well despite her years, providing motivation and inspiration to humans advancing in age, perhaps?  Here she is in all her glory, fixed, oiled up and ready to go:


Puh-cahns, not PEE-CANS, please, we're south of the Mason-Dixon line.

Here is a close up view of Old Betsy.  As you can see I have some big zip ties to hold the pecan sheller securely in place for the shelling process.  As an interesting side note, you might have seen zip ties this big on the TV show COPS (Bad boys, Bad boys, whatcha gonna do...) where police officers use them as handcuffs.  Fortunately, I've not had first-hand experience with them used in that capacity!  The first thing you want to do is set up your pecan shelling station in the shade underneath an old oak tree, preferably with a cool breeze blowing.  This task, while enjoyable, takes a while, so you want to make yourself comfortable.


The handy pecan sheller

 You can see above on the right hand side of the sheller is a threaded piece that is adjustable to allow for moving the device to fit the size of your pecans.  Our pecans are very small, but they are so rich and oily, they are well worth the work.



Pecan sheller in action

Close up

Since this was last year's crop, I tasted a few to make sure they were still good and yes, they were.  You always attract a crowd when shelling pecans - people wanting to taste "just one."  Sometimes it is hard to shell them as fast as they are being eaten.  Below you can see what the sheller yields: cracked pecans that are ready to have the shells removed.  This is an easy job that is best done in front of a fireplace while watching SEC football on TV.

Just getting started... (future pecan pies)

Now this next picture I wanted to show for several reasons, the first being that it shows a young man focused and diligently at work.  The other is that it shows the assembly line.  There is a method to the madness.  The bucket with the onion sack in it is where you throw the good pecans that have been cracked.  The other bucket to the left, contains the pecans left to be shelled.  You can't see it, but there is a small bucket under the bench below the sheller that catches the cracked pecan shells and also pecans that are culled.  We compost those.  The upside down milk crate is where the supervisor sits and directs the action.  Supervising can be a dangerous affair as there are flying bits of pecan shells AND there is a high probability of contracting WBS, a medical condition known as waffle butt syndrome.  If you get up and walk around, the lines imprinted on your bottom will go away, I've found.  Other than that, we've had no reportable incidents, thank goodness.


Benjamin's pecan shelling assembly line at the OSHA compliant pecan factory

 I have a lot more to do, but this is what I got done during the LSU - Washington football game Saturday night.  Not too shabby.

Here's a good shot.  I couldn't fit another in the bowl:


Mmmmmmmm!

 And finally, I pack them in ziploc bags and freeze them.  And then Tricia will pull them out of the freezer as needed and make the best pecan pie that has Steen's Cane syrup in it.  The best pie in the whole wide world, I'm telling you.  we'll also put them in pancakes and make cookies with them.  Good eating!

A gallon or so shelled pecans

We'll keep Old Betsy oiled up and in good repair - Fall's a comin' and she's got her work cut out for her.