Toasting nuts or seeds develops a warmer aroma and a more pronounced flavour. A dry frying pan is convenient for a small quantity, but it needs your attention. Thin pieces and small seeds can be ready before large whole nuts.
Step by step
Use a small, even batch
Choose nuts or seeds of similar size and check whether they are already roasted. Set out a cool plate. If a recipe needs chopped nuts, follow its order of chopping and toasting because small fragments colour faster.
Spread in a dry pan
Place the nuts in a heavy frying pan in a single layer over moderate to low heat. No oil is needed for ordinary dry-toasting. Avoid a pan so hot that the first contact points immediately turn dark.
Move them frequently
Stir or shake to expose new surfaces. Watch for a slight golden colour and a toasted aroma, checking a cut surface where dark skins hide the change. Stay at the pan as browning accelerates near the end.
Transfer as soon as ready
Tip onto the cool plate and spread out. Let them cool before chopping or adding to ingredients that must stay cold, such as pastry dough or whipped cream.
Burnt spots and misleading softness
Lower heat gives you more time to toast evenly. Nuts may still feel soft while hot and become crisper as they cool, so do not keep cooking only to make hot nuts feel crisp. A rancid smell or taste is a reason to discard them; toasting is not a repair for stale, spoiled nuts.
