The NutsAndCrafts Journal
Sourcing notes, nutrition, and what we learn on the road.
LatestDry Fruits · Guides
Keeping Dry Fruits Fresh at Home: What Goes in the Fridge and What Doesn't
Nuts go rancid, dried fruit goes hard, and both pick up smells. A practical guide to storing walnuts, almonds, cashews, raisins, figs and apricots so they last.
NutsAndCrafts
23 Oct 2026 4 min
SeedsPumpkin, Sunflower, Chia and Flax: How to Actually Eat Your Seeds
Seeds are easy to buy and easy to forget about. Which ones need soaking, which need grinding, which taste better roasted, and how to keep them from going stale.
NutsAndCrafts
22 Oct 2026 3 min
SpicesKashmiri Red Chilli: Why It's About Colour, Not Heat
Kashmiri chilli gives food a deep red colour with only a gentle warmth. How to cook with it, how to bloom it in oil without burning it, and a simple check for added colour.
NutsAndCrafts
21 Oct 2026 3 min
ShilajitShilajit: Resin, Powder or Capsules, and What to Check Before You Buy
Shilajit comes in several forms, and the label rarely tells you what matters. What each form is, why purification matters, and how people usually take it.
NutsAndCrafts
20 Oct 2026 3 min
HoneyRaw Honey: Why It Sets, How to Warm It, and Which Purity Tests to Ignore
Crystallised honey isn't spoiled, and most home 'purity tests' don't prove anything. What raw honey actually is, how to handle it, and what to look for on the label.
NutsAndCrafts
19 Oct 2026 4 min
RaisinsKishmish, Black Kishmish and Munakka: What's the Difference?
All three are dried grapes, but they come from different grapes and are dried differently. How to tell them apart, and which to use where.
NutsAndCrafts
18 Oct 2026 3 min
ApricotsDried Apricots: Why Some Are Bright Orange and Some Are Brown
The colour of a dried apricot says more about how it was dried than where it grew. Sulphured, unsulphured and whole apricots with the stone, and how to use each.
NutsAndCrafts
17 Oct 2026 3 min
FigsAnjeer at Home: Choosing, Soaking and Storing Dried Figs
How to pick good dried figs, why some are soft and some are hard, how to soak them, and a few simple ways to use anjeer beyond eating it straight from the pack.
NutsAndCrafts
16 Oct 2026 3 min
AlmondsSoaked Almonds: How Long to Soak Them, and Whether to Peel
Soaking almonds overnight is one of the oldest habits in Indian kitchens. How to do it properly, how many to eat, and what changes when you peel the skin.
NutsAndCrafts
14 Oct 2026 3 min
SaffronHow to Store Saffron So It Stays Red and Fragrant
Light, heat, air and moisture are what fade saffron. Where to keep a jar, whether the fridge helps, and how to tell when it has gone past its best.
NutsAndCrafts
12 Oct 2026 3 min
SaffronKesar Phirni: Kashmir's Saffron Semolina Pudding
Milk, fine suji, saffron and cardamom, set cold in small clay pots. The Kashmiri way, and why the texture depends on how slowly the suji goes in.
NutsAndCrafts
10 Oct 2026 3 min
SaffronModur Pulav: Kashmir's Sweet Saffron Rice
Golden rice cooked in ghee with saffron, sugar, whole spices and a handful of dry fruits. A Kashmiri wedding dish you can make on a weekday.
NutsAndCrafts
8 Oct 2026 3 min
SaffronKesar Doodh: The Saffron Milk We Grew Up On
Warm milk, a few threads of saffron, a little cardamom and some crushed almonds. The recipe, the small things that make it better, and a few ways to change it.
NutsAndCrafts
6 Oct 2026 3 min
SaffronHow to Use Saffron Without Wasting It
A gram of saffron goes a long way if you treat it right. How many threads to use, how to bring out the colour, and the mistakes that throw it away.
NutsAndCrafts
4 Oct 2026 3 min
SaffronMongra, Lachha or Zarda? Kashmiri Saffron Grades in Plain Words
Kashmir sorts its saffron by how much of the flower stays on the thread. Here is what each name means, what the ISO categories add, and which one belongs in your kitchen.
NutsAndCrafts
2 Oct 2026 4 min
SaffronHow to Tell Real Kashmiri Saffron From Fake: 7 Home Tests That Work
Most fake saffron gives itself away in a glass of water. Here are seven checks you can do in your own kitchen, what each one proves, and the one question only a lab can answer.
NutsAndCrafts
27 Sep 2026 10 min
SaffronKashmiri vs Iranian Saffron: Colour, Aroma, Grades and Price Compared
Same flower, different soil. How Kashmiri and Iranian saffron compare on colour, aroma, thread, grading and price, and which one makes sense for what you cook.
NutsAndCrafts
22 Sep 2026 7 min
SaffronSaffron Price Per Gram in 2026: What You Should Really Pay
Saffron is sold in every pack size imaginable, which makes prices hard to compare. Here is how to work out the real cost, what moves it, and the prices that should make you walk away.
NutsAndCrafts
17 Sep 2026 7 min
SaffronSaffron in Pregnancy: Benefits, Safe Amounts and When to Avoid It
Kesar milk is a pregnancy tradition in many Indian homes. Here is what is actually known about saffron in pregnancy, what a sensible amount looks like, and the myths worth letting go of.
NutsAndCrafts
10 Sep 2026 6 min
AlmondsMamra vs California Almonds: How to Tell Them Apart, and Which to Buy
Mamra almonds cost two to three times as much as California almonds, and plenty of the "Mamra" on sale isn't. Here is how to tell them apart by shape, skin, oil and taste.
NutsAndCrafts
3 Sep 2026 7 min
WalnutsKashmiri Walnut Grades Explained: Kernel Colour, Shell Types and Which to Buy
Walnut kernels are graded by colour, and the nuts by how easily their shells crack. Here is what extra light, light and amber really mean, how Kagzi differs from Wonth, and how to keep walnuts fresh.
NutsAndCrafts
27 Aug 2026 7 min
KehwaKashmiri Kehwa Recipe: How to Make Authentic Kahwa at Home
Green tea, saffron, cardamom, cinnamon and almonds: the golden tea Kashmir pours for every guest. Here is how to make it properly in ten minutes, the mistakes that turn it bitter, and how it differs from noon chai.
NutsAndCrafts
20 Aug 2026 6 min