Acorns are back in the kitchen: a chef's project to rediscover an ancient food

Rediscovering the acorn: where the project comes from

While new foods are being discovered, tested, and proven around the world as valid alternatives to others, someone, at a charming farmhouse in Tuscia, is finding a way to revive a food no longer in use. Cristiano Germani, chef at Parco delle Querce, is the creator of Ghiandology, "a project officially launched this year, registered with the Chamber of Commerce a few months ago, and whose aim is to revitalize an ancient food like the acorn," he explains. In fact, while it may seem incredible, it's a product we used until recently and has been part of our diet "for about 100,000 years. There are even certain traces attesting to its presence from 35,000 BC to the present day," the chef explains.

It's no coincidence, after all, that this fruit has accompanied humanity for so long: the acorn represents the energy reserve of the future oak tree and concentrates within it the nutrients necessary for germination. This characteristic, for thousands of years, made it a precious food resource for populations who lived off the forest's produce. Its use wasn't limited to a single preparation, but was incorporated into various recipes: "In Roman times, it was used in baked goods, such as bread, until the postwar period, when it was used consistently as a coffee substitute," Germani tells us.

It's not about discovering a new product, but simply bringing back something we were used to consuming until just a few years ago. This is precisely the intent of Ghiandology, which was actually born "partly as a joke, but with the desire to give our own signature and, above all, an identity to the agriturismo. That's why we began with this unique production, creating our first product, a bitter liqueur made from acorns, oak bark, and bitter orange, along with other aromatic essences. From there, we realized we could expand our production," concludes the chef. Rather than faithfully recovering recipes from the past, Ghiandology's goal is to understand the place acorns have in contemporary gastronomy today. The project, in fact, began as a research journey that brings together the history of food, botany, food technology, and culinary experimentation, with the goal of fully understanding the potential of this still little-explored ingredient.

Why did the acorn disappear from our tables?

At this point, the question is legitimate, and the answer lies primarily in its processing, which is decidedly long and laborious. "It's a very complex product, also because it's refined into flour for daily consumption," and therefore undergoes several processing steps. The first is "leaching, or a process to remove the bitterness. It then needs to be soaked for a long time, changing the water several times, before being shelled, toasted, and finally ground," explains Germani. It's therefore not a ready-to-eat product, but a food that requires extensive processing. This is why it's difficult to find acorn-based products today, especially since the arrival of grains. The chef at Parco delle Querce, in fact, explains that "technically, it's a food that predates grain-based diets. When grains were discovered, which are much easier and more convenient to grow, they quickly became part of our diet," he concludes.

What does it taste like and what nutritional properties does it have?

Let's now turn to one of the main questions when it comes to food: what does an acorn taste like? "It can be compared to the taste of black tea," says Germani, and more specifically, it's "a taste somewhere between sour and bitter." In short, it's not exactly a mouth-watering food, especially because "its tannins remain inside the berry itself, although most of them remain in the shell: this is why it has a very penetrating flavor." These compounds are one of the elements that most characterize the acorn: they are responsible for the typical astringent sensation also found in foods like red wine or some unripe fruits. Their presence makes the acorn unappetizing if consumed untreated, which is why throughout history it has always been subjected to specific processes, such as the leaching process mentioned above, to reduce its bitterness and make it suitable for consumption.

From a nutritional standpoint, however, it's a particularly interesting food: "It has so many benefits, which we're also discovering thanks to research conducted with the University of Tuscia," the chef explains. Acorns fall somewhere between grains and nuts: they contain a good amount of carbohydrates, making them similar to grains, but they also contain a significant amount of fat. They also contain various minerals and vitamins, particularly vitamin E, and are naturally gluten-free.

There's another often-little-known aspect: there's no single acorn. Each oak species produces fruits with different characteristics in terms of size, flavor, tannin content, and nutritional properties. The color and behavior of the flour during processing also vary, which is why each variety may be better suited to different preparations. Finally, some studies have highlighted the interest of the phenolic compounds found in acorns, particularly for their antioxidant properties. These elements, along with acorn flour's ability to help preserve foods, are fueling new research into its potential use in contemporary food production.

What products can we try?

As we mentioned, Ghiandology was born as a joke, and its first product was an acorn-based bitter, which later developed into "an herbal tea, prepared with the dry extract of the bitter." From there, the chef and his team realized that the flavor was particularly appreciated by customers and decided to continue experimenting: "We started making bread, then flour, and now we're producing a gin in collaboration with a company in Turin," he explains. But production doesn't stop there: upcoming projects include "a spreadable cream and, certainly, between fall and winter, we'll also offer a panettone made with acorn flour." However, it's an ingredient that's far from easy to use because, as Germani explains, "it tends to absorb a large amount of water and has zero elasticity, so you have to learn how to work it well." In short, there's no shortage of ideas and a desire to bring acorns back to our tables. Whether this ancient food will truly regain a place in our diet will only be revealed by time, and above all by consumer taste.