Single-Origin Peanuts at the Roadhouse
Farmed and sun-cured, just as they were a century ago
They’re coming about six weeks later than last year, and, to be honest, I was beginning to feel a bit anxious that there wouldn’t be any this year. Happily, my fears were unfounded. The amazing single-origin peanuts grown by Elisha Barnes—and shocked in the sun, just as they’re supposed to be—are en route to the Roadhouse as I write.
Though they’re grown only by Barnes, the nuts come to us through the folks at Hubs, the third-generation Hubbard family farm in Farmville, Virginia. Back in the mid-1950s, Dot Hubbard helped develop what’s evolved over the years into the “specialty peanut market.” She took the extra time to hand-select the largest peanuts from each local farm’s delivery and then dip them in hot water before blister-frying them in her kitchen. She and her husband, H.J., began shipping their peanuts by mail, and now, nearly seven decades later, the company is run by their grandson, Marshall Rabil. Marshall has been working hard in recent years to take Hubs to new heights, and he, like we at Zingerman’s, has an affinity for small, specialty experiments, as well as a strong commitment to doing the right thing. Which is why there’s a very limited amount of these peanuts—and why I feel incredibly fortunate that we got our hands on them.
Since the single-origin peanuts epitomize our philosophical approach to food, we debuted them at the event for “A Taste of Zingerman’s Food Philosophy” a few years back at the Roadhouse. They’re fully in line with our definition of quality (see the piece I wrote on the subject here). They’re remarkably full-flavored, with loads of complexity, balance, and finish. And they’re very traditional—this is how high-quality peanuts would have tasted 100 years ago! Barnes, a fourth-generation farmer in Virginia, is beyond passionate about his peanut growing and his connection to community, history, and the land. He says he found his vocation as a child: “The first time I got hooked on farming, I was six years old.” And through his upbringing and farming, he has developed a life philosophy that fits well with our own: “My father taught us how to treat people and how to be honest. He taught us integrity.” Both his passion and his principles are reflected in the excellence of his peanuts!
While Barnes’ farm isn’t certified organic, he uses no chemicals on the land. He harvests the peanuts using a 100-year-old picker, equipment he’s had to modify regularly to make it work with his 50-year-old tractor. What’s particularly special, though, is that Barnes still uses the old method of curing peanuts, which is known as “shocking.” Just-dug nuts, left on the vine as they grew, are wrapped around five-foot-high poles to sun-dry out in the field (think corn shocks). They cure for about six weeks before being brought in, cleaned, and transported to Hubs to receive that patented blistering, roasting, and salting.
A century ago, pretty much every peanut farmer worked this way. Today, Barnes is the only one still doing it. And these techniques make a major difference in the flavor. “It creates the sweetest, highest-germination-rate peanut there is,” Barnes says. “You see, [flash] drying takes out part of the germination quality, and it takes out the sweetness. It takes part of the quality out of the peanut. But I want to keep that.” In the spirit of maintaining a holistic internal ecosystem, he adds:
Tilling the soil, it teaches a spiritual lesson. Do your part, invest in the land, and the land will give you an increase. We are a fourth-generation farm. My father, my grandfather, my great-grandfather all farmed peanuts. I am right now the only farmer anywhere around that actively shocks peanuts like this. … It’s rewarding. It’s an honor. Who would’ve ever thought that the son of a sharecropper would be standing on the land that he now owns and farming peanuts the way that my father and his father did? That speaks volumes for me.
I am indebted to Hubs for coming on board with me and allowing me to be able to raise this and allowing it to be financially beneficial so that I can continue to do this growing. Hubs hopes the single-sourced specialty peanut will remind people of their roots. It has already given one farmer exactly what he needs! My daughter says that I’m a dinosaur that refuses to die. The chapters of my life will close with me farming the way I want to farm.
Supporting Elisha Barnes’ work is also a small step toward helping to restore the rightful place of Black farmers in the U.S. According to research, Black farmers have lost nearly 90% of their land over the last 100 years. “Southampton County, at the turn of the century, was primarily Black-owned,” Barnes explains. Now he is one of only a few Black farmers left working local land. A few years ago, he and his oldest brother bought back his father’s 52-acre spread in Courtland. “I raised peanuts on the family farm for the first time in 30 years,” he notes with pride.
Speaking of his commitment to traditional farming, Barnes says, “Maybe, just maybe, I’ll inspire somebody to take just a little bit of this old history and keep it alive.” Personally, I’m pretty confident his hope will be fulfilled many times over in the coming years. Swing by the Roadhouse soon to enjoy some of these stellar peanuts (with $2 oysters for Happy Hour from 2 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday)! The flavor is big, but supplies are limited. Savor every exceptional nut!
