Know2eat

Acorns

Quercus spp.

What acorns has been studied for

1 association assessed — none with dependable human evidence behind them yet. Strongest first.

  • 1 Insufficient
3 things to know first — allergies, interactions and intake limits

About acorns

The nuts of oak trees, a staple across pre-agricultural Europe, North America and Korea, where acorn starch is still made into the jelly dotorimuk. Nearly all species are too bitter to eat until the tannins have been leached out with water. The USDA reference entry is for raw acorns.

Also known as Oak nuts, Dotori, Bellota

Blood Sugar & Metabolic Health

The evidence in depth

Best supported: Insufficient

What each association actually rests on, and the papers behind it. A rating describes the state of the research, not how impressive the food is. How we rate evidence.

Blood glucose response

Blood Sugar & Metabolic Health
Insufficient evidence

There is no dependable human research on acorns and blood glucose. A small amount of work exists on Korean acorn jelly, but it is not enough to support a conclusion.

Insufficient evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.

2 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Ask about Acorns

Ask about Acorns

Answers are written only from the entries on this page — the same nutrients, compounds, claims and citations you can read above. Nothing is added from outside the database, and every answer lists what it was built from.

AI explanations are not switched on for this site, so there is nothing to ask here. Everything above is read straight from the database and does not need them.

Key nutrients

Nutrient content per 100 grams
NutrientAmount% DV
Macronutrients
Calories387 kcal19%
Protein6.15 g12%
Total fat23.9 g31%
Carbohydrate40.8 g15%
Water27.9 g—
Fats
Saturated fat3.1 g16%
Monounsaturated fat15.1 g—
Polyunsaturated fat4.6 g—
Cholesterol0 mg0%
Linoleic acid (omega-6)4.6 g—
Vitamins
Vitamin A2 µg0%
Vitamin C0 mg0%
Thiamin (B1)0.112 mg9%
Riboflavin (B2)0.118 mg9%
Niacin (B3)1.83 mg11%
Pantothenic acid (B5)0.715 mg14%
Vitamin B60.528 mg31%
Folate87 µg22%
Vitamin B120 µg0%
Minerals
Calcium41 mg3%
Iron0.79 mg4%
Magnesium62 mg15%
Phosphorus79 mg6%
Potassium539 mg11%
Sodium0 mg0%
Zinc0.51 mg5%
Copper0.621 mg69%
Manganese1.34 mg58%
Other measured compounds
Ash1.35 g—

Nutrient values are per 100 g of the USDA reference entry named on this page and vary with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

Source record: Nuts, acorns, raw (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 170157).

% DV uses the FDA Daily Values for adults and children aged 4 and over. A dash means no Daily Value has been established for that nutrient.

Bioactive compounds

Compounds present in meaningful amounts. Presence is banded rather than quantified, because whole-food levels vary enormously with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

How preparation changes things

Only effects with real support are listed. If a preparation method is missing, it is because nothing dependable is documented — not because it makes no difference.

  • soakedReduces tannins

    Repeated leaching of ground acorn meal in changed water removes the water-soluble tannins that make raw acorns inedible. This is the single step that turns acorns into food, and it has been practised independently on three continents.

Things to know

Allergies, interactions and intake concerns. Every food gets this section — a reference where everything is uniformly good is not a reference.

  • Avoid

    Raw acorns must be leached

    Untreated acorns are heavily loaded with tannins, which are astringent, unpalatable and, in quantity, cause gastrointestinal upset and kidney damage — the mechanism behind acorn poisoning in grazing livestock. Traditional preparation grinds the nuts and leaches them in repeated changes of cold water, or in running water, for hours to days until no bitterness remains. Hot-water leaching is faster but gelatinises the starch. Taste is the practical test.

  • Worth knowing

    Tannins and iron absorption

    Even after leaching, residual tannin binds non-heme iron in the same meal and reduces absorption.

  • Allergy

    Tree nut allergy

    Acorn allergy is documented, and people with existing tree nut allergy should approach an unfamiliar nut cautiously.