Hazelnuts are commonly used in baking and desserts, confectionery to make praline, and also used in combination with chocolate for chocolate truffles and products such as chocolate bars, hazelnut cocoa spread. Hazelnut oil, pressed from hazelnuts, is strongly flavored and used as a cooking oil.

Hazelnuts are rich in protein and antioxidants and are good eaten raw but the flavor takes on a more mellow, sweeter character when they are roasted. Like almost all nuts, they have a high fat content, which means they'll go rancid pretty quickly if not refrigerated.