http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cashew
Cashew - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The true fruit of the cashew tree is a kidney or boxing-glove shaped drupe that grows at the end of the pseudofruit. Actually, the drupe develops first on the tree, and then the peduncle expands into the pseudofruit. Within the true fruit is a single seed, the cashew nut. Although a nut in the culinary sense, in the botanical sense the fruit of the cashew is a seed. The seed is surrounded by a double shell containing a dermatogenic phenolic resin, urushiol, a potent skin irritant toxin also found in the related poison ivy. Some people are allergic to cashew nuts, but cashews are a less frequent allergen than nuts or peanuts.
http://www.living-foods.com/articles/rawcashew.html
raw cashew nuts - are they really raw? (cashew apple tree(
Cashew nuts are one of my favorite nuts on this planet. Unfortunetly, most cashew nuts labeled "raw cashew nuts" are not truly "raw". They have been heat processed in order to remove the delicious nut from the toxic shell.
I have often thought of the very same questions. Most companies label it "raw" because to them, the nut has "not" been processed, ie: roasted. Although in the process of removing the actual shell, the nut has been very processed...usually steamed and boiled in oil! So until recently I have pretty much avoided purchasing raw cashew nuts. I have been enjoying in-shell macadamia nuts, which are my all time favorite nut. When purchasing mac nuts, its important to purchase them in the shell. Once the nut has been out of the shell, many go rancid.
This article will explain more about the cashew nut, and cashew apple, the fruit of the nut, as well as its origin, and nutrient value.
Cashew trees produce both a fruit ("apple") and a nut, and a valuable oil can be drawn from the nut shell. After the cashew flower blooms, a nut forms. The apple later swells between the nut shell and the stem. It takes two months for the cashew apple to ripen. When harvested, the apple can only keep for twenty-four hours before it begins to ferment. Although the fruit can be used for making many typical fruit products (jellies, jams, juice, wine and liquor), the apple is often discarded, in pursuit of the nut. If processed and stored properly, the cashew nut can be kept for a year or longer. Technically, the actual nut is the thick-shelled seed. The outer shell (coat) of the seed contains the poison oak allergen urushiol, and may cause dermatitis in hypersensitive people.
There is a toxic resin inside the shell layer. If the shell is not opened properly, the resin will get on the cashew nut, making it inedible. Most companies steam the shell open at a high temperature, thus cooking the cashew nut inside. A certain nut producer in Indonesia uses a special technique with specially-designed tools (without using any heat at all) to open the shell cleanly every time without ever exposing the cashew nut to the resin. The raw cashews are much sweeter, tastier, and nutritious than their cooked counterparts.
http://www.fao.org/ag/ags/agsi/Cashew/Cashew.htm
cashew
The cashew tree, native to Brazil, was introduced to Mozambique and then India in the sixteenth century by the Portuguese, as a means of controlling coastal erosion. It was spread within these countries with the aid of elephants that ate the bright cashew fruit along with the attached nut. The nut was too hard to digest and was later expelled with the droppings. It was not until the nineteenth century that plantations were developed and the tree then spread to a number of other countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
This allowed them to benefit from the sale of both processed nuts and the extracted cashew nut shell liquid.
Cashew is known by many names. In Mozambique, the Maconde tribe refer to it as the "Devil's Nut". It is offered at wedding ceremonies as a token of fertility and is considered by many to have aphrodisiac properties.
Cashew kernels are ranked as either the second or third most expensive nut traded in the United States. Macadamia nuts are priced higher and pecan nuts can be more costly, if the harvest is poor. Cashew nuts have a well established market in the United States with a great variety of uses. Retail prices range from about US$4 to 11 per pound (US$9 to 23 per kg) depending on the size of nut and the packaging.
Three main cashew products are traded on the international market: raw nuts, cashew kernels and cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL).A fourth product, the cashew apple is generally processed and consumed locally.
The raw cashew nut is the main commercial product of the cashew tree, though yields of the cashew apple are eight to ten times the weight of the raw nuts.Raw nuts are either exported or processed prior to export. Processing of the raw nuts releases the by-product CNSL that has industrial and medicinal applications.
The skin of the nut is high in tannins and can be recovered and used in the tanning of hides. The fruit of the cashew tree that surrounds the kernel can be made into a juice with a high vitamin C content and fermented to give a high proof spirit.
…
http://www.recipezaar.com/library/getentry.zsp?id=642
Kitchen Dictionary: cashew nut
about "cashew nut" or what to substitute for it.
The cashew nut grows at the bottom of an edible, pear-like fruit (cashew apple).Cashew nuts have a sweet, buttery flavor. You never see cashews for sale in the shell because between the outer and inner shells covering the nut is an extremely caustic oil. The outer shell must be roasted or burned off with the oil. The kernels are then boiled or roasted again, and a second shell is removed.
http://www.thenutfactory.com/kitchen/facts/facts-cashews.html
The Nut Factory : Kitchen : Interesting Facts : Cashews
The delightful cashew nut is loved by everybody. Cashews are a product loved by the wealthy nations and provided for by the poor nations. It is closely related to the Mango and Pistachio plants.
The first western people sighting the cashew tree was by the Portuguese. They invaded Brazil in the 1500's. Portuguese seamen brought the seeds of the cashew nut tree from Brazil to be planted by the early settlers along the east coast of Africa. The trees took root and thrived. It was not long before cashew trees were growing wild along the entire coast of Mozambique. They spread to Kenya and Tanzania.
The gray/brown cashew nut hangs like a nose at the end of the cashew apple. The nut shell is 1-1/2 inches long and kidney shaped. The nut is found on the end closest to the cashew apple. The other end is honeycombed with cells. These cells contain a toxic resinous fluid called cardol that blisters the mouth.
For many years, the cashew was referred to as the blister nut.
Inside the hard shell is a slightly curved white cashew kernel which is about 7/8 inches long and is wrapped in a thin brown skin called a testa which is removed during the processing. The cashew nut, therefore, has two shells - the hard exterior shell and the testa.
There are two ways to remove the cashew shell, the inside fluid and the thin brown skin. Washing the raw nut in a water bath and storing it in moist heaps or silos for 12 hours makes the shells brittle as long as they maintain 7% to 10% humidity. The shell will rupture and liberate cardol fluid.
At The Nut Factory, we roast the cashew kernel at 325 degrees Fahrenheit in hot roasting oil for between 5 and 12 minutes. This softens the kernel and gives it a buttery taste. No two batches of cashews roast the same, so it requires skill and careful watching of the exact moment when the nut starts to turn an ivory color. Only by roasting in small batches can we get the perfect roast on each nut.
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/c/casnut29.html
botanical.com - A Modern Herbal Cashew Nut
Cashew Nut (Anacardium occidentale)
Other Species--- The Oriental Anacardium or Cashew Nut (Semecarpus anacardium), a native of India, has similar qualities to the West Indian Cashew, and is said to contain an alkaloid called Chuchunine.
This is the Ammonium compound of beta and delta resinous acids of A. occidentale (Cashew Nut), and is used as a hair-dye, but cannot be used with acids, acid salts, or acetate of lead.
http://www.organiccashewnuts.com
Cashew, Cashew Nut, Cashew Tree, Grow Cashew, Cashew Recipe
Since Cashews are found only in the tropics, many people in the US, Europe, and Middle East have never seen a Cashew Tree, a Cashew Nut still in its shell, or a Cashew Apple. Learn about the taxonomy and history of the Cashew Tree, how to grow Cashew trees, how to roast cashew nuts, uses of Cashew Nut Shell Liquid (CNSL), and how to make traditional Cashew Wine and Cashew Butter.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment