Where do Cashews Grow?
The cashew gets its name from the Portuguese term "caju” which comes from the Tupian term “acaju”, “the nut that is self-productive”. The binomial name of the cashew is “Anacardium” which originates from the Greek words “ana” and “kardia”, meaning “above heart” as a reference to the unusual positioning of the seed above the cashew fruit’s core (heart).
The cashew is a tropical and subtropical evergreen shrub that grows in fertile soil and high humidity. Cashews are native to tropical Central and South America. In the 1550s, the Portuguese introduced the cashew tree to India in the 1550s. From India, the cashew tree spread all over Southeast Asia and finally reached West Africa. Other trees cultivated along with the cashew tree are the tamarind and mango trees which are also well-adapted to hot and humid regions.
The cashew (Anacardium occidentale) is an evergreen shrub or tree with broad leather-textured leaves and comes from the sumac family (Anacardiaceae). It can grow to over 14 metres tall! Cashews have shells like two walls. The thin outer shell is smooth and glasslike. The inner shell is hard and must be cracked like other nuts. The fruits are picked by hand and the nuts are first detached, then sun dried.
Despite being commonly referred to as a nut, cashews are actually edible seeds. These seeds – rich in oil, distinctively flavoured and characteristically curved – are used as an ingredient in Asian and Indian dishes. In Western countries, the cashew is generally enjoyed as a premium quality, protein-rich snack food.
India, Cote d’Ivoire, Vietnam and Tanzania produce most of the world’s cashews. The production of cashews worldwide is around 4 million metric tons a year! Clearly, cashews are everyone’s favourite nut. You can cook with them or enjoy them as snack – there’s so much to love about cashews.
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Ditters is a family-owned, South Australian food business in Adelaide. Famous for finest quality nuts, gourmet fruit and nut cakes, glacé fruit, dried fruit, chocolate and gift hampers.