List of Culinary Nuts - Nut-like Drupe Seeds

Nut-like Drupe Seeds

A drupe is a fleshy fruit surrounding a stone, or pit, containing a seed. Some of these seeds are culinary nuts as well.

• Almonds (Prunus dulcis) have a long and important history of religious, social and cultural significance as a food. Speculated to have originated as a natural hybrid in Central Asia, almonds spread throughout the Middle East in ancient times and thence to Eurasia. The almond is one of only two nuts mentioned in the Bible.
• Australian cashew nut (Semecarpus australiensis) is a source of food for Australian aboriginal people of north-eastern Queensland and Australia's Northern Territory.
• Betel or areca nuts (Areca catechu) are chewed in many cultures as a psychoactive drug. They are also used in Indian cuisine to make sweet after-dinner treats (mukwa) and breath-fresheners (paan masala).
• Borneo tallow nuts (Shorea spp.) are grown in the tropical rain forests of South East Asia, as a source of edible oil.
• Canarium spp.
  • Canarium nut (Canarium harveyi, Canarium indicum, or Canarium commune) has long been an important food source in Melanesia.
  • Chinese olive (Canarium album) pits are processed before use as an ingredient in Chinese cooking.
  • Pili nuts (Canarium ovatum) are native to the Philippines, where they have been cultivated for food from ancient times.
• Cashews (Anacardium occidentale) grow as a drupe that is attached to the cashew apple, the fruit of the cashew tree. Native to northeastern Brazil, the cashew was introduced to India and East Africa in the sixteenth century, where they remain a major commercial crop. The nut must be roasted to remove the caustic shell oil before being consumed.
• Chilean hazel (Gevuina avellana), from an evergreen native to South America, similar in appearance and taste to the hazelnut.
• Coconut (Cocos nucifera), used world-wide as a food. The fleshy part of the seed is edible, and used either desiccated or fresh as an ingredient in many foods. The pressed oil from the coconut is used in cooking as well.
• Gabon nut (Coula edulis) has a taste comparable to hazelnut or chestnut. It is eaten raw, grilled or boiled.
• Hickory (Carya spp.)
  • Mockernut hickory (Carya tomentosa), named after the heavy hammer (moker in Dutch) required to crack the heavy shell and remove the tasty nutmeat.
  • Pecans (Carya illinoinensis) are the only major nut tree native to North America. Pecans are eaten as a snack food, and used as an ingredient in baking and other food preparation.
  • Shagbark hickory (Carya ovata) has over 130 named cultivars. They are a valuable source of food for wildlife, and were eaten by Native American nations and settlers alike.
  • Shellbark hickory (Carya laciniosa) nuts are sweet, and are the largest of the hickories. They are also eaten by a wide variety of wildlife.
• Irvingia spp. are native to Africa
  • Bush mango (Irvingia gabonensis) has both edible fruit and an edible nut, which is used as a thickening agent in stews and soups in West African cuisines.
  • Ogbono nut (Irvingia wombolu) is similar to the bush mango, but the fruit is not edible.
• Jack nuts (Artocarpus heterophyllus) are the seeds of the jack fruit. With a taste like chestnuts, they have an extremely low fat content of less than 1%.
• Panda oleosa is used in Gabon in a similar way to bush mango nuts, as well as to extract an edible oil.
• Pekea nut, or butter-nut of Guiana (Caryocar nuciferum), harvested locally for its highly prized edible oil.
• Pistachio (Pistacia vera L.), cultivated for thousands of years, native to West Asia and Asia Minor.
• Walnut (Juglans spp.)
  • Black walnut (Juglans nigra), also popular as food for wildlife, with an appealing, distinctive flavor. Native of North America.
  • Butternut (Juglans cinerea) (or white walnut) is native to North America. Used extensively, in the past, by Native American tribes as food.
  • English walnut (Juglans regia) (or Persian walnut) was introduced to California around 1770. California now represents 99% of US walnut growth. It is often combined with salads, vegetables, fruits or desserts because of its distinctive taste.
  • Heartnut, or Japanese walnut (Juglans aitlanthifolia), native to Japan, with a characteristic cordate shape. Heartnuts are often toasted or baked, and can be used as a substitute for English walnuts.