![]() “Dessert” kernels, the lowest in quality, are allowed to have brown and black spots and may be scorched and shrivelled. “Scorched” kernels are over-roasted with light brown color. “Types include “white,” “scorched,” and “dessert.” “White” kernels are white or pale and are the highest in quality. Accessed July 2018 at Ĭashew nuts are sorted, graded and sold based on size and colour of the nuts, as well as how intact they survived the harvesting process. Fresh green nuts from Africa and the islands off southern India are shipped to processing plants in Western India.” James A. Nuts are separated from the fleshy pedicel and receptacle, seed coat removed by hand, and nuts dried. Kernels extracted by people skilled in breaking open the shells with wooden hammers without breaking the kernels. In India part of nuts are harvested from wild trees by people who augment their meager income from other crops grown on poor land. Cashews are usually roasted in the shell (to make it brittle and oil less blistering), cracked, and nuts removed and vacuum packed. “Mechanical means for shelling have been unsuccessful, so hand labor is required. A worker can process about 80 kg (175 pounds) of cashew nuts a day, using a specially designed machine with blades and cutters. The actual process of removing the shell after that is manual. Most companies heat process the nut to make the shell easy to remove by steaming and/or boiling the nut in oil. The processing must be done in a certain way, because if the shell is not opened properly, the toxin will get on the nut making it unfit for selling, let alone eating. Not surprisingly, therefore, this toxic outer shell can cause dermatitis in some people.Ĭashew nuts are always processed, consequently, to remove this outer shell. The nut’s outer shell contains “urushiol”, the same allergen that is in poison oak, poison ivy, and poison sumac. The nut is first pink, then green as it ripens, changing to greyish green then greyish brown as it reaches full maturity. Per 2 to 5 kg of fruit (5 to 10 lbs), there will be about 500 g (a pound) of the nuts produced. Sometimes, the fruit is allowed to just fall off the tree, and it and its nut are harvested from there. The nut is more valuable than the fruit, however, so often the fruit is just discarded in pursuit of the nut. The tree blooms, and produces flowers which are pollinated by insects.Ī nascent nut in a large green shell then forms on the stem where the flower was.Ĭashew apples for sale at market near Sangareddy, Andhra Pradesh, India (© Akshay Paramatmuni (2013) / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY 3.0) Cashew nut harvesting Depending on what stage of life a tree is at, and how vigorous it is, a cashew tree can produce anywhere up to 50 kg (around 100 pounds) of nuts a year. By the time a tree is 20 years old, its productive life is over. Publication #HS1127.Ī cashew tree will start producing nuts in its second year, though it won’t reach its full potential until it is around 10 years old. ![]() Cashew Apple Fruit Growing in the Florida Home Landscape. ![]() In the United States, that means growth is limited to the extreme south Florida, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. They have large leaves - 10 to 20 cm (4 to 8 inches) long and 5 to 7.5 cm (2 to 3 inches) wide - and perfumed, yellowish-pink flowers. They are tropical evergreens that can grow quickly up to 15 metres (50 feet) tall. The cashew treeĬashew trees thrive in tropical heat. A cashew nut is a kidney-shaped nut which is always sold unshelled.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |