Cashew Tree and Fruit: What You Need to Know

The cashew is a tropical tree that can reach up to 15 meters (about 50 feet) in height, native to the Amazon's dry, sandy regions, primarily Brazil. While often called a tree, it can also be considered a large shrub or small tree.

The cashew produces a unique structure: the cashew nut (the seed) grows at the end of a fleshy, pear-shaped pseudofruit known as the cashew apple or peduncle. This pseudofruit is edible and has a sweet, astringent flavor, though it is highly perishable and rarely shipped fresh outside growing regions. The true fruit is the kidney-shaped drupe that contains the seed we know as the cashew nut.

Like most plants, the cashew develops seeds within a fruiting structure for reproduction. The cashew apple serves to attract animals that disperse the seed. Commercial cultivation focuses on the nut, which is carefully processed to remove the toxic shell oil before reaching consumers.

If you encounter cashew apples in a tropical market, they can be eaten fresh, juiced, or made into preserves. The nut itself is a versatile ingredient in cuisines worldwide, valued for its rich, buttery texture and nutritional profile.