Caju
| Caju | |
|---|---|
| |
| Ripe cashew fruit | |
| Clasificare științifică | |
| Regn: | Plantae |
| (neclasificat): | Angiospermae |
| (neclasificat): | Eudicotidae |
| (neclasificat): | Rosids |
| Ordin: | Sapindales |
| Familie: | Anacardiaceae |
| Gen: | Anacardium |
| Specie: | A. occidentale |
| Nume binomial | |
| Anacardium occidentale L. | |
Modifică text  |
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The cashew tree (Anacardium occidentale) is a tropical evergreen tree that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple.
It can grow as high as 14 metri (46 ft), but the dwarf cashew, growing up to 6 metri (20 ft), has proved more profitable, with earlier maturity and higher yields.
The cashew seed, often simply called a cashew, is widely consumed. It is eaten on its own, used in recipes, or processed into cashew cheese or cashew butter. The cashew apple is a light reddish to yellow fruit, whose pulp can be processed into a sweet, astringent fruit drink or distilled into liquor.
The shell of the cashew seed yields derivatives that can be used in many applications from lubricants to paints, and other parts of the tree have traditionally been used for snake-bites and other folk remedies.
Originally native to northeastern Brazil, the tree is now widely cultivated in Vietnam, Nigeria and India as major production countries.[1]
Etymology
Its English name derives from the Portuguese name for the fruit of the cashew tree caju (Portuguese pronunciation: [kaˈʒu]), which itself is derived from the indigenous Tupian name acajú, literally meaning "nut that produces itself".[2] The name Anacardium, originally from the Greek, refers to the unusual location of the seed outside the core or heart of the fruit (ana means "without" and -cardium means "heart").
Habitat and growth
The cashew tree is large and evergreen, growing to 10–12 m (~32 ft) tall, with a short, often irregularly shaped trunk. The leaves are spirally arranged, leathery textured, elliptic to obovate, 4 to 22 cm long and 2 to 15 cm broad, with smooth margins. The flowers are produced in a panicle or corymb up to 26 cm long; each flower is small, pale green at first, then turning reddish, with five slender, acute petals 7 to 15 mm long. The largest cashew tree in the world covers an area of about 7.500 metri pătrați (81.000 sq ft); it is located in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
The fruit of the cashew tree is an accessory fruit (sometimes called a pseudocarp or false fruit). What appears to be the fruit is an oval or pear-shaped structure, a hypocarpium, that develops from the pedicel and the receptacle of the cashew flower.[3] Called the cashew apple, better known in Central America as marañón, it ripens into a yellow and/or red structure about 5–11 cm long. It is edible, and has a strong "sweet" smell and a sweet taste. The pulp of the cashew apple is very juicy, but the skin is fragile, making it unsuitable for transport. In Latin America, a fruit drink is made from the cashew apple pulp which has a very refreshing taste and tropical flavor that can be described as having notes of mango, raw green pepper, and just a little hint of grapefruit-like citrus.
The true fruit of the cashew tree is a kidney or boxing-glove shaped drupe that grows at the end of the cashew apple. The drupe develops first on the tree, and then the pedicel expands to become the cashew apple. Within the true fruit is a single seed, which is often considered a nut, in the culinary sense. The seed is surrounded by a double shell containing an allergenic phenolic resin, anacardic acid, a potent skin irritant chemically related to the better-known allergenic oil urushiol which is also a toxin found in the related poison ivy. Properly roasting cashews destroys the toxin, but it must be done outdoors as the smoke (not unlike that from burning poison ivy) contains urushiol droplets which can cause severe, sometimes life-threatening, reactions by irritating the lungs. People who are allergic to cashew (or poison ivy) urushiols may cross-react to mango or pistachio which are also in the Anacardiaceae family. Some people are allergic to cashews, but cashews are a less frequent allergen than tree nuts or peanuts.[4]
While the cashew plant is native to northeast Brazil, the Portuguese took it to Goa, India, between 1560 and 1565. From there it spread throughout Southeast Asia and eventually Africa.[5]
Cashew "nut"
Botanically speaking, cashew are not actually nuts but merely seeds. Culinary uses for cashew seeds are similar to uses for nuts, however, and the seeds are frequently referred to as nuts. Cashews, unlike oily tree nuts, contain starch to about 10% of their weight. This makes them more effective than nuts in thickening water-based dishes such as soups, meat stews, and some Indian milk-based desserts. Many Southeast Asian cuisines use cashews for this unusual characteristic, rather than other nuts.[6]
The shell of the cashew nut is toxic, which is why the nut is never sold in the shell to consumers.[7]
Cashew nuts are commonly used in Indian cuisine, whole for garnishing sweets or curries, or ground into a paste that forms a base of sauces for curries (e.g., korma), or some sweets (e.g., kaju barfi). It is also used in powdered form in the preparation of several Indian sweets and desserts. In Goan cuisine, both roasted and raw kernels are used whole for making curries and sweets.
The cashew nut can also be harvested in its tender form, when the shell has not hardened and is green in color. The shell is soft and can be cut with a knife and the kernel extracted, but it is already corrosive at this stage, so gloves are required. The kernel can be soaked in turmeric water to get rid of the corrosive material before use. Cashew nuts are also used in Thai and Chinese cuisine, generally in whole form.
In the Philippines, cashew is a known product of Antipolo, and is eaten with suman. Pampanga also has a sweet dessert called turrones de casuy, which is cashew marzipan wrapped in white wafers.
In Indonesia, roasted and salted cashew nut is called kacang mete or kacang mede, while the cashew apple is called jambu monyet (literally means monkey rose apple).
In Mozambique, bolo polana is a cake prepared using powdered cashews and mashed potatoes as the main ingredients. This dessert is popular in South Africa, too.[8]
South American countries have developed their own specialties. In Brazil, the cashew fruit juice is popular all across the country. In Panama, the cashew fruit is cooked with water and sugar for a prolonged time to make a sweet, brown, paste-like dessert called dulce de marañón. Marañón is one of the Spanish names for cashew.
Production
| Top 5 Countries for Production of Cashew Nuts (with shell) in 2013 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Country | Production MT (metric tons) | |
 Vietnam |
1,110,800 | |
 Nigeria |
950,000 | |
 India |
753,000 | |
 Côte d'Ivoire |
450,000 | |
 Benin |
180,000 | |
| World Total | 4,439,960 | |
| Source: Food & Agriculture Organization[1] | ||
Cashew nuts are produced in tropical countries because the tree is frost sensitive, adapting to various climatic regions between the latitudes of 25°N and 25°S.[9] The traditional cashew tree is tall (up to 14 m) and takes three years from planting before it starts production, and eight years before economic harvests can begin. More recent breeds, such as the dwarf cashew trees, are up to 6 m tall, and start producing after the first year, with economic yields after three years. The cashew nut yields for the traditional tree are about 0.25 metric tons per hectare, in contrast to over a ton per hectare for the dwarf variety. Grafting and other modern tree management technologies are used to further improve and sustain cashew nut yields in commercial orchards.[5]
In 2013, the world total for production of cashew nuts (in shells) was 4.4 million metric tons.[1] Vietnam was the world's largest individual producer in 2013 with 1.1 million tons.[1] As of 2014, rapid growth of cashew cultivation in Côte d'Ivoire made this country the top African exporter.[10]
Fluctuations in world market prices, poor working conditions and low pay for local harvesting have caused discontent in the cashew nut industry.[11][12][13]
Nutrition
| Valori nutritive pentru 100 g | |
|---|---|
| Energie | 553 kcal (2.310 kJ) |
| Carbohidrați | 30.19 g |
| - Amidon | 0.74 g |
| - Zahăr | 5.91 g |
| - Lactoză | 0.00 g |
| - Fibre alimentare | 3.3 g |
| Grăsimi | 43.85 g |
| - saturată | 7.783 g |
| - monounsaturated | 23.797 g |
| - polyunsaturated | 7.845 g |
| Proteine | 18.22 g |
| Vitamina A | 0 IU |
| Tiamină (vit. B1) | 0.423 mg (37%) |
| Riboflavină (vit. B2) | 0.058 mg (5%) |
| Niacină (vit. B3) | 1.062 mg (7%) |
| Acid pantotenic (B5) | 0.86 mg (17%) |
| Vitamina B6 | 0.417 mg (32%) |
| Acid folic (vit. B9) | 25 μg (6%) |
| Vitamina B12 | 0 μg (0%) |
| Vitamina C | 0.5 mg (1%) |
| Vitamina D | 0 μg (0%) |
| Vitamina E | 0.90 mg (6%) |
| Vitamina K | 34.1 μg (32%) |
| Calciu | 37 mg (4%) |
| Fier | 6.68 mg (51%) |
| Magneziu | 292 mg (82%) |
| Mangan | 1.66 mg (79%) |
| Fosfor | 593 mg (85%) |
| Potasiu | 660 mg (14%) |
| Sodiu | 12 mg (1%) |
| Zinc | 5.78 mg (61%) |
| Link to Full USDA Database entry Procentele din paranteze sunt în funcție de recomandările americane pentru adulți. Sursa: USDA Nutrient Database | |
In a 100 gram serving, raw cashews provide 553 calories, 67% of the Daily Value (DV) in total fats, 36% DV of protein, 13% DV of dietary fiber and 11% DV of carbohydrates (table).[14] Cashews are rich sources (> 19% DV) of dietary minerals, including particularly copper, manganese, phosphorus and magnesium (79-110% DV), and of thiamin, vitamin B6 and vitamin K (32-37% DV) (table).[14] Iron, potassium, zinc and selenium are present in significant content (14-61% DV) (table).[14] Cashews (100 grams, raw) contain 113 mg of beta-sitosterol.[14]
Allergy
For some 5% of people, cashews, like tree nuts, can lead to complications or allergic reactions.[15][16][17] Cashews contain gastric and intestinal soluble oxalates, albeit less than tree nuts; people with a tendency to form kidney stones may need moderation and medical guidance.[18] Allergies to tree nuts and cashews can be life-threatening or even fatal; prompt medical attention is necessary if tree nut allergy reaction is observed.[16] These allergies are triggered by the proteins found in tree nuts, and cooking often does not remove or change these proteins. Reactions to cashew and tree nuts can also occur as a consequence of hidden nut ingredients or traces of nuts that may inadvertently be introduced during food processing, handling or manufacturing, particularly in Europe.[15][16]
Cashew oil
Cashew oil is a dark yellow oil for cooking or salad dressing pressed from cashew nuts (typically broken chunks created during processing). This may be produced from a single cold pressing.[19]
Cashew shell oil
Caju (sau Acaju) (Anacardium occidentale) este un copac din familia Anacardiaceae, originar din Brazilia, membru al aceleiași familii din care face parte fisticul și fructul mango.[20]
Fructele acestuia sunt comestibile și se numesc alune caju, sau alune acaju.
Note
- ^ a b c d „Major Food And Agricultural Commodities And Producers – Countries By Commodity”. Fao.org. . Accesat în .
- ^ „Caju, identidade tropical que exala saúde — Embrapa”. Embrapa.br. Accesat în .
- ^ Varghese, T.; Pundir, Y. (). „Anatomy of the pseudocarp in Anacardium occidentale L”. Proceedings: Plant Sciences. 59 (5): 252–258.
- ^ Rosen, T.; Fordice, D. B. (aprilie 1994). „Cashew Nut Dermatitis”. Southern Medical Journal. 87 (4): 543–546. doi:10.1097/00007611-199404000-00026. PMID 8153790. Accesat în .
- ^ a b „Cajucultura historia (in Portuguese)”. Accesat în .
- ^ Harold McGee (). On food and cooking (See Nuts and Other Oil-rich Seeds chapter). Scribner. ISBN 978-0-684-80001-1.
- ^ „Glossary C-G”. www.joyofbaking.com. iFood Media LLC. Arhivat din original la .
- ^ Phillippa Cheifitz (). South Africa Eats.
- ^ „Cultivating Cashew Nuts”. ARC-Institute for Tropical and Subtropical Crops, South Africa. Accesat în .
- ^ Bavier, Joe (). „War-scarred Ivory Coast aims to conquer the world of cashews”. Reuters. Accesat în .
- ^ „Tanzania riots over cashew nut payments”. BBC. . Accesat în .
- ^ Lamble L (). „Cashew nut workers suffer 'appalling' conditions as global slump dents profits”. The Guardian. Accesat în .
- ^ Wilson B (). „'Blood cashews': the toxic truth about your favourite nut”. The Telegraph. Accesat în .
- ^ a b c d „Full Report (All Nutrients): 12087, Nuts, cashew nuts, raw, database version SR 27”. Agricultural Research Service – United States Department of Agriculture. . Accesat în .
- ^ a b McWilliam V, Koplin J, Lodge C, Tang M, Dharmage S, Allen K (). „The prevalence of tree nut allergy: a systematic review”. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep. 15 (9): 555. doi:10.1007/s11882-015-0555-8. PMID 26233427.
- ^ a b c „Cashew Allergies”. Informall Database – funded by European Union. .
- ^ „Food Allergies – INFOSAN” (PDF). World Health Organization. .
- ^ Rittera; et al. (mai 2007). „Soluble and insoluble oxalate content of nuts”. Journal of Food Composition and Analysis. 20 (3–4): 169–174. doi:10.1016/j.jfca.2006.12.001.
- ^ „Cashew Oil”. Smart Kitchen. Accesat în .
- ^ Caju, un fruct sănătos
Legături externe
- Alunele de caju, aboutnuts.com
