Nuts and seeds

Nuts and seeds are an excellent source of protein, particularly important for vegetarians. They're high in essential amino acids and fats as well as being full of energy. Follow our guide to various kinds of nuts and seeds, how they grow, their uses, nutritional value and uses in cooking

In this article

Almond Brazil nut Cashew Coconut Hazelnut

Macadamia Peanuts Pecan Pine nuts Pistachio

Sweet chestnut Walnut Pumpkin seeds Sesame seeds Sunflower seeds

There are two sorts of almonds, the bitter almond and the sweet almond. Both varieties are native to the Middle East but have been grown widely in Europe and the Americas for centuries. Almonds were a prized ingredient in breads served to Egypt's Pharaohs. The Romans gave almonds at weddings as a symbol of fertility and prosperity, a tradition that continues in Italy to this day with sugared almonds.

Almonds have diverse uses in cooking. Bitter almonds are used for almond oil, which is added to many dishes as a flavouring. Sweet almonds are used in a variety of both sweet and savoury dishes.

As a source of vitamins and minerals, almonds are superb: as well as protein they're a good source of magnesium, phosphorous, zinc, calcium, folic acid and vitamin E.

The Brazil nut is the one that's always left at the bottom of the nut bowl as it's almost impossible to crack. Brazil nuts are the seeds of a large tree that grows up to 50m (160ft) tall in the Amazon jungle. The seeds grow in clusters of 12 to 24 inside a large pod that looks a bit like a coconut. Commercial supplies of Brazil nuts are still derived entirely from wild trees though there are concerns that they're being harvested too intensively.

The Spanish first discovered Brazil nuts in the 16th century, and they used them to feed their hungry troops on their conquests across the South American continent.

The cashew nut has a very unusual habit: it grows dangling beneath a fleshy stalk known as the cashew pear. The 'pear' can be used for juices, syrups and liqueurs.

Cashews are thought to have originated in Brazil and were taken to India and the east coast of Africa by Portuguese explorers.

Cashews are eaten on their own as a snack and used in various sweet and savoury dishes. They're rich in vitamin A.

For many, the taste of coconut instantly conjures up images of lazy days on a tropical beach and swimming in the warm sea. The coconut grows on a classic palm tree, often on the shoreline, and has many uses. The nut has a hard shell that grows inside a hairy husk. The inside of the nut is filled with coconut juice, which is delicious when drunk fresh. As the nut ripens this juice is gradually absorbed to make the coconut flesh.

Coconut can be used in a number of ways, both in savoury and sweet dishes. Coconut milk is made from squeezing the flesh in water and used often in spicy tropical dishes. Coconut and its milk are both high in protein, fats and carbohydrates.

Hazelnuts (or cobnuts - a type of wild hazelnut) were collected and eaten by Mesolithic people but most of our cultivated varieties originated in the last century. Although hazels grow in most parts of Britain, cobnuts are particular to Kent where they're grown on a commercial scale. Most of the world's commercially grown hazelnuts come from Turkey.

The nuts are globe-shaped or oval, up to 2cm (1in) long with a hard brown shell. They tend to grow in clusters of one to four nuts, partially enclosed in a husk. High in fibre, potassium, calcium, magnesium and vitamin E, hazelnuts are nutritious as well as tasty.

They're used in savoury dishes, such as nut roast, and in many cakes, biscuits and puddings, as well as being a key ingredient in praline chocolate.

The macadamia is an Australian nut but it's now grown commercially in Hawaii, particularly for the American market, where it's widely used in cookies and ice cream. Macadamias have only been grown commercially since 1858 and are named after the chemist John McAdam who first cultivated it. They've been described as having a taste rather like a very fine hazelnut but their texture is smoother.

Low in carbohydrate but relatively high in fat, they're also a good source of calcium and other minerals.

Peanuts are actually a member of the pea family and aren't true 'nuts', as they have to be dug out of the soil to be harvested. Also known as groundnuts, the pods develop after the pollinated flower stalk has grown down into the soil, where the nuts develop.

Peanuts are extremely nutritious, owing to their high protein and oil content; they're also rich in vitamins B and E.

Peanut oil is used extensively in cooking and for making margarine. The nuts themselves are eaten salted and roasted as snacks and are also used in many dishes.

The pecan is a native to North America where they were an important food source for the native Indian tribes of the southern USA. Pecans are still used in abundance in America, especially in cakes, breads and cookies.

Pecans belong to the same family as the walnut and have the same distinctive texture and brain-like shape, but a slightly sweeter taste. They're particularly high in vitamins A, B and E, calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, potassium and zinc.

Pine nuts are the seeds that grow inside the cones of the stone pine tree and are widely used in Mediterranean regions and the Americas. The Roman legions are thought to have carried pine nuts as provisions on their conquests through Europe.

As a rich source of protein, the pine nut is used in many different dishes, of which the best known is probably pesto sauce.

In China, the pistachio is known as the 'happy nut' due to the open smile of its shell. It was first cultivated 100,000 years ago in Iran and Syria from where it spread to Greece and the rest of Europe. Legend has it that lovers used to meet in the pistachio groves to listen for the crack of the nuts opening as a sign of good fortune.

The open shell of the pistachio enables it to be roasted and salted while still in its shell, and that's how they're most often eaten. They're also found in many Middle Eastern and Mediterranean pastries.

Pistachios are a good source of calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, iron, folate and protein.

Sweet chestnuts are believed to have originated in Spain and were brought to Britain by the Romans; hence they're also known as Spanish chestnuts. They grow in clusters enclosed in a spiny case.

They're delicious eaten on their own, roasted over hot coals, or can be used in all sorts of delicious dishes, including the traditional stuffing for Christmas dinner. Chestnuts have a high starch content so in Europe they're often made into flour and used for cakes and fritters. In France they're preserved in sugar as marrons glacés. Their high level of tannic acid means they shouldn't be eaten raw.

There are more than 15 varieties of walnut but the most popular, for its flavour, is the English walnut. The walnut grows throughout Europe and the Americas, though it originated in the area stretching from south east Europe to central Asia. There is evidence of a beautiful walnut grove in the famed hanging gardens of Babylon.

In shape, the nut resembles that of the human brain, and in medieval times it was widely believed to cure headaches. Walnuts have been used in cooking for many generations, both in sweet and savoury dishes. As well as being eaten as hard nuts, walnuts can also be eaten when they're green as pickled fresh walnuts.

They're a good source of phosphorous, potassium and magnesium as well as proteins and vitamin E.

These seeds are greenish in colour, and can be eaten raw or cooked both in sweet and savoury dishes. Delicious roasted, or toasted and sprinkled with soya sauce while hot, and served on salads. They're rich in protein, iron, zinc and phosphorous. During the autumn, when pumpkins are in season, you can dry your own seeds for use in various dishes.

Sesame seeds first came from Africa but they're now common in tropical and sub-tropical Asia as well.

The oil is extracted from the seed and used for cooking, salad oil and margarines. It's also available as toasted sesame oil for oriental cooking, adding a distinctive flavour to stir-fried and rice dishes. The whole seeds can also be eaten and are often seen as a decoration on cakes and confectionery, or toasted and sprinkled as a garnish on oriental foods. Sesame seed paste (tahini) is used in many dishes, for example hummus. Halva is a sweet made from sesame seeds.

Sesame seeds are a particularly good source of protein and calcium.

Sunflower seeds are one of the most commonly available seeds. The sunflower plant belongs to the daisy family, and probably originated in North America or Mexico. North American Indians cultivated sunflowers as long as 2,000 years ago. The seeds can be eaten whole, raw or cooked, added to breads and cakes, or sprinkled over salads or breakfast cereals.

A good source of potassium and phosphorous, sunflower seeds also contain protein, iron and calcium.