Tag: Cashew classification

While commonly mistaken for nuts or mistakenly associated with legumes, the truth is that a cashew is not a pulse. This tropical seed has a unique botanical classification, belonging to the same family as the mango and poison ivy.

Despite their popular reputation, many common nuts aren't botanically nuts at all. The question of which food group does cashew belong to has a nuanced answer, highlighting the difference between how we classify foods in the kitchen versus in a laboratory.

Over 750,000 metric tons of cashews are consumed worldwide each year, yet a surprising number of people misidentify what category of food is a cashew. While a culinary staple alongside other nuts, a cashew is, in fact, a seed of a drupe, revealing a fascinating botanical distinction from true nuts.