Types of Nuts in Nigeria

Check out the list of types of nuts in Nigeria. There are many nuts in the bushes of Nigeria which if you eat them you will end up in a hospital. But we love you, and so we are not talking about those types of nuts in this article. In this post, we are talking about some of the many nutritional, healthy, and delicious nuts that you can find in Nigeria. As a matter of fact, there seems to be a health renaissance going on, and so everybody is looking to eat healthy and natural, and so quite naturally nuts come to the fore because they offer excellent options in these regards.

Let us now look at the list of types of nuts in Nigeria. Maybe you can find one that appeals to you, and perhaps even be inspired to start a business venture packaging and distributing naturally packaged freshly picked nuts to shops and supermarkets in your area. Let us begin!

Types of Nuts in Nigeria

  • Jack Fruits Seeds

Jack Fruits which are commonly cultivated and eaten in the Southeastern region of Nigeria produce seeds that are a little smaller than chicken eggs. The tree is a tropical evergreen tree of the Treculia family. Its cousins are the breadfruits, and figs, with which it bears a striking resemblance

This particular fruit is big and green, when it is ripe it becomes brown or yellow, and gives off an aromatic scent, which is very pleasant and inviting. You will usually need a knife to open the thick skin of this fruit, and then you will find a very tasty and succulent inside of the fruit. That is eaten raw. After finishing with the fruits you have the seeds which are smaller than chicken eggs. Boil them and you will be treated with another delight. These seeds can also be eaten roasted if you prefer that nutty flavor that comes with the burning of the outer layer of the seeds.

  • Cashew Nuts

Cashew nuts come from cashew trees, The Cashew tree is a tropical evergreen tree that produces the cashew apple. It takes 3-5 years for the tree to reach maturity and begin production. The trees can, however, grow to immense proportions.

The fruits appear green and have their seeds on the outside, just attached to the fruit at the tip. When ripe, they then become pear-shaped yellow fruits that are filled with a sweet juicy liquid. This seed is what is popularly known as “cashew nut.” Nigerians have roasted this nut and eaten it alone or with a light meal called Garri for many years.

This seed which has been overlooked for many years now has enormous economic potential. Supermarkets across the world now have cashew nuts on their shelves, produced by many internationally recognized brands. Understandably, therefore, it is considered one of the highly exported seeds. Cashew production in Nigeria has now become a profitable business as the country is one of the major cashew producing countries in the world and one of the biggest in Africa.

Indian almonds Nuts Found In Nigeria

  • Indian almonds

Almonds are a grouped species of trees that are native to the Mediterranean climate region of the Middle East like Israel and Jordan. In Nigeria, however, the variety of almonds which you will readily find is the Tropical Almond (also called Indian almond, but Nigerians simply call it ‘fruit.’) They are usually big evergreen trees that have broad hairless leaves. The fruits are usually dark green when new, but are usually light green/ yellow or purple/ violet when ripe (there are two types of this fruit).

When ripe, almonds can be eaten raw. After eating the fruits you are met with a hardback that may fool you into thinking that there is nothing else to get from the fruits. Break that shell and you find a nut inside. It is tasty and nutty in flavor. The nuts can also be used to make several products such as almond milk, almond butter, and almond oil. In Nigeria, there is a growing market for this product.

  • Kolanut

Kolanut is one type of nuts in Nigeria that the people of the country can truly call their own native nut. It is the fruit of the evergreen kola tree and is native to the tropical rain forests of Africa, among which the southern regions of Nigeria belongs.

The ripe fruit is purple, white, violet or light green; depending on the variety. The kola nut plays such an important role in the traditional way of life of the peoples of southern Nigeria. As a matter of fact, no social gathering in the southeastern region is complete without the presence of the kola nut. The eldest man in the gathering usually blesses it and then it is shared to all present.

Today there is a growing market for Kolanut because it has been identified as a source of caffeine that can be extracted and then used as a flavoring, and concentrate ingredient for beverages.

  • Macadamia Nuts

Macadamia nuts are the product of the Macadamia tree, which is an evergreen genus of Macadamia. But you have to care; there are four species of the plant, three of which are edible while one, M. jansenii, produces nuts that are harmful.

  • Melon seeds

Melons are crawling vines that are aptly classified as annual crops. In Nigeria, they are called egusi, which is the name for the nut which comes from the fruits which are as big as pawpaws, and look like watermelon fruits, to which they are no doubt closely related. They are green when new, but become yellow when ripe.  Although the melon fruit is sweet, edible, and fleshy, the focus is usually on the seeds which are usually dried, peeled by hand, and then ground to serve as an ingredient for cooking one of Nigeria’s most famous soups- the egusi soup!

The seeds are usually small, cream coloured, and somewhat oval-shaped- with a little pointy tip, and hard.

  • Peanuts

Nigeria was at one time the biggest producer of peanuts in Africa and a major producer in the world. Peanut is a major cash crop grown in the tropical and subtropical areas of the world. It is also known in some places as groundnuts.

The term groundnuts may come from the fact that the seeds are produced in the ground. An outer covering, known as the shell protects the edible seeds. In order to harvest the seeds, you have to pull the whole plant from the ground. This is sometimes done by hand or mechanically.

Peanuts are eaten in a variety of ways: boiled as a snack or roasted. Supermarkets everywhere in the world also stock peanut butter which is the process version of the seeds which has become immensely popular, giving rise to a multi-million dollar market for the product.

That’s all on the list of types of nuts in Nigeria.

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