Cashew

noun KASH-yu ˈkaʃju

Also spelled cashu, cashew apple

The cashew — in Jamaica both the fleshy 'cashew apple' (a soft, juicy, astringent yellow-red fruit) and the single curved nut that hangs beneath it. The apple is eaten fresh or juiced; the nut must be carefully roasted to burn off its caustic shell oil before it can be eaten. A seasonal treat that takes some know-how.

  • Di cashew apple juicy but it draw yuh mout.

    The cashew apple is juicy but it puckers your mouth.

  • Roast di cashew nut good before yuh eat it.

    Roast the cashew nut well before you eat it.

  • Di cashew tree full a fruit.

    The cashew tree is full of fruit.

From Portuguese 'caju' (from Tupi 'acajú'); both fruit and nut. See [[guinep]], [[otaheite]].

The cashew apple (fruit) and its nut; the nut needs roasting to be safe. See [[otaheite]], [[custard-apple]].