Pistacia vera | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Sapindales |
Family: | Anacardiaceae |
Genus: | Pistacia |
Species: | P. vera |
Binomial name | |
Pistacia vera | |
The pistachio ( /pɪˈstɑːʃi.oʊ,-ˈstæʃ-/ pih-STAH-shee-oh, -STASH-; [2] Pistacia vera), a member of the cashew family, is a small to medium tree originating in Persia. [3] The tree produces seeds that are widely consumed as food. The word can be countable or uncountable, meaning its plural is with or without an 's'. [4]
In 2022, world production of pistachios was one million tonnes, with the United States, Iran, and Turkey combined accounting for 88% of the total.
The tree grows up to 10 metres (33 feet) tall. It has deciduous, pinnate leaves 10–20 centimetres (4–8 inches) long. The plants are dioecious, with separate male and female trees. The flowers are apetalous and unisexual and borne in panicles.[ citation needed ]
The fruit is a drupe, containing an elongated seed, which is the edible portion. The seed, commonly thought of as a nut, is a culinary nut, not a botanical nut. The fruit has a hard, cream-colored exterior shell. The seed has a mauve-colored skin and light green flesh, with a distinctive flavor. When the fruit ripens, the shell changes from green to an autumnal yellow/red and abruptly splits partly open. This is known as dehiscence, and happens with an audible pop. The splitting open is a trait that has been selected by humans. [5] Commercial cultivars vary in how consistently they split open.
Each mature pistachio tree averages around 50 kilograms (110 pounds) of seeds, or around 50,000 seeds, every two years. [6]
Pistachio is from late Middle English pistace, from Old French, superseded in the 16th century by forms from Italian pistacchio, via Latin from Greek πιστάκιονpistákion, and from Middle Persian pistakē. [7]
Pistachio is a desert plant and is highly tolerant of saline soil. It has been reported to grow well when irrigated with water having 3,000–4,000 ppm of soluble salts. [8] Pistachio trees are fairly hardy in the right conditions and can survive temperatures ranging between −10 °C (14 °F) in winter and 48 °C (118 °F) in summer. They need a sunny position and well-drained soil. Pistachio trees do poorly in conditions of high humidity and are susceptible to root rot in winter if they get too much water and the soil is not sufficiently free-draining. [9] Long, hot summers are required for proper ripening of the fruit.[ citation needed ]
The pistachio tree may live up to 300 years. [10] The trees are planted in orchards, and take around 7 to 10 years to reach significant production. Production is alternate-bearing or biennial-bearing, meaning the harvest is heavier in alternate years. Peak production is reached around 20 years. Trees are usually pruned to size to make the harvest easier. One male tree produces enough pollen for 8 to 12 drupe-bearing females. Harvesting in the United States and in Greece is often accomplished using equipment to shake the drupes off the tree. After hulling and drying, pistachios are sorted according to open-mouth and closed-mouth shells, then roasted or processed by special machines to produce pistachio kernels.[ citation needed ]
The pistachio tree is native to Afghanistan, Iran and Central Asia. [11] [12] [13] [14]
Archaeological evidence shows that pistachio seeds were a common food as early as 6750 BCE. [15] The earliest evidence of pistachio consumption goes back to the Bronze Age Central Asia and comes from Djarkutan, modern Uzbekistan. [16] [17]
Pistachio trees were introduced from Asia to Europe in the first century AD by the Romans. They are cultivated across Southern Europe and North Africa. [18]
Theophrastus described it as a terebinth-like tree with almond-like nuts from Bactria. [19]
It appears in Dioscorides' writings as pistákia (πιστάκια), recognizable as P. vera by its comparison to pine nuts. [20]
Pliny the Elder wrote in his Natural History that pistacia, "well known among us", was one of the trees unique to Syria, and that the seed was introduced into Italy by the Roman proconsul in Syria, Lucius Vitellius the Elder (in office in 35 AD), and into Hispania at the same time by Flaccus Pompeius. [21]
The early sixth-century manuscript De observatione ciborum (On the Observance of Foods) by Anthimus [22] implies that pistacia remained well known in Europe in late antiquity.[ citation needed ]
An article on pistachio tree cultivation was brought down in Ibn al-'Awwam's 12th-century agricultural work, Book on Agriculture. [23]
Archaeologists have found evidence from excavations at Jarmo in northeastern Iraq for the consumption of Atlantic pistachio. [15]
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were said to have contained pistachio trees during the reign of King Marduk-apla-iddina II about 700 BCE. [15]
In the 19th century, the pistachio was cultivated commercially in parts of the English-speaking world, such as Australia and in the US in New Mexico [8] and California, where it was introduced in 1854 as a garden tree. [24]
In 1904 and 1905, David Fairchild of the United States Department of Agriculture introduced hardier cultivars to California collected from China, but it was not promoted as a commercial crop until 1929. [8] [25] Walter T. Swingle's pistachios from Syria had already fruited well at Niles, California, by 1917. [26]
In 1969 and 1971, changes to the tax code in the United States eliminated tax shelters for almonds and citrus fruits. That encouraged California farmers to plant pistachio trees, because they were still eligible for such tax breaks. In 1972, the Shah of Iran began a school breakfast program that included packets of pistachios. This resulted in a decline of pistachio exports from Iran, resulting in increased prices in other countries and additional incentives to plant pistachio trees in California. [27] The first commercial pistachio harvest in California took place in 1976. [28] The Shah was forced into exile in January, 1979 during the Iranian Revolution, resulting in an end to trade between the United States and Iran, providing additional incentives for American farmers to plant dramatically more pistachio trees. [27]
By 2008, U.S. pistachio production rivaled that of Iran. Drought and unusually cold weather in Iran led to severe declines in production there, while U.S. production was increasing. At that time, pistachios were Iran's second-most important export product, after the oil and gas sector. [29]
By 2020, there were 150,000 pistachio farmers in Iran, approximately 70% of whom were small-scale producers using inefficient manual picking and processing techniques. There were 950 far larger U.S. producers, using highly efficient mechanized production techniques. Between them, the U.S. and Iran control 70% of the world export market, with the U.S. in the lead. Worldwide demand exceeds production, so both countries have the ability to sell their production to various export markets. [28]
In 2021, Fresno County, California, accounted for about 40% of U.S. pistachio production, with a value of $722 million. [30]
Pistachio trees are vulnerable to numerous diseases and infestation by insects such as Leptoglossus clypealis in North America. [31] Among these is infection by the fungus Botryosphaeria , which causes panicle and shoot blight (symptoms include death of the flowers and young shoots), and can damage entire pistachio orchards. [32] In 2004, the rapidly growing pistachio industry in California was threatened by panicle and shoot blight first discovered in 1984. [33] In 2011, anthracnose fungus caused a sudden 50% loss in the Australian pistachio harvest. [34] Several years of severe drought in Iran around 2008 to 2015 caused significant declines in production. [35]
Country | Metric tonnes |
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United States | 400,070 |
Iran | 241,669 |
Turkey | 239,289 |
China | 81,700 |
Syria | 45,467 |
World | 1,026,803 |
Source: FAOSTAT of the United Nations [36] |
In 2022, world production of pistachios was one million tonnes (2.2 billion pounds), with the United States, Iran, and Turkey together accounting for 88% of the total (table).
Italy produces a low quantity of pistachios, with the Pistacchio di Bronte (pistachios from Bronte town) DOP-protected. [37]
As with other tree seeds, aflatoxin is found in poorly harvested or processed pistachios. Aflatoxins are potent carcinogenic chemicals produced by molds such as Aspergillus flavus and A. parasiticus . The mold contamination may occur from soil or poor storage, and be spread by pests. High levels of mold growth typically appear as gray to black filament-like growth. Eating mold-infected and aflatoxin-contaminated pistachios is unsafe. [38] Aflatoxin contamination is a frequent risk, particularly in warmer and humid environments. Food contaminated with aflatoxins has been found as the cause of frequent outbreaks of acute illnesses in parts of the world. In some cases, such as in Kenya, this has led to several deaths. [39]
Pistachio shells typically split naturally prior to harvest, with a hull covering the intact seeds. The hull protects the kernel from invasion by molds and insects, but this hull protection can be damaged in the orchard by poor orchard management practices, by birds, or after harvest, which makes exposure to contamination much easier. Some pistachios undergo so-called "early split", wherein both the hull and the shell split. Damage or early splits can lead to aflatoxin contamination. [40] In some cases, a harvest may be treated to keep contamination below strict food safety thresholds; in other cases, an entire batch of pistachios must be destroyed because of aflatoxin contamination.
Like other members of the family Anacardiaceae (which includes poison ivy, sumac, mango, and cashew), pistachios contain urushiol, an irritant that can cause allergic reactions. [41]
Large quantities of pistachios are self-heating in the presence of moisture due to their high oil content in addition to naturally occurring lipases, and can spontaneously combust if stored with a combustible fabric such as jute. [42]
The kernels are often eaten whole, either fresh or roasted and salted, and are also used in pistachio ice cream, traditional Persian ice cream, kulfi, spumoni, pistachio butter, [43] [44] pistachio paste, [45] and confections such as baklava, pistachio chocolate, [46] pistachio halva, [47] pistachio lokum or biscotti, and cold cuts such as mortadella. Americans make pistachio salad, which includes fresh pistachios or pistachio pudding, whipped cream, and canned fruit. [48] Indian cooking uses pounded pistachios with grilled meats, and in pulao rice dishes.
The shell of the pistachio is naturally a beige color, but it may be dyed red or green in commercial pistachios. Originally, dye was applied to hide stains on the shells caused when the nuts were picked by hand. [49] In the 21st century, most pistachios are harvested by machine and the shells remain unstained. [49]
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Energy | 2,351 kJ (562 kcal) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
27.51 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sugars | 7.66 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dietary fiber | 10.3 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
45.39 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Saturated | 5.556 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Monounsaturated | 23.820 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Polyunsaturated | 13.744 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
20.27 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Other constituents | Quantity | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Water | 4 g | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults, [50] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies. [51] |
Raw pistachios are 4% water, 45% fat, 28% carbohydrates, and 20% protein (table). In a 100-gram reference amount, pistachios provide 2,351 kilojoules (562 kcal) of food energy and are a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value or DV) of protein, dietary fiber, several dietary minerals, and the B vitamins thiamin (73% DV) and vitamin B6 (100% DV) (table). Pistachios are a moderate source (10–19% DV) of riboflavin, vitamin B5, folate, vitamin E, and vitamin K (table).
The fat profile of raw pistachios consists mainly of monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, with a small amount of saturated fats (table). Saturated fatty acids include palmitic acid (10% of total) and stearic acid (2%) (table). Oleic acid is the most common monounsaturated fatty acid (52% of total fat). and linoleic acid, a polyunsaturated fatty acid, is 30% of total fat. Relative to other tree nuts, pistachios have a lower amount of fat and food energy, but higher amounts of potassium, vitamin K, γ-tocopherol, and certain phytochemicals such as carotenoids, and phytosterols. [52] [53]
In July 2003, the United States Food and Drug Administration approved the first qualified health claim specific to consumption of seeds (including pistachios) to lower the risk of heart disease: "Scientific evidence suggests but does not prove that eating 1.5 ounces (42.5 g) per day of most nuts, such as pistachios, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease". [54] Although a typical serving of pistachios supplies substantial food energy (nutrition table), their consumption in normal amounts is not associated with weight gain or obesity. [52]
One review found that pistachio consumption lowered blood pressure in persons without diabetes mellitus. [55] A 2021 review found that pistachio consumption for three months or less significantly reduced triglyceride levels. [56]
The almond is a species of tree from the genus Prunus. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus Amygdalus, distinguished from the other subgenera by corrugations on the shell (endocarp) surrounding the seed.
The peanut, also known as the groundnut, goober (US), goober pea, pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics by small and large commercial producers, both as grain legume and as an oil crop. Atypically among legumes, peanut pods develop underground leading botanist Carl Linnaeus to name peanuts hypogaea, which means "under the earth".
A sunflower seed is a seed from a sunflower. There are three types of commonly used sunflower seeds: linoleic, high oleic, and sunflower oil seeds. Each variety has its own unique levels of monounsaturated, saturated, and polyunsaturated fats. The information in this article refers mainly to the linoleic variety.
Cashew is the common name of a tropical evergreen tree Anacardium occidentale, in the family Anacardiaceae. It is native to South America and is the source of the cashew nut and the cashew apple, an accessory fruit. The tree can grow as tall as 14 metres, but the dwarf cultivars, growing up to 6 m (20 ft), prove more profitable, with earlier maturity and greater yields. The cashew nut is edible and is eaten on its own as a snack, used in recipes, or processed into cashew cheese or cashew butter. The nut is often simply called a 'cashew'.
The pecan is a species of hickory native to the Southern United States and northern Mexico in the region of the Mississippi River.
In botany, a nut is a fruit from a tree consisting of a hard or tough nutshell protecting a kernel which is usually edible. The shell is indehiscent, meaning it does not open to release the seed. Most seeds come from fruits that naturally free themselves from the shell, but this is not the case in nuts such as hazelnuts, chestnuts, and acorns, which have hard shell walls and originate from a compound ovary.
The hazelnut is the fruit of the hazel tree and therefore includes any of the nuts deriving from species of the genus Corylus, especially the nuts of the species Corylus avellana. They are also known as cobnuts or filberts according to species.
The Brazil nut is a South American tree in the family Lecythidaceae, and it is also the name of the tree's commercially harvested edible seeds. It is one of the largest and longest-lived trees in the Amazon rainforest. The fruit and its nutshell – containing the edible Brazil nut – are relatively large and weigh as much as 2 kg (4.4 lb) in total. As food, Brazil nuts are notable for diverse content of micronutrients, especially a high amount of selenium. The wood of the Brazil nut tree is prized for its quality in carpentry, flooring, and heavy construction.
Macadamia is a genus of four species of trees in the flowering plant family Proteaceae. They are indigenous to Australia, native to northeastern New South Wales and central and southeastern Queensland specifically. Two species of the genus are commercially important for their fruit, the macadamia nut. Global production in 2015 was 160,000 tonnes. Other names include Queensland nut, bush nut, maroochi nut, bauple nut and, in the US, they are also known as Hawaii nut. It was an important source of bushfood for the Aboriginal peoples.
Pine nuts, also called piñón, pinoli, or pignoli, are the edible seeds of pines. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, only 29 species provide edible nuts, while 20 are traded locally or internationally owing to their seed size being large enough to be worth harvesting; in other pines, the seeds are also edible but are too small to be of notable value as human food. The biggest producers of pine nuts are China, Russia, North Korea, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Corylus avellana, the common hazel, is a species of flowering plant in the birch family Betulaceae. The shrubs usually grow 3–8 metres tall. The nut is round, in contrast to the longer filbert nut. Common hazel is native to Europe and Western Asia.
Juglans regia, the common walnut or Persian walnut amongst other regional names, is a species of walnut. It is native to Eurasia in at least southwest and central Asia and southeast Europe, but its exact natural area is obscure due to its long history of cultivation.
Canarium ovatum, the pili, is a species of tropical tree belonging to the genus Canarium. It is one of approximately 600 species in the family Burseraceae. C. ovatum are native to the Philippines. They are commercially cultivated in the Philippines for their edible nuts and is believed to be indigenous to that country. The fruit and tree are often vulgarized with the umbrella term of "Java almond" which mixes multiple species of the same genus, Canarium.
The Hass avocado is a variety of avocado with dark green, bumpy skin. It was first grown and sold by Southern California mail carrier and amateur horticulturist Rudolph Hass, who also gave it his name.
Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, leaves, roots, and seeds. An alternative definition of the term is applied somewhat arbitrarily, often by culinary and cultural tradition. It may exclude foods derived from some plants that are fruits, flowers, nuts, and cereal grains, but include savoury fruits such as tomatoes and courgettes, flowers such as broccoli, and seeds such as pulses.
Pistachio oil is a pressed oil, extracted from the fruit of Pistacia vera, the pistachio nut.
Pistacia atlantica is a species of pistachio tree known by the English common name Kurdish bīnka/banê, Mt. Atlas mastic tree, Atlas pistachio, Atlantic pistacio, Atlantic terebinth andCyprus turpentine tree.
A walnut is the edible seed of any tree of the genus Juglans, particularly the Persian or English walnut, Juglans regia. They are accessory fruit because the outer covering of the fruit is technically an involucre and thus not morphologically part of the carpel; this means it cannot be a drupe but is instead a drupe-like nut.
Mazafati is a cultivar of the palm date. It is a dark, soft, fleshy and sweet date of medium size, about 2.5–4.5 cm (1–2 in) with a relatively high moisture content of between 32 and 35%, varying with the time of harvest and the location of the grove.
These pale green nuts covered with a papery skin grow on a small deciduous tree native to Persia, the area that still produces the best pistachios.
The pistachio tree is believed to be indigenous to Iran.
Native P. vera forests are located in north eastern part of Iran particularly in Sarakhs region. This native P. vera is the origin of cultivated pistachio trees in Iran [1]. P. mutica is a wild species indigenous to Iran, growing with almond, oak and other forest trees common to most Alpine regions.