Nuts

Brazil Nut

Brazil nuts are the seeds of Bertholletia excelsa, giant Amazon canopy trees harvested largely from wild and managed forest rather than orchard blocks. Woody pods called ouriços hold a dozen or more angular seeds that commercial crackers free for export. The meat is dense, creamy, and high-oil, with a soft crunch and tropical sweetness when fresh. Amazon soils often make the kernels notably selenium-rich, so a few nuts can meet daily needs— treat them as a measured snack, not bottomless trail mix. Rancidity arrives fast in heat; buy small lots, keep cool, and freeze for long holding. Good kernels are plump and ivory-cream with clean aroma; yellow sticky meats or paint smells fail. Cooks use them in snacking, baking, dairy-free cheeses, and regional Amazonian sweets. Forest-conservation and fair-trade stories often ride with the supply chain. Label as a tree nut and respect selenium moderation.