Nuts
Aleurites moluccanus
S tier
Aleurites moluccanus is the botanical species behind kemiri, buah keras, and kukui—the oily seed used as a cooked thickener across Island Southeast Asia and Hawaiʻi. Latin identity does not change the kitchen rule: toast or simmer before eating; raw snack use is out. High oil demands cool storage after shelling. Quality kernels smell clean; rancid paint notes fail any regional name. This species entry is the umbrella for all culinary candlenut trade.
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Characteristics
Preparations
Traits
History
Austronesian cooks used candlenut as an oily thickener in spice pastes across Island Southeast Asia.
Candlenut (kemiri) became embedded in Indonesian and Malay spice-paste grammar.
Hawaiian kukui held cultural importance as oil and food plant beyond pure cuisine.
Diaspora groceries made candlenuts available to cooks outside the tropics.