There are about 225 genera with some 2650 species of palm but only a few are used as food. The most infamous edible nut of the family is the Coconut. A few palms produce fruits that are used as vegetables, such as the hearts of palm. Some produce nuts that are not eaten such as the betel nut (chewed but not consumed) and the Ivory nut (used to make buttons). Other palms produce edible fruits like dates and salak. One variety, cultivated in tropical America, Euterpe oleracea, not only yields palm cabbages, but also edible fruits called “acai”. Another, Oenocarpus distichus, yields an oil from its fruits that is comparable to olive oil. Orbignya martiana is very versatile variety supplying hearts, an edible oil, a flour, a sugar, and a “meat”. Palm oil, for commercial use, is mainly obtained from the nutlike fruits of the species Elaeis guineensis, the most important of all the oil palms including those of West Africa and South America.
Some nut-bearing palms include:
– African Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) originated in Africa but is now cultivated throughout the world tropics and is by far the most important source of edible palm oil. The small, irregularly formed seeds are 1-2 inches long and less than an inch thick. They are very hard, have a thick ivory-like flesh, and a small cavity in the center. The nuts are encased in a fibrous covering which contains the oil. There are three varieties of nut trees distinguished by the colour of their seeds which are orange, red, or black. The orange has the finest oil but small kernels. The others have less oil but larger nuts. If the nuts are roasted and eaten, they taste much like the fat of mutton. The “American Oil palm” (Elaeis oleifera formerly Cordozo oleifera) is now identified as allied to the African oil palm. It grows in Central America and northeastern South America. The oil supplied is like that of the African oil palm.
– Coquilla nut (Attalea funifera) is one of about 40 kinds of palm found mainly in Brazil. The fruits produced have an especially hard shell covering their four-inch dark brown frame. The fruit is a substitute for ivory in the manufacture of buttons, doorknobs, and various other household items. One species furnishes the fibers for hard brooms and brushes. Another related nut supplies valuable oil that rivals that of coconut oil in some remote areas.
– Coyor (Aiphanes minima) is a medium-sized palm growing in tropical America and often planted as an ornamental but the fruits can be used as food. The orange-red fruits are slightly less than an inch in diameter. The fleshy exterior has a sweet, fruity flavour surrounding a single seed. Inside the hard shell is a relatively thick layer of white meat that closely resembles the coconut in appearance and taste and is used in a similar manner.
– Gingerbread palm, doum nut (Hyphaene ventricosa) is found mainly in Arabia, tropical Africa and Madagascar. The trunk is frequently branched, which is rare in palm trees. The fruit is the shape and size of an orange with a thin, shiny brown, outer layer. Beneath this is a thicker layer of fibrous matter which is favoured by monkeys and elephants but can be eaten by humans as well. The third layer is very hard and fibrous which encases an inedible kernel known as “Vegetable Ivory”, which was extensively used in the manufacture of buttons until the advent of plastics.
– Gru-gru (Acrocomia aculeata) is abundant in Trinidad and Tobago growing to 20 or 30 feet with a one-foot trunk diameter. The fruit is about the size of a billiard ball. The kernels contain valuable oil but the sweet meat is also eaten.
– Palmyra palm (Borassus flabellifer) is an 80-foot tree from Asia and tropical Africa that is extensively cultivated in drier parts of India and elsewhere in the region. It is one of the most useful trees in India, used for its durable wood. The leaves are used for thatching rooves and for writing paper. The fibers are used in making matting, bags, baskets, umbrellas, and many other items. When the fruits are tender, the seeds are of a soft, sweet, gelatinous pulpy nature with a little liquid in them. These are relished during the hot summer months. The pulp gradually hardens into a bony kernel which develops a fibrous coat and a cream-coloured substance with the consistency of cheese that is sweet and pleasant to taste. When seedlings are 2-3 months old, they send out tender shoots which are also eaten as they supply the foundation for a starchy flour.
– Peach palm, pupunha, pejibaye (Bactris gasipaes syn. Guilielma gasipaes) has grown extensively from Central America to Ecuador for many years and is an important food crop to millions of people. The tree grows to about 60 feet, often with 4 or 5 stems from the base. The trees bear up to 5 bunches of fruit, each weighing about 25 pounds. The fruit as well as the kernels are eaten. The flesh is dry and mealy but firm in texture and a pale orange to yellow in colour. The single seed within the flesh has a hard shell enclosing a kernel that resembles a coconut in appearace and flavour including having a high percentage of oil. However, they are no where near the size of a coconut as they are only a couple of inches in diameter. The peach palms are extensively cultivated in Central America, especially in Costa Rica for their hearts (see Hearts of Palm)
– Rattans (Calamus sp.) are climbing palms of the Orient which belong to several genera and extend from West Africa to Taiwan, Australasia and Fiji with the greatest number being in the rain forests of Malaysia. The stems and leaves are barbed with vicious curving spines that hook onto trees as they climb. Some species have edible fruits and seeds, which are sometimes substituted for the betel nut or litchi nut. The inner part of the shoots can also be eaten.
– Royal palms (Roystonea ssp.), if left alone, would produce sago. Usually, they are sacrificed for their hearts, as are many of the coconut palms.
– Sago palm (Metroxylon) comes from one of two varieties of palm in Malaysia which supplies large quantities of sago, a starchy flour. The fruits can be eaten but the tree is usually cut down to get at the starch.
– Salak, snake fruit (Salacca edulis) is the Malay name for the fruit of several kinds of small, stemless palms which grow in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Burma. The fruit is shaped like a pear but smaller and has a shiny, brown, scaly skin, and thus its nickname. The yellowish flesh is slightly crisp in texture but with a pleasant blend of sweetness and acidity. These palm fruits are cultivated in Bali where at least two cultivars are especially prized. The young fruits may be pickled or preserved in cans with salt water and sugar. They are often carried on pilgrimages. The fruits of the S. conferta are exceedingly sour and used in the same way as Tamarind but the Chinese make them into a candied sweet.
– Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) is a palm that grows mainly in South Carolina, Florida, and Louisiana. The stems are mostly prostrate and form great clusters of fruits in the wild. The fruits are now popular in medicines targeting the prostate gland.
– Sugar plum, kaong (Arenga pinnata) is a rather large palm of the Philippines whose green nuts turn yellow when mature. The sweet fruits contain two or three seeds which are used in various ways. The buds are used in salads.
– Suppa (A. mexicana) is found in the northern plains of Mexico and Central America. The fruits are usually eaten by cattle who transmit the odour and yellowish colour into their milk.
– Tucan nuts, Tucum nuts, awara nuts, Panama nuts, guere-palm nuts, muru-muru nuts (Astrocaryum) comes from a confusing genus of palm found mainly in northern South America which produce nuts rich in oil but of a substandard quality.
– Wax palm, Carna-uba (Copernicia prunifera) is famous for its wax, and thus the name. The leaves of this species are coated on both sides with wax that is removed by shaking. This wax was used in the making of gramaphone records and candles as well as being the foundation for floor waxes. The immature seed kernels are eaten raw but the ripe ones need to be pounded or grated before being used as food.
