Best Cashews

The Best Cashews: Our Taste Tests Reveal These Winners

Let’s talk cashews!

Ever wonder why you don’t see cashews in a shell? 

Native to Brazil, cashew nuts are found at the bottom of the fruit of a cashew tree. The shell of the cashew nut contains a toxic resin as well as a substance that is the same as found in poison ivy. As you can imagine, the shell has to be separated from the cashew before being sold at market!

So how is the cashew separated from its shell? This is done with by boiling the nut in hot oil or high temperature steam. As a result, the cashew is cooked somewhat . . . even those cashews that are labeled as raw.

Cashews are often sold in two varieties: roasted (lightly salted) and raw. Raw cashews are used to make cashew milk or cheese. 

Roasted and lightly salted cashews are used for cooking or snacks.

One important tip: be sure to store cashews in a cool, dry place. Cashews have a relatively high oil content and can absorb odors from other foods—so storing in an airtight container is best.

And a quick allergy alert: even though cashews are gluten free, many brands are processed in facilities that also process wheat (as well as tree nuts). So be careful to read the package before ordering if this is important.

So what are the best tasting cashews on the market? To find out, we did our famous blind taste tests with several brands. So, drum roll, here are the cashews we thought tasted best.