Most seeds come from fruit 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 general and original usage of the term is less restrictive, and many nuts (in the culinary sense), such as almonds, pistachios, and Brazil nuts, are not nuts in a botanical sense. Common usage of the term often refers to any hard-walled, edible kernel as a nut. Nuts are an energy-dense and nutrient-rich food source.

Botanically, a nut is a fruit with a woody pericarp developing from a syncarpous gynoecium. True nuts include, for example, chestnut, hazelnut and filbert. Culinarily, the term 'nut' is used much more widely, and includes examples of drupes (such as pecans and almonds) or seeds (such as pine nuts and peanuts).

Also widely known as nuts are dry drupes, which include pecans, almonds, macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia), candlenut (Aleurites moluccanus) and the water caltrop (Trapa bicornis). A drupe is an indehiscent fruit that has an outer fleshy part consisting of the exocarp, or skin, and mesocarp, or flesh, which surround a single pit or stone, the endocarp with a seed (kernel) inside. In a dry drupe, the outer parts dry up and the remaining husk is part of the ovary wall or pericarp, and the hard inner wall surrounding the seed represents the inner part of the pericarp.

Walnuts and hickories (Juglandaceae) have fruit that are difficult to classify. They are considered to be nuts under some definitions but are also referred to as drupaceous nuts.

In common use, a "tree nut" is, as the name implies, any nut coming from a tree. This most often comes up regarding food allergies; a person may be allergic specifically to peanuts (which are not tree nuts but legumes), whereas others may be allergic to the wider range of nuts that grow on trees.

The sweet potato arrived in Europe with the Columbian exchange. It is recorded, for example, in Elinor Fettiplace's Receipt Book, compiled in England in 1604.

Nuts are eaten by humans and wildlife. Because nuts generally have a high oil content, they are a significant energy source. Many seeds are edible by humans and used in cooking, eaten raw, sprouted, or roasted as a snack food, ground to make nut butters, or pressed for oil that is used in cooking and cosmetics.

Nuts used for food are a common source of food allergens. Reactions can range from mild symptoms to severe ones, a condition known as anaphylaxis, which can be life-threatening. The reaction is due to the release of histamine by the body in response to an allergen in the nuts, causing skin and other possible reactions. Many experts suggest that a person with an allergy to peanuts should avoid eating tree nuts, and vice versa.

The nuts linked to from this page are: acorn; almond; beech nuts; betel nut; brazil nut; bush mango; filbert; ginkgo nut; kola nut; candlenut; cashew; chestnut; coconut; hazelnut; macadamia; ogbono; palm nut; peanut; pecan; pine nut; pistachio; walnut.

The alphabetical list of all the nut-based recipes on this site follows, (limited to 100 recipes per page). There are 3559 recipes in total:

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Masala Raita      Origin: India	Mchuzi wa Biringani (Garden Egg Curry)      Origin: Tanzania	Microwave Christmas Pudding      Origin: Britain
Masale Baath (Maharashtrian Spicy Vegetable Rice)      Origin: India	Mchuzi wa Kamba (Zanzibar Prawn Curry)      Origin: Tanzania	Microwave Fruity Christmas Pudding      Origin: Britain
Masaledaar Bakre ki Kaleji Gurda Phepsa (Lamb Offal Curry)      Origin: India	Mchuzi wa Samaki (Fish Curry)      Origin: Tanzania	Microwave Garam Masala Vegetable Curry      Origin: Britain
Masfouf bin Narine (Couscous and Nut Dessert)      Origin: Tunisia	Meadow Waxcap Curry with Rice      Origin: Britain	Microwave Honey Christmas Ring Cake      Origin: Britain
Mashed Sweet Potato Stuffing      Origin: US Virgin Islands	Medallones de Congrio Frito (Fried Conger Eel Medallions)      Origin: Easter Island	Microwave Nutty Bramble Crumble      Origin: Britain
Massak'a (Egyptian Moussaka)      Origin: Egypt	Medeeda (Finger Millet Porridge with Yoghurt)      Origin: Sudan-a	Microwave Peanut Chicken with Noodles      Origin: Britain
Massaman Beef Curry      Origin: Thailand	Medieval Simnel Cake      Origin: England	Microwave Prawn Gumbo      Origin: Britain
Massaman Curry Paste      Origin: Thailand	Medivnyk (Ukrainian Honey Bread)      Origin: Ukraine	Microwave Strawberry and Pistachio Shortcake      Origin: Britain
Massaman Mutton Curry      Origin: Thailand	Medlar and Honey Fool      Origin: British	Microwave Waldorf Chicken Salad      Origin: Britain
Massaman Nuea (Beef Masaman Curry)      Origin: Thailand	Medlar and Pear Mincemeat      Origin: Britain	Milanese Sauce      Origin: France
Massaman Nuea (Beef Massaman Curry)      Origin: Thailand	Medlar and Walnut Mince Tarts      Origin: Britain	Milkless Vanilla Ice-cream      Origin: Britain
Mataba au Poisson (Mataba with Fish)      Origin: Comoros	Medlar Sticky Toffee Pudding      Origin: British	Mince Pie Tiffin Bites      Origin: Britain
Matapa de Abóbora (Pumpkin Matapa)      Origin: Mozambique	Medlar Tart      Origin: Britain	Mincemat, Macadamia and Cranberry Biscotti      Origin: Fusion
Matata (Clam and Peanut Stew)      Origin: Mozambique	Medvjeđe Šape (Bear Paws)      Origin: Croatia	Mincemeat Baklava      Origin: Fusion
Matata (Clams Cooked in Port Wine)      Origin: Sao Tome	Meen Peera (Fish with Grated Coconut)      Origin: India	Mincemeat Baklava Rolls      Origin: Fusion
Maté (Barbecued Chicken Skewers)      Origin: Wallis Futuna	Meen Pollichathu (Fish Cooked in Banana Leaf)      Origin: India	Mincemeat Blondies      Origin: Fusion
Matsavo (Pumpkin Leaf and Peanut Flour Stew)      Origin: Mozambique	Meghli (Lebanese Rice Pudding)      Origin: Lebanon	Mincemeat Christmas Cake      Origin: Britain
Mattar Paneer Curry      Origin: India	Melktert (Milk Tart)      Origin: Namibia	Mincemeat Croissants      Origin: British
Matzo Meal Biscuits      Origin: Jewish	Melomakrona (Honey Semolina Biscuits)      Origin: Greece	Mincemeat Eccles Cakes II      Origin: British
Mauritian Curry Masala      Origin: Mauritius	Mesru (Date and Pistachio Pastries)      Origin: Mesopotamia	Mincemeat Pie      Origin: American
Mauritian Prawn Curry      Origin: Mauritius	Messe of African Greens      Origin: African Fusion	Mincemeat Strudel with a Medieval Twist      Origin: Britain
Mawa Gujiya      Origin: India	Methi Kalia (Spicy Fenugreek Meat)      Origin: Bangladesh	Mincemeat Tart      Origin: Britain
Mawmene (Chicken in White Wine with Dates and Pine Nuts)      Origin: England	Methi Mushroom Masala      Origin: India	Mincemeat, Clementine and Almond Cake      Origin: Britain
Mawmenee      Origin: England	Methi Paneer      Origin: India	Mincepies      Origin: Britain
Mayonnaise II      Origin: British	Mexican Caramels      Origin: Mexico	Mini Mincemeat and Cranberry Loaves      Origin: Britain
Mayotte Mataba      Origin: Mayotte	Mhogo na tzouzi (Cassava in Coconut Sauce)      Origin: Mayotte	Mini Victoria Sandwiches      Origin: Britain
MBakhal aux Arachides (MBakhal with Peanuts)      Origin: Senegal	Micronesia Taro and Coconut Bread      Origin: Federated States Micronesia	Miodownik (Polish Honey Bread)      Origin: Poland
Mbanga Soup (Palm Nut Soup)      Origin: Cameroon	Micronesian Coconut Chicken Curry      Origin: Federated States Micronesia	Mispelkuchen mit Ingwer (Gingered Medlar Chocolate Cake)      Origin: Austria
Mbawa ya Tomati (Chicken wings with Tomatoes)      Origin: Mayotte	Micronesian Fish with Coconut Milk and Lime      Origin: Federated States Micronesia	Mistura de especiarias (Portuguese Spice Mix)      Origin: Portugal
Mbolo      Origin: Equatorial Guinea	Microwave Amaretto Cheesecake with Raspberry Sauce      Origin: Britain	Miti Hue (Fermented Coconut Sauce)      Origin: Tahiti
Mbongo Tjobi      Origin: Cameroon	Microwave Asian Noodles      Origin: Fusion	Mixed Spice      Origin: Britain
Mboto à l'oseille (Fish with Sorrel)      Origin: Congo	Microwave Banana and Walnut Loaf      Origin: Britain	Mixtura cum amygdalinam et sesamae (Almond, Seame and Herb Purée)      Origin: Roman
Mboto à la Feuilles de Manioc (Fish with Cassava Leaves)      Origin: Gabon	Microwave Chicken Thai Green Curry      Origin: Britain
Mchicha (Spinach, Coconut and Peanuts)      Origin: Tanzania	Microwave Chocolate Peanut Butter and Jam Brownie      Origin: Britain

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