Best of Portugal

Portuguese pine nuts

Portugal displays a picturesque landscape and is located on the south western part of Europe. It was once subjugated by the Romans and earned independence in the 12th century. Since then Portugal has emerged as one of the most powerful nations of the world and in the 17th and 18th century they were one of the formidable colonial powers having colonized various principalities worldwide. However, it must be noted that Portugal has a rich cultural history and heritage which has influenced the food habits of the Portuguese and there are certain delicacies which are considered as essential to the ethnic identity of Portugal. The foremost among them are the pine nuts.

In Portugal, extensive land areas are dedicated to the cultivation of stone pines from which the pine nuts are obtained. The stone pines are also referred to as umbrella pines and the statistics obtained from the Portuguese national forest inventory makes it known that an estimated area of abut 83,900 ha of land in the country is dedicated to the cultivation of stone pines. It is to be mentioned here that favorable weather conditions provided by the Mediterranean type climate in Portugal facilitates the growth of the stone pine trees and the most important product obtained from the stone pines are the pine nuts. The significant beneficial effects of these trees are that they are not prone to pest attacks or diseases which can cause any kind of damage to the plant. The pine nuts have been used as ingredients in various traditional Portuguese delicacies since antiquity and the great flavor of the pine kernel make it popular in Mediterranean cuisines. It must also be remembered here that pine nuts are extremely ecological and do not cause harm to the forest environment during harvesting and thus is conducive for cultivation.