Everyone likes cashews-
Including Thomas Watson from England… Americans consume about 22% of the world’s cashews. The tree itself is native to central America, but it has been cultivated in Africa and very profitably in Vietnam. Tom likes to travel and eat all kinds of stuff and then collect videos of his eating for all his social media fans. Like Americans, Tom likes cashews and while he was in the Yucatan portion of Mexico he had a chance to samples real cashew fruit right off the tree, along with mangoes and few of the other fruit that are native to the part of Mexico.
As the picture shows cashew nuts actually grow outside of the body of the tree’s fruit which often called a cashew apple. So the fruit has a stem on top with pear shaped soft fruit holding the actual nut in a case that hangs below the fruit. While the cashew fruit can be eaten and even made into wine and liquor the nut case or “drupe” that holds and nurtures the nut below the apple is not friendly. The actual cashew nut is surrounded by a double shell that contains an allergenic phenolic resin, anacardia acid—which is chemically related to the better-known as urushiol, which is found in poison ivy. Just getting the juice on your skin causes burning and a rash and even welts. Historically workers that did not have the right kind of gloves could not stand to work with the fruit to harvest the cashew nuts.
Unfortunately, nobody warned Tom about this and as he went into his act for the camera he got the acid on his face in his mouth and on his hands. “I got third-degree burns on my face after eating a fruit. I could not believe the pain just from biting into one bite.” The British construction worker had been strolling through a local market, when he came upon a stand selling cashew apples, the fruits that encase the namesake nut.
“The next morning when I woke up my whole face was scabby and really bad looking. You can eat the cashew apple fruit, it’s meant to be a bit bitter,” the Brit described. “I’d heard about it but never tried it in the flesh, so I bought it, went for a walk and started eating a few different fruits.” It was pain at first bite. “I thought I’d open it up – it felt like a passion fruit, and I bit into this sac which exploded straight away,” recalled Watson.” “Instantly it felt like fire, I could feel this fire going across my mouth.” “Even my hands have gone discolored from where the acid burnt them so badly,” said Thomas. “When my lips were all burnt, they literally felt like they’d be dissolved, it felt like my lip had gone like baking paper for three or four days,” recalled Watson while describing his Freddy Krueger-esque affliction. That dosage was not fatal, but it did remind him for a few days that there is more to cashews than just opening the package.
Everyone likes cashews
A cashew called a peanut fat.
the peanut felt insalted.
I saw a squirrel bury an acorn in my backyard today.
I’m going to swap it for a grilled cheese sandwich and blow his mind.
What do you call the smell of leftover Mexican food in your car?
A Texas air freshener.
My Mexican friend wrote a song about a fajita.
Well actually, it’s more of a wrap.
What do you get when you cross Speedy Gonzales with a country singer?
Arriba McEntire.
May 28th Birthdays
1944 – Gladys Knight, 1988 – Jessica Rothe, 1984 – Beth Allen, 1996 – Cary Mulligan
1995 – Lucas Gage, 1908 – Ian Fleming, 1972 – Marco Rubio, 1986 – Michael Oher