Topic: Does anyone know what this is?

[SnS]

A friend of mine came back from holiday in Tanzania with a small tray of spices (which I gather is often sold to tourists).

This was included in the spice selection but I have no idea what it is.

Anyone got any ideas? It has no smell ot taste (I do hope it's not a fossilised monkey nut).

SnS  ;D

[Jethro]

Was it taken in a tribal raid? 

[Yousef]

Have you tried grating a little?  Perhaps its a nutmeg type of thing?
I bet the customs at the airport loved your mate for bringing that in.

Stew

[SnS]

Have you tried grating a little?  Perhaps its a nutmeg type of thing?
I bet the customs at the airport loved your mate for bringing that in.

Stew

I didn't want to damage it as I thought I may be able to grow "something" from it.

[Secret Santa]

It looks like the pod of the cashew nut and as cashews are a major export of tanzania this might be what it is. I'm not sure how you would use it though if that is what it is.

There's a picture here: http://www.kriyayoga.com/photography/photo_gallery/d/19768-2/cashew_nut_cashew_fruit-dsc06868.jpg
The little bean shaped thing is the pod.

And here's another: http://tinyurl.com/2lbuqt

[SnS]

Spot on SS. Mystery solved - that appears to be it.

Now what to do with a single cashew nut pod?

Kept in a conservatory, could the pod possibly grow into a cashew nut tree here in UK?

Says here the pods that have fallen off the tree will either rot or germinate.

http://www.nda.agric.za/docs/cashews/cashew.htm

Regards
SnS  ;D

[Secret Santa]

Now what to do with a single cashew nut pod?

Grow a single cashew tree? 

Looks like you might have a 50/50 chance from what you say, got to be worth a shot though.

I did a quick google and there's nothing about the use of the pod as a spice so I can't figure out why it was in the spice section of the pack. I bet it was put there because it looks exotic and they know 99.99% of people have never seen one before, so it adds an element of mystery.

[SnS]

I spoke to my friend, the one who went to Tanzania last year.

Told him about the single solitary cashew nut mixed up in the spice tray. He tells me that he'd actually visited a "Cashew Nut" factory while he was in India (2006).

Apparently shelling cashews is an extremely labour intensive process and the shellers only earn 30p/day.

Here are some photos he took (factory in Goa).

SnS  ;D