Pistachio - Description
Pistachio is the name of the fruit of trees of the same name from the genus of evergreen or deciduous trees belonging to the Sumach family. Pistachios have been cultivated for several millennia. First, they appeared on the territory where Iran and Syria are located today, then they got to Greece and other parts of Europe, after which they spread throughout the world.
Modern habitats of pistachio are subtropical and partly tropical regions of the Mediterranean, Northeast Africa, Western, Middle and East Asia. Two types of pistachios grow in Central America and southern USA.
The best conditions for these nuts are sierozem, mountain-steppe brown soils, precipices and slopes. Pistachios are light-loving and drought-resistant plants, found mainly in the form of individual specimens, sometimes forming not dense pistachio forests.
Greece, Syria, Iran, Spain, Italy, the USA and other countries are currently engaged in growing pistachios. However, the recognized leader in this area is Turkey, which accounts for half of the world production of pistachios. Harvesting takes place at the end of July - beginning of August. Interestingly, the collection of pistachios is carried out at night, because during the daytime their leaves emit essential oils, provoking dizziness.
Collected nuts are first dried in the sun, after which they can be stored for at least a year. They are also fried, soaked in saline.
Pistachios - useful properties
Pistachios are a very valuable food because of the perfectly balanced amount of amino acids, vitamins and minerals. They are rich in copper, manganese, phosphorus, magnesium and potassium. They also contain vitamins B. So, eating a dozen pistachios, a person gets a quarter of the daily requirement of vitamin B6.
Pistachios have very strong antioxidant properties. Their regular use helps reduce the risk of cancer and slow the aging process. Also pistachios reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, helping to reduce the level of “bad” cholesterol and normalize heartbeat.
Nutritionists believe that the indications for the use of pistachios are high physical exertion, fatigue, depletion of the body and high mental exertion (due to their ability to activate mental activity). Pistachios are recommended to be included in the diet of people with tuberculosis, jaundice and various liver diseases. Carotenoids, which they contain, contribute to the improvement of vision and reduce the risk of senile dystrophy of the yellow spot of the retina, because of which older people often become blind. Also, pistachios are a strong aphrodisiac that can, with regular use, enhance potency in both sexes and improve sperm quality.
In cosmetology, freckles and pigment spots on the skin are removed with the help of pistachio oil.
However, excessive consumption of these nuts can cause nausea, dizziness, indigestion or an allergic reaction in the form of urticaria.
Pistachios - caloric
Calorie pistachios ranges from 550 to 650 kcal.
Pistachios - use in cooking
Pistachios began to be used for food more than 5 thousand years ago in Babylon and Assyria; they are even mentioned in the Bible. Dishes with pistachios all over the world are invariably considered delicious. These nuts are used to produce unusual flavor combinations in dishes (for example, strawberries with pistachios and cream cheese).
Pistachios are widely used in the confectionery industry for the production of pastries, cakes, sweets, ice cream and other tasty products. In the best restaurants of the world you will be served with champagne or light dessert wine, roasted pistachios with lemon juice.
Pistachios have also found their place in cooking, where they are used to prepare a variety of dishes: mashed poultry soups, stuffed duck, other meat dishes, various puddings, salads, casseroles and desserts.
Recipe Examples with Pistachios
Recipe 1: Egyptian Salad with Tomatoes and Pistachios
Very original, tasty and healthy salad, in which the taste of tomatoes goes well with the nutty aroma and taste of pistachios.
Ingredients:
4 ripe tomatoes;
250 gr. pistachios;
1 onion;
to taste with salt and ground red pepper.
Preparation:
1. Peeling ripe tomatoes from the skin, remove the seeds from them and finely chop. Onions cut into thin rings. Mortar pistachios or grind in any other suitable way.
2. Then mix the prepared tomatoes, onions and pistachios, salt and pepper. We give salads to stand in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes, and he is ready!
Recipe 2: Curd Paste with Pistachios
Despite the simplicity of preparation, this dessert turns out to be unusually tasty and exquisite, due to the fact that in it the gentle cottage cheese perfectly combines with the aroma of pistachios and vanilla.
Ingredients:
300 gr. cottage cheese;
50 gr. Sahara;
1 egg;
50 gr. butter;
50 gr. peeled pistachios;
200 gr. rich thick cream;
to taste vanilla.
Preparation:
1. We rub fresh cottage cheese through a sieve. Mix it with sugar, vanilla and grind well into a homogeneous mass without grains of sugar. Then, adding the egg with butter and chopped pistachios, again, all thoroughly rubbed.
2. Pour the cream into the resulting mass, mix everything, put it on gauze, put it in a form under a press and keep in the fridge for a day, after which our curd paste with pistachios is ready.
Recipe 3: Chicken Salad with Pistachios
Very nourishing, tasty and at the same time quite light salad of chicken, cheese, bell pepper and pistachios. You can make it even easier by taking a low-fat mayonnaise.
Ingredients:
1 chicken fillet;
200 gr. suluguni cheese or mozzarella;
1 Bulgarian pepper;
100 gr. pistachios;
2 tbsp. l mayonnaise;
sheet fat for feeding;
greenery for decoration;
to taste salt and pepper.
Preparation:
1. Boil the chicken breast, cut it into small cubes. Just cut the cheese. After peeling the seeds, cut them into narrow strips, which are then cut into small diamonds. Pistachios cut is not too small.
2. Combining all the products, salt and pepper, we dress the salad with mayonnaise. We cover the flat dish with leaves of green lettuce, spread lettuce on them with a slash and decorate it with greens.
Pistachios - useful tips from experienced chefs
When buying pistachios, make sure that their shells are ajar, since pistachios with a closed shell are immature. You should know that the color of mature pistachios inside is pale green, with a slight purple tinge.
Before using pistachios in dishes, they need to be freed from the shell, and then, after blanching them for several minutes, remove the peel from them.
