Betel nut palm is a single stemmed palm with a slender trunk, conspicuously ringed by the scars of fallen leaves, capable of reaching 30 m in height.
Betel nuts are harvested either when they are green and tender or when they ripen and become orange.
In India the tender nuts are mixed with spices and sugar to aid digestion and act as a mouth freshener. The betel nuts is also mashed or powdered with the ingredients and rolled up in a leaf and sold as candy.
Cracked, ripe betel nuts can be used in marinades to tenderize meat as they help breakdown sinew and muscle tissue on tougher cuts.
Almost 400 calories are contained within 100 g of fresh betel nuts, along with 6,0 g protein, 11 g fat, 70 g carbohydrates, 540 g calcium, 63 g phosphorus, 5.7 mg iron, 76 mg sodium, 446 mg potassium, and 0.17 mg thiamine.
Betel nuts
