A large, waxy, oil-rich nut from a tropical tree, essential to Indonesian and Malaysian cooking as a creamy thickener for curries and spice pastes — toxic when raw, safe when cooked.
The macadamia’s Southeast Asian cousin
Candlenuts look similar to macadamia nuts but are never eaten raw — they contain saponins and phorbol esters that cause vomiting if consumed uncooked. Heat neutralizes these compounds, transforming the nut into a rich, creamy ingredient.
The name “candlenut” comes from the traditional Pacific Islander use of the oil-dense nuts as candles — strung on a thin stick, each nut burns for about 2–3 minutes.
Thickener, not a flavor
Candlenuts contribute body and creaminess to spice pastes, not a strong flavor of their own. Ground together with shallots, galangal, lemongrass, and chillies, they hold the paste together and emulsify the sauce in cooking.
Key dishes:
- Rendang (Indonesia) — the candlenut-enriched spice paste is cooked down for hours
- Satay sauce (Malaysia/Indonesia) — often includes candlenuts alongside peanuts
- Nasi goreng and various sambals
- Hawaiian inamona — roasted candlenuts with salt, eaten as a condiment
Substitutes
Macadamia nuts are the closest substitute (same creamy fat profile without the toxicity concern). Brazil nuts and blanched almonds also work in a pinch.
Find more foods by letter
Candle Nut starts with C and ends with T. Browse other foods along the same letter.
Foods that contain a letter from "Candle Nut":