Chefs, culinary professionals, technologists, retailers and food processors are recognizing pecans’ great taste, versatility and numerous health benefits. Pecans, loved for centuries for their sweet crunch and undeniable flavor, are an ideal ingredient for many foods. Using pecans as an ingredient can create a unique taste, texture and flavor experience – but pecans also play an important nutritional role, and studies show that eating pecans may help reduce the risk of some diseases. Plus, demand for pecans is increasing year-round.
Information Resources
Pecans can be used effectively in a variety of processed food applications. To learn more about how to improve everything from appetizers and salads to entrées and desserts, take a look at our "Perfect Performance With Pecans" and "Work Magic With Pecans" guides to using pecans in processed foods. For more information on what to look for when buying pecans and how to keep them fresh, check out “Tips for Buying, Using and Storing Pecans.”
- Perfect Performance with Pecans (pdf)
- Work Magic with Pecans (pdf)
- Tips for Buying, Using, and Storing Pecans
To help consumers and the trade evaluate pecan quality, the National Pecan Shellers Association developed the document Voluntary Guidelines for Color & Size of Shelled Pecans.
Pecans in Industry Publications
Get caught up on your reading by checking out what the trade publications are saying about pecans.
- Food Business News (January 2009)
Nuts Gaining Flavor (pdf) - Flavor & the Menu (Fall 2008)
Nuts to Dessert (pdf)
www.flavor-online.com - Today's Grocer (April 2008)
USDA: Pecans Still #1 for Antioxidants Among All Nuts (pdf) - Flavor & the Menu (Winter 2008)
"Up the Protein Quotient" (pdf) - Home Cooking (Dec. 2007)
Nuts About Nuts (pdf)
Copyright (c) 2007, Home Cooking, Berne, IN 46711
Reproduced with permission - Taste for Life (Dec. 2007)
A Treate to Celebrate (pdf)
Reprinted with permission from Taste for Life, the leading in-store consumer magazine on nutrition and natural health - New Products (Dec. 2007)
Tech Trends: Nut Nutrition - Produce Business (October 2007)
Pecans - More Than a Seasonal Favorite (pdf) - Food Processing (September 2007)
Ingredient Round Up: Fruits, nuts & vegetables - Food Product Design (Aug. 2007)
“A Chef’s Guide to Nuts” - Specialty Food (July 2007)
Specialty Nuts: Flavored, Novelty & Artful (pdf)
www.specialtyfood.com - Frozen Desserts (March/April 2007)
"Pecans: The Perfect Addition to Frozen Desserts" (pdf) - Baking Management (Feb. 2007)
“The Lowdown on Cholesterol-Lowering Ingredients” - Food Processing (Dec. 2006)
“Say Nuts to Your Foodservice Accounts” - Food Technology (Dec. 2006)
"Health Nuts" (pdf) - National Culinary Review (Dec. 2006)
"Pecans Good for the Heart" (pdf) - Today's Restaurant News (Dec. 2006)
"Pecans Protect Against Unhealthy Oxidation" (pdf) - Produce Business (Oct. 2006)
"Pecans Transcend Holiday Baking" (pdf) - Flavor & the Menu (Spring 2006)
"Go Nuts" (pdf)
Pecans and Genetically Modified Organisms
With all of the discussion today about genetic modification of crops, the National Pecan Shellers Association advises there are no pecans on the market that contain genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
A pecan crop breeding expert working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, along with horticulturists at major universities in the Southeast and Southwest advise that no pecan trees in their orchards or labs contain GMOs. The genetic engineering of pecans is not a strategy being used in the development of pecan cultivars.
Reviewed by:
- Dr. L.J. Grauke, USDA ARS Pecan Breeding & Genetics
- Dr. Lenny Wells, pecan horticulturist, University of Georgia
- Dr. Leo Lombardini, assistant professor, Department of Horticultural Sciences, Texas A&M University
Drafted by: Sue Taylor, R.D., National Pecan Shellers Association
Photo courtesy of the Georgia Pecan Commission