Peanut

Peanut is a small tan kernel enclosed in a thin papery skin, often sold shelled or still in a rough beige pod. It tastes nutty and slightly sweet with a firm crunch that turns creamy when ground; roasting brings a warm, toasty aroma. Common uses include snacking, grinding into peanut butter, crushing for coatings, and finishing noodle or salad dishes; sold raw, roasted, salted, or blanched.

Domesticated in South America, peanuts spread via trade to Africa and Asia and became staples in West African and Southeast Asian cuisines. In the United States they are grown mainly in the Southeast and Virginia–Carolina regions, harvested dry, cured, then shelled or roasted.