The pecan nuts are shape oval, smooth, up to 2.5 inches long. The outer husk is fleshy at immature and turns to fibrous, and splitting open at maturity. The shells of the fruit are hard, thin, woody. The kernel can be easily separated when mature.
The pecan nuts are edible, with a rich, buttery flavor; and can be directly eaten raw. They can be also prepared into sweet desserts, ice creams and cookery. An oil pressed from pecan nuts are good for salad dressing.
The pecan nuts are shelled and put in the refrigerator in cold storage, to keep about nine months; and it can be keep upto two years if it kept in the freezer. These shelled pecan nuts can also stay good to another additional two months after being removed from the cold storage.
Medicinal facts: A diet rich in these pecan nuts can lower the risk of gallstones, in women. The antioxidants and plant sterols found in pecan nuts can be reduce high cholesterol by reducing the "bad" LDL cholesterol levels. There are scientific evidence suggests, that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, such as pecan nuts, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease.
Pecans tree is native to the lower Mississippi Valley and westward through Texas, and in northern Mexico.
[image: the ripe pecan nuts]
