Marula Nut

The marula nut is the oil-rich kernel found inside the hard inner stone of the marula fruit, produced by Sclerocarya birrea, a tree native to southern and eastern Africa. Once the fibrous, tart-sweet fruit pulp, best known for flavoring marula beer and the commercial Amarula liqueur, has been removed, the stone is cracked to reach the small kernels inside, which are eaten roasted as a traditional snack or pressed for marula oil, valued both in cooking and, more prominently today, in cosmetics. Harvesting and cracking the nuts by hand remains an important source of income for rural communities across the tree's range in southern Africa.