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The cashew nut is inside the funny looking, kidney shaped shell that is attached to the bottom of the cashew apple. Also inside that shell is a very nasty, caustic liquid that causes severe burns, so be careful when handling it. More on processing and shelling cashews later.
Besides, what does a cashew look like?
Called the cashew apple, better known in Central America as marañón, it ripens into a yellow or red structure about 5–11 cm (2.0–4.3 in) long. It is edible and has a strong "sweet" smell and taste. The true fruit of the cashew tree is a kidney– or boxing-glove–shaped drupe that grows at the end of the cashew apple.
Subsequently, one may also ask, can you eat a cashew apple?
When ripe, the whole thing falls off the tree, and the bottom part is gathered for processing. The false fruit (called cashew fruit or cashew apple) is edible, but it is very perishable. It is often left to rot, but can be eaten raw, cooked, or used to make a liquor called feni.
The tree produces a fleshy, pear-shaped stalk called a cashew apple on its branches. Yet, this part of the plant isn't the fruit. Instead, the true fruit is a smaller, kidney-shaped structure that grows underneath the cashew apple, also known as a drupe.