Brazil nuts, macadamia nuts, and coconuts are among the hardest nuts to crack, but pistachios naturally split when ripe, making hand-cracking easy.
The roasting process reaches the interior nutmeat through the natural crack that appears in most pistachios, saving processors time and money they would have spent de-shelling.
In-shell pistachios are popular due to their fun and conscientious consumption method.
Adam Cooper, vice president of The Wonderful Company, told Produce Business that "pistachios are the conscious nut"
Bare pistachios are lovely to sprinkle on a salad or use in dishes like vanilla white chocolate pistachio fudge.
The two kinds may have unexpected distinctions.