Karma’s Sophisticated, Healthier, Kosher Cashews

May 15, 2021 by Chef David

By Chef David

Cashews, always a go-to healthy snack, now are even healthier thanks to the Karma Nuts introduction of the “wrapped” cashew. Certified kosher by the OU, Karma’s minimally processed cashews come roasted or wrapped, which is a culinary innovation.  They have a distinctive crunch and are coated with delectable flavors.

Did you know that the cashew is botanically classified as a seed and that it grows outside the cashew apple, called the drupe?

Health Benefits

Cashews in general are packed with natural health benefits. They are naturally low in sugar, rich in fiber, and brimming with vitamins, minerals, and flavor. 

Karma’s nuts, which come in wrapped or roasted varieties, offer a taste and mouthfeel that feels revolutionary. Each quarter-cup serving (one ounce) contains 160 calories and provides four to five grams of plant protein.  

Additional benefits from this snack include iron, vitamin K, potassium, phosphorous, magnesium, zinc, copper, and manganese, which combine to boost brain, heart, and bone health as well as support the immune system. 

Nut skins are a rich source of antioxidant compounds such as polyphenols, giving the wrapped Karma nuts which are air-roasted without oil as much as ten times more antioxidants than their blanched cousins. The wrapped flavors also contain more than double the fiber of traditional cashews.

Cashew Reimagined – Innovation

The company’s founder, Ganesh Nair, combined the knowledge from his master’s degree in health and science from MIT with his family’s cashew business to create wrapped nuts in 2014, an industry innovation. Mr. Nair’s background inspired Karma’s unique process for producing cashews with their skins on, wrapped.  Karma has also introduced a suite of alluring flavors, with a sophisticated profile not typical for cashews.

Karma is a high-quality product, the nuts are whole, nothing was broken or crushed and each nut is fully coated with flavor.  Even the packaging is distinctive: attractively colored with a lined wrapper for freshness and designed to fit into the pocket. 

If I have a complaint, it is that the package I sampled is not re-closable. Each bag contains one-and-a-half servings. Those interested in portion control will need to find their own storage solutions.

The nuts also come in eight-ounce jars.

Refined Flavors

Each of the six varieties I sampled had a completely different, refined flavor, which complemented the cashew taste without overpowering it.  The flavors I sampled were: Sweet Matcha Roasted, Cinnamon Wrapped, Cocoa Dusted Wrapped, Sea Salt Wrapped, Golden Turmeric Wrapped, and Toasted Coconut Roasted. Karma makes two additional flavors, which I did not sample, Peri-Peri Roasted and Lime Twist Wrapped.

My favorites are cinnamon, which comes wrapped, and matcha, which is roasted. 

Unlike other cashews, Karma’s are not overly salty. The unique mouthfeel was appealing: a little crunch, covered entirely by a flavor-layer coating that transforms the cashews into novel colors, which did not stain my fingers. 

Pure and Natural Ingredients 

The first ingredient in every package of Karma nuts, irrespective of the variety, is always cashews. Other natural ingredients include natural cane sugar, organic rice syrup, sea salt, coconut flakes, and natural flavors, such as cardamom, chili powder, vanilla, and cinnamon extracts, and cocoa powder.

Karma nuts can be purchased online or you can use the locator to find a local store.

Karma has elevated the cashew from being a trail-mix ingredient to a mature crowd-pleaser, designed for traveling and elegant enough for your Shabbos table.