The macadamia tree is native to Australia. There are multiple species of the tree, although not all of these are edible. Since its discovery in Australia, the macadamia has been transplanted to other countries, although Australia was still the world's largest producer of macadamia nuts until 2012, when it was passed by South Africa, with a substantial proportion of the world's market. The macadamia nut crop is a commercially important one, for the three commercial species, but only two of these three can be consumed raw. The remainder are either inedible, or poisonous. The tree is named after the Scottish-Australian chemist, medical teacher and politician John Macadam, although they were named by Ferdinand von Mueller, a German-Australian botanist.
The seeds of the macadamia tree, which are known as macadamia nuts (this is yet another nut that isn't a nut in the botanical sense, only in the culinary) are, in the edible species, high in fat and low in protein. The amount of monounsaturated fats is the highest of any seed. Nutritionally, they are less valuable than other, similar, seeds, such as cashews and almonds, although they do still have useful nutrients in them. The macadamia nut is also toxic to dogs. Some research has shown a correlation between eating the macadamia nut and a lowering of total and LDL cholesterol levels.
The macadamia is eaten like many snack nuts, such as raw, salted or covered in chocolate, but they can also be used in recipes.
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