Never Worry About Hazelnut Vs Filbert Vs Cobnut Vs Macadamia With These Tips

From time to time, you may have confused hazelnuts with similar nuts such as filbert, macadamia, and cobnut. Or you have heard people call hazelnuts by these other names, and wondered would hazelnuts by those other names taste as sweet? 

Although they are identical in shape and buttery texture, they are quite different in properties. Hazelnuts, filberts, and cobnuts are all the fruits of the hazel trees family and originated in Asia, while macadamias aren’t actual nuts and are classified as seeds. 

This article compares and contrasts these four yummy fruits. In the first part, we discuss hazelnuts vs macadamias. The second part focuses on hazelnuts vs filbert vs cobnuts. It would help if you read everything you need to know about hazelnuts first.

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Hazelnuts vs macadamias

Physical Appearance

Physical Appearance	Hazelnuts	Macadamias
Shape and size	Oval or round shape and grow to a maximum size of 15 to 20 mm in length and 10 to 15 in diameter.	Smooth hard shells containing a white kernel. The mature seed has a round shape with external diameters of 25 to 40 mm.
Color	Brown shells, while the kernels have a thin edible peel of dark brown color and the cream is light in color, with a hollow center.	Dark green cover that turns brown after being picked from the tree. The macadamia kernel is elegant off-white with hints of pink and orange.

Flavor Comparison

• Hazelnuts are sweet, buttery, and crunchy, they have an advantage over other nuts because they can stand up in recipes with many high-taste ingredients such as chocolate. The characteristic flavor of hazelnuts is nutty, toasted, with slight notes of musty and earthy.
• Macadamias are creamy and rich in fat, they almost taste like the inside of a fresh coconut. They have a subtle, rich buttery flavor with a texture that is more creamy than crispy! This is why they can be a great flavor for adding to coffees and beverages.

Nutritional Value

Macadamias contain more calories and saturated fats and fewer vitamins and minerals than hazelnuts. Figure 2 compares the nutritional value of hazelnuts vs macadamias.

Cultivation

• Macadamias are the only plant food native to Australia; they are also commercially cultivated in Sulawesi, Indonesia. The two varieties that are bred for consumption are Macadamia tetraphylla and Macadamia integrifolia; the other macadamia varieties have toxic ingredients that make them inedible for humans.
• Hazelnuts are commercially cultivated in Italy, Oregon, and Washington, with the most significant worldwide producer being Turkey. There are more than 20 varieties of hazelnut, each with its own unique shape and flavor.

Uses and Applications

Hazelnuts and macadamias can both be eaten raw or cooked. The famous chocolate spread, Nutella, is made with processed hazelnuts, while macadamia nuts are an ingredient used in bakery and confectionery or as a substitute for chopped hazelnuts in cookies or bread.

Macadamia oil is produced from cold-pressed macadamias and includes high levels of palmitoleic oil, which makes it an excellent ingredient for cosmetic and skincare products such as creams and moisturizers.

That’s it, guys. If you have any questions about hazelnuts, you can ask us by email or live chat.

Which One You Prefer for Diets

Hazelnuts are better for low calories and low fats diets. Macadamias are more suitable for low-carb diets such as the Keto diet and paleo diet. They are also better in the case of low glycemic diets.

Hazelnuts vs Filberts vs Cobnuts

Botanical Background

Most botanists think that the layman’s term for the Corylaceae family of plants is the Hazel family. All trees or shrubs belonging to the Corylus species are members of the Hazel tree family. So, it makes sense that their nuts are called hazelnuts.

It is also said that the name “Hazel” is derived from ‘Haesel,’ an ancient Anglo-Saxon word for Hood, which describes the appearance of the nutshells.

Who Came Up With Filberts

In some regions, hazelnuts were called filberts because of the hairy, bearded husks that cover their shells. In Germany — where hazelnut trees are commonly cultivated — the word “Vollbart” means “full beard.” Another explanation is that filberts are named for the French monk St. Philibert, whose feast day happens on August 22.

In the early 19th century, French-Canadian immigrants in Oregon’s Willamette Valley noticed fresh hazelnuts ripening on the feast day, for France’s St. Philibert is held on Aug. 20. They dubbed them “Philibert’s,” and eventually, “filberts.”

Although the names hazelnut and filbert are used interchangeably, filbert typically indicates the commercially cultivated crops of hazelnuts. Filberts are actually a subsection of “Cobnuts,” to be identified as a Filbert the husk must surround the nut.

What Are Cobnuts?

This is what we know about cobnuts, summarized in a few highlights: 

• Cobnuts are usually larger, longer, and more ovoid than wild hazelnuts. 
• Cobnuts are hazelnuts cultivated for eating and are sold fresh rather than dried. The most popular hazelnut variety, Lambert’s Filbert, is commonly recognized as a Kentish Cobnut. 
• The name “cobnut” comes from a 15th-century children’s game. Two kids would each tie a hazelnut to a string and take turns trying to hit the other’s nut, or “cob.”
• Around 1830, a group of British horticulturists cultivated a hazelnut variety called ‘Kentish Cob.’ Reliable harvests of these delicious nuts have made ‘Kentish Cob’ very famous among home gardeners.

Hazelnut vs Filbert Differences 

 Some may say that filberts are longer and thinner than others, and non-filberts are shorter and rounder. This is sometimes accurate but is often based on species and cultivars.

What drives this whole naming system off is that people have local preferences for what they call the nut from hazel species. For example, if you are in eastern North America, you may call them either filberts or hazelnuts depending on your family’s antiquity. If you are in the Pacific Northwest, the older generation may call them filberts and the younger generation remembers them as hazelnuts thanks to marketing rising in 1981. If you live in Europe or England, you probably call them filberts unless you are speaking about cobnuts. If you live in Turkey, you would call them hazelnuts. And of course, in Asia, the local names are entirely different

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Conclusion

Although similar, hazelnuts vs macadamias are different from each other and from other similar fruits like hazelnuts vs filberts vs cobnuts. They all have different characteristics with different sizes, appearances, and nutrients.
Is there any other fruit in your area similar to hazelnut? What is it called? Tell us about it in the comment section.

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