Pine nuts – properties, nutritional value, and where to buy them?

Do you like nuts and want to easily incorporate them into your diet? Have you learned about the most popular types and want to try some of the less popular varieties? Discover pine nuts and find out how many nutrients they contain and where you can buy them.

Pine nuts – also known as pignoli or pine nuts – are edible seeds from pine trees (although not all species). In our region, they grow in the cones of the stone pine – Pinus pinea – and, like other nuts, are valued for their health benefits and positive effects on the human body.

 

Table of Contents:

Pine Nuts – Characteristics and Properties

What Nutrients Do Pine Nuts Contain?

Where to Buy Pine Nuts?

A Brief Guide to Pine Nuts – Summary

 

Pine Nuts – Characteristics and Properties

 

Pignoli are small seeds with a slightly buttery taste. They are high in fat (68.4 g per 100 g) and, consequently, calories (673 kcal per 100 g). However, they are not the highest in this regard – pecans and macadamia nuts contain more fat.

 

Importantly, as research by Joan Sabaté, Michelle Wien, and others shows, nuts contain no cholesterol. Although it is worth paying attention to their calorie content and limiting consumption to about one handful of nuts per day, it is also important to remember the beneficial effects of healthy fats on the human body.

 

In the case of pine nuts, it is particularly noteworthy that they contain a large amount of unsaturated fatty acids. They also contain sterols and phenolic compounds that help lower blood cholesterol levels, prevent the development of coronary heart disease, and exhibit antioxidant properties. Antioxidants, in turn, help protect the body against viruses and bacteria and counteract the proliferation of free radicals.

 

Research has shown that pine nuts also have a beneficial effect on appetite suppression, which is excellent news for people trying to maintain or lose weight and struggling with dietary issues. Other studies have shown that pine nuts can lower fasting blood glucose levels and may be a potential dietary supplement for the treatment and prevention of hyperglycemia, as well as improve oxidative stress markers in serum and the liver, which in turn indicates their antidiabetic properties.

 

As you can see – incorporating pine nuts into your diet may benefit not only the heart, as is commonly believed – because their health potential is much broader.

 

What Nutrients Do Pine Nuts Contain?

 

In addition to containing the previously mentioned unsaturated fatty acids, pine nuts also contain a number of other nutrients. What specific macronutrients and nutrients do pine nuts contain? Here is a detailed list (per 100 g):

 

·      Protein: 13.7 g

·      Dietary fiber: 3.7 g

·      Fat: 68.37 g

·      Water: 2.28 g

·      Carbohydrates: 13.08 g

·      Simple sugars: 3.59 g

·      Calcium: 16 mg

·      Iron: 5.53 mg

·      Magnesium: 251 mg

·      Phosphorus: 575 mg

·      Potassium: 597 mg

·      Zinc: 6.45 mg

·      Sodium: 2 mg

·      Copper: 1.32 mg

·      Manganese: 8.8 mg

 

·      Vitamin a: 1 µg

·      Vitamin C: 0.8 mg

·      Vitamin B1 (thiamine): 0.36 mg

·      Vitamin B2 (riboflavin): 0.23 mg

·      Vitamin B3 (niacin): 4.39 mg

·      Vitamin B5: 0.31 mg

·      Vitamin B6: 0.09 mg

·      Vitamin E: 6.1 mg

·      Vitamin K: 53.9 µg

·      Folate: 34 µg

 

·      Saturated fatty acids (SFA): 14.7 g

·      Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA): 14.8 g

·      Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA): 25.5 g

·      Isoleucine: 542 mg

·      Leucine: 991 mg

·      Lysine: 540 mg

·      Methionine + Cysteine: 548 mg

·      Phenylalanine + Tyrosine: 1033 mg

·      Threonine: 370 mg

·      Tryptophan: 107 mg

·      Valine: 687 mg

 

It is particularly noteworthy that pine nuts contain higher levels of iron, vitamin B3, magnesium, vitamin B2, and phosphorus than most nuts, and exceptionally high levels of vitamin K, manganese, and zinc – one of the most important minerals in the human body

 

If calculated per serving or per handful (30 g) of pine nuts, the values for several key parameters are as follows:

 

·      202 kcal

·      20.5 g fat

·      4.1 g protein

·      3.9 g carbohydrates

·      1.1 g fiber

·      4.8 mg calcium

·      36.3 mg magnesium

 

It is worth keeping this in mind when deciding to incorporate pine nuts into your diet.

 

Where to Buy Pine Nuts?

 

Pine nuts can be eaten raw or toasted, roasted, or salted. They have a soft, creamy texture and a pleasantly buttery taste.

 

However, you may be wondering where you can buy pine nuts. They are available by weight or packaged – not only in popular health food stores, but increasingly also in hypermarkets, discount stores, and smaller grocery stores. Regardless of which option you choose, you can successfully use pignoli as an addition to soups and salads, a main ingredient in pesto, a base for nut butter for sandwiches and baked goods, a topping for meat and vegetable casseroles, and an ideal snack on their own. You can also find roasted pine nuts in the “Crunchy Salad” mix – available both in-store and online.

 

Fun fact: research on the exogenous amino acid content of pine nuts has shown that chicken, cheese, and eggs are the ideal supplements to complete their amino acid profile.

 

A Brief Guide to Pine Nuts – Summary

 As you now know, pine nuts – although technically seeds rather than “true” nuts – are a very valuable addition to a daily diet. Although they are high in fat and calories, you should still pay as much attention to them in this regard as you would to other nuts. This means consuming them in moderation (one handful per day is recommended).

 

Health benefits – a positive effect on heart and brain function, support in regulating blood sugar and cholesterol levels, a link to weight management – and a number of other properties make nuts in general – including pignoli – a healthy, nutritious, and beneficial addition to the daily human diet.

 

Now that you have learned about the properties and nutrients of pine nuts and where you can buy pine nuts, there is no reason they shouldn’t become a permanent fixture in your kitchen. Discover that the world of nuts is incredibly rich and has much more to offer than a few of the most common varieties.

 

 

 

Sources:

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Pettenella D. et al., Pine Nuts: A Review of Recent Sanitary Conditions and Market Development, [in:] Forests 2017, 8(10), 367.

Sabate J., Wien M.: Nuts, blood lipids and cardiovascular disease. Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2010, 19(1), 131-136.

Ros, E.; Mataix, J. Fatty acid composition of nuts–implications for cardiovascular health. Br. J. Nutr. 2006, 96, S29–S35.

Ryan, E.; Galvin, K.; O’connor, T.; Maguire, A.; O’brien, N. Fatty acid profile, tocopherol, squalene and phytosterol content of brazil, pecan, pine, pistachio and cashew nuts. Int. J. Food Sci. Nutr. 2006, 57, 219–228.

Ciemniewska-Żytkiewicz H., Krygier K., Bryś J.: Nutritional value of nuts and their

importance in the diet, [in:] Advances in Food Processing Technology, no. 1/2014, 90-96.

Goluch Z.; Haraf G., Lis S.: The importance of nuts in the human diet [in:] Engineering Sciences and Technologies. Scientific Papers of the University of Economics in Wrocław, 2019, volume 4(35).

Hosseini, S. A., Vali, M., Haghighi-Zade, M. H., Siahpoosh, A., & Malihi, R. (2020). The Effect of Chilgoza Pine Nut (Pinus gerardiana Wall.) on Blood Glucose and Oxidative Stress in Diabetic Rats. Diabetes, metabolic syndrome and obesity: targets and therapy, 13, 2399–2408.