ABSTRACT
This chapter provides information on the uses, folk medicine, chemistry, germplasm, distribution, ecology, cultivation, harvesting, yields, energy, and biotic factors of Java-Almond. Seeds are highly regarded in Melanesia as a food, a delicacy, and in pastries as a substitute for almonds. Mature fruits, dried over fires, are an important stored food in the Solomon Islands. Nuts are ground and added to grated taro and coconut cream. An emulsion of seeds is used in baby-foods. Oil from the seeds is used as a substitute for coconut oil for cooking and illumination. Seeds contain 3.8% moisture, 19.6% protein, 72.8% fat, and 3.8% ash. The oil contains 10.2% stearic, 30.5% palmitic, 39.9% oleic, 18.7% linoleic, and 0.7% linolenic acids. Oil derived from the resin is also employed in soap and cosmetics. Old stems are used as fuel and when burning lime.
