Cajuína, the clarified cashew nectar
A pressed cashew apple juice, clarified and heated until it becomes clear and golden, non-alcoholic, both sweet and slightly tart. Drunk cold, like a water of light, in homage to friends and the lands of the Northeast.
A pressed cashew apple juice, clarified and heated until it becomes clear and golden, non-alcoholic, both sweet and slightly tart. Drunk cold, like a water of light, in homage to friends and the lands of the Northeast.
Cajuína cristalina em Iracema… I wrote that for Torquato, my friend gone too soon, and for this land of the Northeast that smells of ripe cashew. The cashew apple is pressed, clarified, and this cloudy juice becomes transparent, golden, almost unreal — like a memory finally soothed. Drink it cold, without haste: it's sweet, a little sharp at the back, exactly like saudade. It's not just a drink, it's a liquid song.
- •Ripe cashew apples — a large basket (source fruit of the juice)
Cajuína, the clarified cashew nectar
A pressed cashew apple juice, clarified and heated until it becomes clear and golden, non-alcoholic, both sweet and slightly tart. Drunk cold, like a water of light, in homage to friends and the lands of the Northeast.
Why this dish? Caetano immortalized this drink in his song 'Cajuína' (1979), written after the death of poet Torquato Neto, his friend from Piauí. The clarified cashew juice, amber-golden, became for him a symbol of tenderness and memory of the Northeast.
Cajuína cristalina em Iracema… I wrote that for Torquato, my friend gone too soon, and for this land of the Northeast that smells of ripe cashew. The cashew apple is pressed, clarified, and this cloudy juice becomes transparent, golden, almost unreal — like a memory finally soothed. Drink it cold, without haste: it's sweet, a little sharp at the back, exactly like saudade. It's not just a drink, it's a liquid song.
Ingredients (period version)
- Ripe cashew apples — a large basket (source fruit of the juice)
Ingredients
- Cashew apple juice (fresh or bottled) — 1 L (base of the drink)
- Sugar — to taste depending on fruit's acidity (optional) (balance)
Method
- Press the cashew apples to extract the juice (without the nuts, which are processed separately).
- Let the juice rest so that particles settle, then filter delicately to clarify.
- Gently heat the clarified juice without boiling vigorously, skimming, until it becomes clear and amber.
- Let cool, bottle and serve well chilled.
- (Quick version: start with store-bought cashew juice, filter it, then serve over ice.)
How it was made : Cajuína is a specialty of Piauí and the Northeast, born from the abundance of the cashew tree (anacardier), which yields both the nut and the fleshy 'apple'. The artisanal clarification, passed down from family to family, produces this golden non-alcoholic nectar, served during visits and reunions.
The contemporary twist : Served over crushed ice with a twist of lime peel, as a nod to tropical freshness and the song that made it famous.
Caetano Veloso · Charactorium
