The Best Cashew Pairings: Coffee, Tea and Snack-Time Ideas

A good snack pairing is about contrast and balance. Cashews are rich, buttery and a little sweet, so they go well with drinks that are bitter, sharp or hot, because the drink cleans your palate between bites and the cashews soften the edge of the drink. Our range gives you plenty of choice: plain and lightly salted cashews for gentle drinks, and bolder dark-roasted or spicy ones for strong flavours.

These are suggestions, not rules. Taste varies from person to person, so use them as a starting point.

Burnt Cashew Nut is roasted dark, until the surface chars in places, so it has a bold, smoky taste with a little bitterness at the edge. That echoes the roasted flavour of black coffee, and the buttery inside of the cashew softens the bitterness. It also works with a short, strong coffee or an espresso. If you take milk in your coffee, a plainer cashew may suit it better. Read more about this cashew in what are burnt cashews?.

Our Classic Roasted Salt & Pepper Cashews are finished with a little sea salt and pepper, so they have a savoury edge that is not too strong. They are a good partner for black tea, and for the milk tea many Sri Lankans drink in the afternoon. The salt sets off the sweetness of a milky, sugared cup. This is also the easy choice for guests, because most people like them.

Oven Roasted Cashew is golden, crunchy and buttery, with no seasoning and no added oil, so it leaves your drink as the star. It is a good choice with a cup of milk tea, a milky coffee, or a glass of warm milk, and a good choice if you are serving someone who prefers mild flavours.

Garlic Cashew has a savoury, slightly tangy seasoning with no chilli heat. It suits a cold drink better than a hot one: fresh lime juice, iced tea, or a glass of cold water. The garlic flavour can clash with delicate teas, so keep it for savoury snack times.

Deviled Cashew has chilli, curry leaves and aromatic spices, and the heat is the point. Pair it with something cooling that calms the spice: a cold drink, a glass of lime juice, or a cup of plain yoghurt-based lassi. If you like a hot drink with spicy food, a strong, sweet milk tea can work. Avoid pairing it with a very delicate coffee or tea, because the spice will overpower it.

For a small gathering, put out three small bowls: Oven Roasted or Salt & Pepper for everyone, one flavoured cashew such as Garlic or Deviled for those who like a kick, and a bowl of Burnt for the adventurous. Add a bowl of fruit or dates to balance the richness. Serve at room temperature in small bowls rather than one big one, so the cashews stay crisp, and refill as needed. Our Cashew Taster Gift Box has seven flavours in 125g packs, which makes it a handy way to try them all.

Serve cashews in a small bowl and refill it, because they lose crunch when left open in the humid air. Keep the rest of the pack sealed, as in how to store roasted cashews. Offer a plain option for anyone who avoids spice or salt. And mention that the snacks contain cashews, because some guests have tree nut allergies, as we explain in tree nut allergy and cashews.

The best way to find your favourite pairing is to try a few. Pick a pack size and flavour from our shop, or read what cashews taste like to choose where to start. All of our cashews are 100% Sri Lankan whole nuts from Puttalam, roasted and packed to order.

Cashews are not only for drinks. A few cashews with a piece of ripe mango, a banana or a couple of dates make a balanced snack, with the sweetness of the fruit set against the richness of the nut. Plain or lightly salted cashews work best here, and chopped cashews over a bowl of curd with a drizzle of kithul treacle are a Sri Lankan favourite. Our cashew yoghurt bowl and breakfast ideas has more along these lines.

On a rainy afternoon, a pot of tea and a bowl of Salt & Pepper cashews is hard to beat. For a late-night work session, a strong coffee with a few Burnt cashews gives a bitter, smoky, crunchy kind of comfort. For an evening with friends, a mix of Garlic and Deviled cashews with a cold drink keeps the bowl moving. For a quiet moment, a handful of Oven Roasted cashews with a glass of warm milk is gentle and satisfying. Keep portions sensible, as in how many cashews to eat a day.