I heard that back in the day (not sure when), pistachios were a bright red color. They would dye them and even your fingers would turn red! I have never seen red pistachios in my life so I guess they dont do that anymore.
So is this really true and why would they add artificial dye to an already delicious natural product? I love pistachios!! Was this in the US or somewhere else? Did they taste the same?
THANKS in advance!
2007-12-13 04:05:15 · 11 answers · asked by BLUE ORCHID 6 in Food & Drink ➔ Ethnic Cuisine
Yes, pistachios used to be sold with red dye.
Supposedly, the red dye was used to cover up blemishes and non-uniform shell coloration - mainly from foreign supplied pistachios (This is base upon the California Pistachio Board website).
Now that the pistachios are grown locally (in California) the quality has gone up. Also, there is the desire to have things unadulterated which reduced the demand for red pistachios.
I still see red pistachios in gas station mini-marts.
The taste seemed to be the same from what I remember.
2007-12-13 08:28:25 · answer #1 · answered by Dave C 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why Were Pistachios Red
2016-12-15 11:57:15 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why Were Pistachios Dyed Red
2016-09-30 22:01:54 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yep
Some places still have them, the original reason was because Pistachios sometimes get a red "edge" on them,so the companies would dye them to make them look more appealing to customers..
The grocery store I managed carried the regular and red, at Christmas time we added green colored ones. They tasted the same, just made a mess out of your fingers.
2007-12-13 09:13:51 · answer #4 · answered by Helpfulhannah 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, the did color them with red dye, and it was a pain in the *** to eat them as your fingers and lips would become red......they tasted the same, the dye didn't affect the flavor, but it was really difficult to find just the "natural" ones......I believe that the red dye was to make the pistachios more appealing visually, but I never understood why they had to be put though the dying process.....Enjoy!!!
Christopher
2007-12-13 04:13:59 · answer #5 · answered by ? 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes it's true, although only the shells took up the dye.. The idea was to make them look more interesting. They did taste the same. I don't remember the dye coming off on ones skin. This practice was world wide.
2007-12-13 04:18:55 · answer #6 · answered by Helpful person 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can find colored pistachios in clear packaging with beautiful designs in Iranian markets. They make a great hostess gift, and yes, they do taste the same.
2007-12-16 09:28:25 · answer #7 · answered by boogeywoogy 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
pistachios
2015-06-04 04:34:07 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yup...
your fingers would get all red...
Funny thing tho...now that you mention it I haven't seen red ones for awhile...
I guess I just haven't been paying attention...and I eat them all the time too.
2007-12-13 04:51:10 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
We used to get red and green ones for christmas up in michigan. and yes they tated the same.
2007-12-13 04:11:24 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋