Shea Butter Tree (Vitellaria paradoxa)

Family: Sapotaceae | Edibility: Choice Edible (4/5)

Vitellaria paradoxa, or commonly known as Shea Butter Tree is a deciduous tree with a spreading crown and grows about 25 m in height. It is indigenous to Africa and is the sole species in the Vitellaria genus. Its bark is corky. The leaves are oblong and clustered at the ends of branches. The flowers are white and clustered at the ends of shoots. The fruits are flat and round containing up to four shiny brown seeds.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Fruit, Nuts/Seeds, Flowers, Sap/Syrup, Bark/Inner Bark

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Fall, Late Summer, Spring, Winter

Flavor & Culinary Uses

tastes bitter. — The kernel of the seed (often incorrectly called 'nut') contains a vegetable fat known as shea butter.; Shea butter from fresh seeds is white, odourless and of high quality, while that from stale seeds is dark, and tastes bitter.; High quality shea butter is consumed throughout West Africa as a cooking fat.; Refined fat has been marketed as margarine and baking fat.

Habitat & North American Range

Open sites and parkland savannah. A characteristic of the West African savannah, though it is also present in the southern Sahel. (Zone 4, Zone 5, Zone 6, Zone 7, Zone 8)