Fruit of a legume, now cultivated in Asia, Africa, and the United States, whose pod contains one or more seeds. Peanuts, also called groundnut or goober, are eaten as a fruit and as an accompaniment to an aperitif. They are also used to prepare sauces and a particular type of butter.

Peanuts are bought especially for the end of the year holidays, like all dried fruit. Their cultivation in Italy and in the rest of Europe has been abandoned, therefore all the peanuts on the Italian market are imported: especially from Egypt, Israel, and Texas (USA) those with shells; from Argentina, in the region of Cordoba, those already shelled and peeled.

Before being put on the market, the peanuts in the shell are toasted at a temperature of about 320°F to eliminate all traces of humidity and give them the typical golden color. The shelled peanuts, on the other hand, are fried, usually in palm oil, at about 300°, possibly salted or sent to other processes (toasting, covering with chocolate, glazing, etc.). Due to the high oil content, peanuts are used by industry to produce oil, very suitable for frying, and butter.