Editing Date palm (section)

== Uses ==
{{Cookbook|Date}}

=== Fruits ===
Dry or soft dates are eaten out-of-hand, or may be pitted and stuffed with fillings such as [[almond]]s, [[walnut]]s, [[pecan]]s, candied [[Orange (fruit)|orange]] and [[lemon]] [[Peel (fruit)|peel]], [[tahini]], [[marzipan]] or [[cream cheese]]. Pitted dates are also referred to as ''stoned dates''. Partially dried pitted dates may be glazed with [[glucose syrup]] for use as a snack food. Dates can also be chopped and used in a range of sweet and savory dishes, from [[tajine]]s (tagines) in [[Morocco]] to [[pudding]]s, ''[[ka'ak]]'' (types of Arab cookies) and other dessert items. Date nut bread, a type of cake, is very popular in the United States, especially around holidays. Dates are also processed into cubes, paste called ''<nowiki/>'ajwa'', spread, [[Date honey|date syrup or "honey"]] called "dibs" or ''[[Rub (syrup)|rub]]'' in Libya, powder ([[date sugar]]), [[vinegar]] or [[alcoholic beverage|alcohol]]. Vinegar made from dates was a traditional product of the [[Middle East]].<ref>{{cite journal | doi = 10.1021/ie50319a016 | title = Vinegar from Dates | year = 1936 | last1 = Das | first1 = Bhagwan | last2 = Sarin | first2 = J. L. | journal = Industrial & Engineering Chemistry | volume = 28 | issue = 7 | pages = 814}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Y84UAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA78 | title = Studies in Ancient Technology | publisher = E.J. Brill | location = Netherlands | last1 = Forbes | first1 = Robert James | volume = 1 | year = 1971 | access-date = 20 June 2015 | archive-date = 17 March 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230317154434/https://books.google.com/books?id=Y84UAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA78 | url-status = live }}</ref> Recent innovations include [[chocolate]]-covered dates and products such as sparkling date juice, used in some Islamic countries as a non-alcoholic version of [[Champagne (wine)|champagne]], for special occasions and religious times such as [[Ramadan]]. When Muslims break fast in the [[iftar|evening meal of Ramadan]], it is traditional to eat a date first.

Reflecting the maritime trading heritage of [[British cuisine|Britain]], imported chopped dates are added to, or form the main basis of a variety of traditional dessert recipes including [[sticky toffee pudding]], [[Christmas pudding]] and [[date and walnut loaf]]. They are particularly available to eat whole at [[Christmas]] time. Dates are one of the ingredients of [[HP Sauce]], a popular British condiment.

In Southeast Spain (where a large date plantation exists including [[UNESCO]]-protected [[Palmeral of Elche]]) dates (usually pitted with fried almond) are served wrapped in [[bacon]] and shallow-fried. In Palestine date syrup, termed ''silan'', is used while cooking chicken and also for sweets and desserts, and as a honey substitute. Dates are one of the ingredients of ''[[jallab]]'', a Middle Eastern fruit syrup. In Pakistan, a viscous, thick syrup made from the ripe fruits is used as a coating for leather bags and pipes to prevent leaking.

==== Forks ====
[[File:Date forks in lizard stand.jpg|right|thumb|Antique date forks in rack]]
In the past, sticky dates were served using specialized small forks having two metal tines, called ''[[:nb:Gaffel#Gaffeltyper|daddelgaffel]]'' in Scandinavia.<ref>{{cite web |last1=dragonflywink |title=Jensen fork |url=https://www.smpub.com/ubb/Forum26/HTML/002730.html |website=Silver Salon Forums |publisher=SM Publications |access-date=19 April 2020 |archive-date=29 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200729044517/https://www.smpub.com/ubb/Forum26/HTML/002730.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Some designs were patented.<ref>{{cite book |title=Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office |date=1953 |publisher=US Patent Office |page=589 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D28bAQAAMAAJ&q=%22date+forks%22&pg=PA589 |access-date=6 October 2020 |archive-date=8 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408151121/https://books.google.com/books?id=D28bAQAAMAAJ&q=%22date+forks%22&pg=PA589 |url-status=live }}</ref> These have generally been replaced by an inexpensive pale-colored knobbled plastic fork that resembles a date branch, which is traditionally included with numerous brands of prepackaged trays of dates, though this practice has declined in response to increased use of resealable packaging and calls for fewer [[Disposable product|single-use plastics]].

=== Seeds ===
Date seeds are soaked and ground up for [[animal feed]]. Their oil is suitable for use in cosmetics and dermatological applications. The oil contains [[lauric acid]] (36%) and [[oleic acid]] (41%). Date palm seeds contain 0.56–5.4% lauric acid. They can also be processed chemically as a source of [[oxalic acid]]. Date seeds are also ground and used in the manner of [[coffee]] beans, or as an additive to coffee. Experimental studies have shown that feeding mice with the [[aqueous]] [[extract]] of date pits exhibit anti-[[genotoxic]] effects and reduce DNA damage induced by [[N-nitroso-N-methylurea]].<ref name="Diab KA">{{cite journal|last=Diab|first=K.A|author2=E. I. Aboul-Ela|title=In Vivo Comparative Studies on Antigenotoxicity of Date Palm (''Phoenix Dactylifera'' L.) Pits Extract Against DNA Damage Induced by N-Nitroso-N-methylurea in Mice|journal= Toxicology International|year=2012|volume=19|issue=3|pages=279–286|pmid=23293467|doi=10.4103/0971-6580.103669|doi-broken-date=27 April 2025 |pmc=3532774 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

=== Fruit clusters ===
Stripped fruit clusters are used as brooms. Recently, the floral stalks have been found to be of ornamental value in households.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Kiran | first1 = S | year = 2014 | title = Floral Stalk on Date Palm: A New Discovery | doi = 10.3329/ijarit.v4i2.22649 | journal = International Journal of Agricultural Research, Innovation and Technology| volume = 4 | issue = 2| pages = 53–54| doi-access = free }}</ref>

=== Sap ===
[[File:Sweet sap from date palm.JPG|thumb|right|upright|Sweet [[Plant sap|sap]] tapped from date palm in [[West Bengal]], [[India]]]]

Apart from ''P. dactylifera'', wild date palms such as ''[[Phoenix sylvestris]]'' and ''[[Phoenix reclinata]]'', depending on the region, can be also tapped for sap.

The consumption of raw date palm sap is one of the means by which the deadly [[Nipah virus]] spreads from bats to humans.<ref name="Goats & Soda">{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/01/31/1148681236/trying-to-crack-the-nipah-code-how-does-this-deadly-virus-spill-from-bats-to-hum|title=The Nipah virus has a kill rate of 70%. Bats carry it. But how does it jump to humans?|publisher=[[NPR]]|series=Goats and Soda|date=31 January 2023|access-date=16 September 2023|archive-date=27 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231227110939/https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/01/31/1148681236/trying-to-crack-the-nipah-code-how-does-this-deadly-virus-spill-from-bats-to-hum|url-status=live}}</ref> The virus can be [[Inactivated vaccine|inactivated]] by boiling the sap down to [[molasses]].<ref name="Goats & Soda" /> (In [[Malaysia]], by contrast, 
the vector was found to be [[factory farming]] of [[pigs]].)<ref name="Goats & Soda" />

=== Leaves ===
In North Africa, date palm leaves are commonly used for making huts. Mature leaves are also made into mats, screens, baskets, and fans. Processed leaves can be used for [[Thermal insulation|insulating board]]. Dried leaf [[petiole (botany)|petioles]] are a source of [[cellulose]] pulp, used for walking sticks, brooms, fishing floats, and fuel. Leaf sheaths are prized for their scent, and fibre from them is also used for rope, coarse cloth, and large hats.

Young date leaves are cooked and eaten as a vegetable, as is the terminal bud or heart, though its removal kills the palm. The finely ground seeds are mixed with [[flour]] to make bread in times of scarcity. The flowers of the date palm are also edible. Traditionally the female flowers are the most available for sale and weigh {{Convert|300|-|400|g|oz|frac=2}}. The flower buds are used in salad or ground with dried fish to make a [[condiment]] for bread.