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Quick answer
Iron rich dry fruits is a search that usually starts at home, after a blood test or a grandmother’s advice. The honest answer is that anjeer, munakka, apricots and pista do carry useful iron, though less than the forwarded messages suggest. Here are plain figures per 100 g, a daily handful that makes sense, and what to buy.
How much iron is actually in dry fruits?
The figures below are approximate, taken from standard food composition tables such as USDA FoodData Central and the Indian Food Composition Tables. Different lots, varieties and labs give slightly different numbers, so read them as a guide to which fruit carries more, not as exact doses.
| Dry fruit | Desi name | Iron per 100 g (approx.) | A sensible daily portion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pistachio kernels | Pista | about 3.9 mg | 20 to 25 kernels |
| Dried apricots | Khubani | about 2.7 mg | 3 to 4 pieces |
| Dried figs | Anjeer | about 2.0 mg | 2 pieces, soaked |
| Black raisins, large | Munakka, kali dakh | about 1.8 to 2 mg | 8 to 10, soaked |
| Dates | Khajur | about 0.9 to 1 mg | 2 to 3 dates |
For context, an adult’s daily need runs well above what any single handful supplies; Indian guidelines put it in the high teens of milligrams for adult women. Dry fruits contribute to that total alongside dal, green leafy vegetables, bajra and jaggery. They are not a replacement for a meal plan, and if you have been told you are anaemic, the plan should come from your doctor.
Why does anjeer get talked about the most?
Partly habit, partly convenience. Two soaked anjeer in the morning are easy to eat every day, they bring fibre and a little calcium along with the iron, and the soaking water is drunk too. Pista carries more iron per 100 g, but people eat far fewer grams of it.
Our Jumbo Anjeer is the large fig, and large figs soak evenly overnight. Anjeer works out to at today's shop rate today across our lots. What separates a good fig from a dry, leathery one is covered in how to buy anjeer, and the soaking habit itself in what is in a soaked anjeer.
What does a daily handful look like?
A simple plan many families follow, kept small enough to stay a habit:
- At night, soak 2 anjeer and 8 munakka in a small bowl of water.
- In the morning, eat them with the water, before or with breakfast.
- Mid-morning or with evening tea, 3 or 4 dried apricots, or 2 khajur.
- A small fistful of pista kernels, about 20, a few times a week.
- Have something with vitamin C nearby, such as an orange, amla or a squeeze of lemon on your poha. Plant iron is absorbed better alongside it, which is plain nutrition rather than a promise.
- Keep tea and coffee a little away from the handful, as they reduce how much plant iron the body takes up.
That handful adds roughly 3 to 4 mg of iron on most days, along with a fair amount of natural sugar, so diabetic readers should check portions with their doctor first.
Is munakka the same as kishmish?
No. Munakka is the large, seeded or deseeded dark raisin, sticky and rich; kishmish is the small golden seedless one. Their iron figures are close, but munakka is the one traditionally soaked overnight, and it holds up better to soaking. Munakka comes to at today's shop rate today. The three names are untangled properly in kishmish, munakka and dakh.
What should go in the monthly order?
For one adult following the plan above, a month needs roughly 500 g of anjeer, 250 g of munakka, 250 g of apricots or khajur, and 250 g of pista kernels. For two people, double the anjeer and munakka and keep the pista the same, as it is eaten only a few times a week.
- Jumbo Anjeer for the morning soak.
- Munakka Dakh Jumbo (Abjosh), the large one, for soaking alongside.
- Khajur, today at at today's shop rate, for the mid-morning gap.
- Pista Kernels, shelled so the portion is easy to count, at at today's shop rate today.
We dispatch within three working days of an order and most cities receive it two to six days after, across Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune and the rest; the Hyderabad page has the city details. Our orders start at ₹1,000 and every order ships free, which a month’s set above comfortably reaches.
To shop the list, with munakka, kali dakh, anjeer, khubani, aliv and til in one place and a month’s order worked out, see dry fruits rich in iron.
Questions people ask
Which dry fruit has the most iron?
Among the common ones, pista and dried apricots carry the most per 100 g, then anjeer and munakka. Among nuts and seeds, cashew and pumpkin seeds carry more still.
Should anjeer and munakka be soaked?
Soaking does not add iron, but it makes both softer, easier to digest and easier to eat every day. Most households soak them overnight and drink the water.
Can children eat this handful?
A smaller one, yes: one anjeer and four or five munakka, chopped for younger children. Check with your paediatrician if the child has a diagnosed deficiency.
Are dried apricots with a bright orange colour better?
Bright orange apricots are usually treated with sulphur to keep the colour; darker brown ones are unsulphured. The iron is similar; the choice is about taste and preference.
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Written at our counter, where these questions get asked every week.
