Brachot

My friend and I were eating cashew nuts. We did not know whether they were from the ground or the trees. I made a Shehakol on it and she took a guess and made a H’adamah. We found out later they grow on trees and she should have made a H’aitz. She said I was still in the wrong since I should not have made a Shehakol L’chatchilah. Who is right? Thanks a lot!

If you have a question as to what Bracha to make over a type of food, you should put off eating the food until you find the answer- either by consulting a rabbi or, in some cases, by looking in an encyclopedia (Mishna Berura 202 84). If circumstances are such that you have no way of checking, if you are certain that the correct Bracha is either "Adama" or "Eitz"- you should say "Adama". You say "Shehakol" only if there is no possibility of learning what the correct Bracha is and it is possible that the correct Bracha is "Shehakol" (Mishna Berura 202 84- 86).