Limes
A small green citrus fruit providing juice or peel that is added to food dishes for a refreshing, tart flavor. It is the smallest of the citrus fruit family. The flavor of a lime is stronger and more tart than a lemon, but in most cases they are interchangeable in recipes. Limes are round or oval in shape, ranging from 1 to 2 inches in diameter, and most often have a green outer skin. The lime is a gourmet's delight although it is rarely consumed on the its own. Limes are second only to lemons in terms of importance as a flavoring agent for foods, drinks and other, non-edible, products for home and industrial use. The limes are picked while they are still green, before they are completely mature. When completely mature, the limes are more yellowish in color and they have lost their fresh tart flavor. The use of lime juice and lime zest to enhance the flavor of rice, potatoes, salads, and cooked vegetables will cut down the amount of salt you need to use, and eliminate the need for adding fat. Lime juice is excellent in marinades, beverages, salad dressings, guacamole, seafood and barbecue sauces, fish and meat stews, sorbets, jams, and let us not forget Key Lime pie. The flesh is greenish-yellow in color and is generally contUse a vegetable peeler or a grater to remove the zest for any of these purposes, and try to avoid getting too much of the bitter, white pith (the inner skin.) If you use a lot of julienne strips of citrus zest, there is a hand zester tool available at good cooking specialty stores. Because limes and other citrus products are usually sprayed with chemicals, it's important to wash and dry them well before using the peel.ained in 8 to 10 segments.
As in other citrus fruit, there is a layer of pith beneath the outer skin.A squeeze of lime has virtually no calories, and brings a delicious accent to foods and vegetables. Whether in soft drinks, cocktails (where would the caipirinha, gin and tonic, margarita, mojito, and tequila shot be without lime?) Key lime pie, made from the juice of the Key lime, is one of America’s favorite pies. Limes flourish best in the tropics. The top-five lime-producing countries are the United States, Mexico, Italy, Spain, and India. Most (more than 90%) of the Key limes increasingly found in American supermarkets are grown in Mexico and Central America; they are also grown in Texas and California, where they are known as Mexican or West Indian limes.The leaves of the kaffir lime are an important seasoning in Pacific Rim cuisine, as are dried limes in Persian cuisine. Limes are a popular ingredient in seafood and chicken dishes, desserts and marmalade. There are sweet and sour limes but the sweet limes are not readily available in the North America. There are several varieties of limes, which vary in size and shape. Some varieties contain seeds and some are seedless. They are very high in vitamin C and low in calories. You can easily substitute limes for lemons in any dish. We’ll limit the discussion to the two principal limes used in the U.S., the Persian or Tahitian lime, which is the principal supermarket lime, and the Key lime (Mexican lime).