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Lime
Citrus aurantiifolia · Citrus
2 varieties40 pairings
The lime is a small, round, intensely green citrus fruit, prized for a juice that is sharper, more aromatic and more bitter than lemon. Thin-skinned and seedy, it carries a high-toned, almost piney perfume in its oil-rich peel. From the daiquiri and the margarita to ceviche, Thai curries and key lime pie, it is one of the kitchen's essential sources of bright, fragrant acidity.
Picking a good onedrag
Deep green, heavy, oil-slickYellow, light, papery
Shop greenThe all-rounder: wedges, juice, curries, marinades.Everyday best
SkinGreen with a yellow blush at one end
WeightHeavy, but hard right through
Stem scarScar dry, a shade sunken
Scratched peelFragrant when rubbed, softer edge
What to look for, from deep green, heavy, oil-slick to yellow, light, papery.
What one gives you
84%
Usable yield
67 g · peel and seeds off
80 g
Typical weight
one specimen
55%
Juice yield
550 ml a kilo
Keeping ittap a band
Tropical fruit: below about 8 C the peel pits and goes tan. A cold fridge still buys weeks, but 10 C keeps the skin whole.
Humidity
90–95%
That thin skin loses water fast - left bare on a counter a lime turns light, hard-shelled and stingy inside a week.
Airflow
Gentle, not sealed
A loose or perforated bag, never sealed: shut tight the stem end sweats and green mould takes the fruit in days.
Yellows beside apples and bananas
It gives off almost none itself, but ethylene from apples and bananas strips the green out of the peel and hurries decay.