Black lime
Encyclopedia
Black Lime is a spice
used in Middle Eastern
dishes. It is made by boiling fresh lime
in salt
water and sun drying until the insides turn black. The outside color varies from tan to black. It is sold whole or ground.
or meat
dishes. They are pierced, peeled or crushed before adding them to the dish. After cooking they become softer and edible. They can also be powdered and added to rice dishes. Powdered black lime is also used as an ingredient in Gulf
-style baharat
(a spice mix
ture which is also called kabsa or kebsa). It is a traditional ingredient of Arabic cooking and also Persian
.
y like a lime but they also taste somewhat smoky and lack the sweetness of fresh limes. Because they are preserved they also have a slightly bitter, ferment
ed flavor, but the bitter accents are mainly concentrated in the lime's outer skin.
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...
used in Middle Eastern
Middle Eastern cuisine
Middle-Eastern cuisine, West Asian cuisine, or in some place in the United States, Persian-Mediterranean cuisine is the cuisine of the various countries and peoples of the Middle East . The cuisine of the region is diverse while having a degree of homogeneity...
dishes. It is made by boiling fresh lime
Lime (fruit)
Lime is a term referring to a number of different citrus fruits, both species and hybrids, which are typically round, green to yellow in color, 3–6 cm in diameter, and containing sour and acidic pulp. Limes are a good source of vitamin C. Limes are often used to accent the flavors of foods and...
in salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
water and sun drying until the insides turn black. The outside color varies from tan to black. It is sold whole or ground.
Uses
Black limes are usually used in legume, seafoodSeafood
Seafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
or meat
Meat
Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...
dishes. They are pierced, peeled or crushed before adding them to the dish. After cooking they become softer and edible. They can also be powdered and added to rice dishes. Powdered black lime is also used as an ingredient in Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
-style baharat
Baharat
Bahārāt is a spice mixture or blend used in Arab cuisine, especially in the Mashriq area, as well as in Turkish and Iranian cuisine. Bahārāt is the Arabic word for 'spices'...
(a spice mix
Spice mix
Spice mixes are blended spices or herbs. When a certain combination of herbs or spices is called for in many different recipes , it is convenient to blend these ingredients beforehand...
ture which is also called kabsa or kebsa). It is a traditional ingredient of Arabic cooking and also Persian
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
.
Flavor
Black limes are strongly flavored. They taste sour and citrusCitrus
Citrus is a common term and genus of flowering plants in the rue family, Rutaceae. Citrus is believed to have originated in the part of Southeast Asia bordered by Northeastern India, Myanmar and the Yunnan province of China...
y like a lime but they also taste somewhat smoky and lack the sweetness of fresh limes. Because they are preserved they also have a slightly bitter, ferment
Fermentation (food)
Fermentation in food processing typically is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohols and carbon dioxide or organic acids using yeasts, bacteria, or a combination thereof, under anaerobic conditions. Fermentation in simple terms is the chemical conversion of sugars into ethanol...
ed flavor, but the bitter accents are mainly concentrated in the lime's outer skin.