A small, acidic green citrus fruit used across Latin American, Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern cooking to season, marinate and, in the case of ceviche, cure raw fish and shellfish through the acid's effect on protein.
Facts
Earliest Documented Use, From (Year)Sourced to the subject's own accountMarks the Austronesian dispersal of the lime out of Southeast Asia (circa 3000 to 1500 BCE), not the original domestication date, which the source does not give. Earliest Documented Use, To (Year)Sourced to the subject's own accountClosing bound of the same Austronesian-dispersal date range; the fruit reached the Middle East and Mediterranean separately by about 1200 BCE. Origin RegionSourced to the subject's own accountTropical Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia and South China, from which limes spread by human migration and trade. 1 Connections
Used By
Source The Oxford Companion to FoodAlan Davidson
Pho, Dishes Lime is traditionally served as a wedge for the diner to add individually, kept out of the broth itself so it does not cloud it.
Source What Pho Can Teach Us About the History of Vietnam (National Geographic)Ryley Graham
Source The Oxford Companion to FoodAlan Davidson
Source A Taste of Vietnam, from Hearty Sour Broths to Fragrantly Spiced Street Food (National Geographic)Thuy Diem Pham
Sources
1. Lime (Wikipedia)
WikipediaHistory sectionQuote, History section
Limes reached Micronesia and Polynesia through the Austronesian expansion (c. 3000-1500 BCE), and later the Middle East and Mediterranean through the spice trade by at least 1200 BCE.
The Oxford Companion to Food
Alan Davidson, Oxford University Press, 2014entry: Lime
lime Citrus aurantifolia, the archetypal species, the one which originated in Malaysia
- Used By: Tom Yum
- Used By: Ceviche
A Taste of Vietnam, from Hearty Sour Broths to Fragrantly Spiced Street Food (National Geographic)
Thuy Diem Pham, National Geographic, 2023Used By: Vietnamese CuisineView the Source What Pho Can Teach Us About the History of Vietnam (National Geographic)
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