Hello!
Today we will tell you about a rather unusual and rare fruit native to Eastern Australia.
We are talking about a plant of the genus Citrus, of the Rutic family - Finger lime.
The Australian finger lime got its name from its elongated shape. It is also called "fingerlime"
(from the English finger - "finger"). The most favorable conditions for the growth of
this plant are the climate of Australia and warm countries.
Australian Finger Lime is grown in Australia primarily for export to other countries. Abroad,
like other rare citrus fruits, this fruit is in great demand. Finger llamas appeared
on sale quite recently. Until the mid-90s of the 20th century, no one had ever seen
it on store shelves, and even now it can not be found in every store and supermarket. For
many, finger lime remains a completely unknown product to this day.
Nevertheless, this fruit has been known to local aborigines for several millennia. Native
to the subtropical Australian states of Queensland and New South Wales, it has long been cultivated
by indigenous people for both food and disease prevention. They applied the fruit topically
as an antiseptic. The crop was first recorded in 1858, but its
full potential, as already stated, as an ornamental and commercial plant was not recognized until
the mid-1990s. Today the demand for this edible fruit is driven by the restaurant trade and
is many times higher than the supply! Because of this, the cost of finger lime is
very high. Since it grows only in Australia, its price reaches two hundred and fifty dollars
per kilogram. Finger limes are rarely found in the wild these days due to deforestation
in the past. In the last decade, finger limes have become
so popular that special farms have even sprung up to grow these wonder fruits outside of
Australia. It began to be grown in France, Italy, Thailand and the state of California,
USA. Especially huge plantations of this plant,
rather unusual for the States, have developed in the suburbs of California, where the climate
is as close as possible to its natural habitat. This is what the Voice of America Internet
resource tells about the finger lime. This small finger lime fruit is a citrus crop
just harvested in Fresno California. It is a wild citrus fruit that grows in Australia.
Inside, it seems to consist of small eggs that easily explode on the tongue if you bite
it. Very unusual and tasty. Jim Shanley is the owner of the Finger Limes farm. And this,
if I'm not mistaken, is the first planting of finger limes in the United States. It takes
about 20 weeks for a juicy green fruit to emerge from a flower. In March, the first
lime buds break through. They bloom every two to three weeks until October. From June
to January, and the farmers are harvesting. The peel of the fruit is very similar to the
peel of an ordinary lime, but the inside of the finger fruit differs from the traditional
one both in appearance and taste. It's sour like lemon or lime. And some say the taste
is somewhat similar to grapefruit. Perhaps thanks to the oils in the peel. The oil of
this fruit is very aromatic. Finger lime and can be bought at local stores. They look too
weird. People use them as a side dish and decoration and add to everything, chicken,
fish. They put it in yogurt for breakfast, and thanks to the interest of the media, Americans
from all over the country now learn about the unusual fruit. Someone recorded a video
on Instagram, more than three million people watched it in a day. Tens of millions will
learn about the new lime. The unusual appearance and taste has attracted the attention of the
company Haze and Bran, which delivers kits for home cooking. Finger limes will now be
a regular feature in their recipes. Here, despite the large areas, procurement
companies cannot satisfy too many orders. Therefore, we can say that the commercial
future of this culture is very promising. We can only hope that this exotic fruit will
appear on the shelves of our supermarkets. Why is this exotic fruit so attractive? First
of all, the unusual shape and taste of the fruit. It differs from the usual citrus crops
in color, shape and internal content of the fruit. A distinctive feature of the plant
is its unusual oval-cylindrical fruits, the pulp of which is similar in structure to fish
roe. The elongated fruits themselves resemble fingers, hence the name "finger lime". Their
length is up to 12 cm, and their diameter is up to 3 cm. Weight is about 150 grams.
The skin of the fruit is thin, yellow, green, red, orange, purple, black, brown or burgundy.
The pulp is very juicy, its sweet and sour juice is very similar to traditional lime,
but a little tart and with an unusual resinous-coniferous shade. Overall, finger lime tastes like lemon,
but tastes slightly softer and slightly sweeter. The content of the fruit is divided into several
small, rounded compartments, which contain vacuoles filled with juice. These miniature
bags filled with refreshing juice are not glued together and visually the pulp is similar
to the caviar of large fish, therefore these fruits have secondary names - "caviar lime"
or "lime caviar". This structure resembles small, round, transparent bubbles with a diameter
of 5-6 mm. Therefore, if you cut or break a finger lime, these round sections will sprinkle
out of it like fish roe. The color of the eggs is also white, pink or green.
At the beginning of 2000, due to the increased demand for citrus, Australia began to cultivate
it and sell it in the domestic and foreign markets. A lot of work was done to develop
new hybrids with peel and "caviar" of different colors, as well as to cross the Australian
lime with other citruses. The selection has resulted in fruits that
differ in size, shape and seed, with the largest palette of colors of any fruit. The color
of the peel can range from yellow-green to raspberry, purple and black, as well as the
color of the flesh inside the fruit. The pulp colors were recorded, green, yellow, red and
pink. But no matter how radically different the fruits of the plant may be, they are all
a type of Australian finger lime.
There are currently 5 registered varieties of palm lime. All of them differ from each
other in the color of the peel and pulp from green to pink, from red to yellow. Each color
has its own unique taste. Generally, the rosier the flesh, the sweeter the taste.
ALSTONVILLE has a predominantly brown color with a greenish tinge on a smooth skin. Usually
pitted. Juicy juice bubbles are 3 mm in size and have a light green color. Has a very refreshing,
pleasant taste. Harvested from December to March.
JUDY'S EVERBEARING has a variety of colors ranging from khaki green and dark brown to
maroon, with a dense, smooth skin. Bubbles with juice are very large in size from 3 to
6 mm, color from light green to pink with a minimum number of seeds. It has a very aromatic
taste with a stimulating lemon and lime flavor. Several crops are harvested throughout the
year, and January is considered the most productive. PINK ICE has a burgundy color and a dense,
smooth skin. Bubbles with juice are from 3 to 6 mm in size, light pink in color, with
a minimum number of seeds. The taste is very aromatic with a predominantly stimulating
lemon and lime flavor. Has a sweeter taste. Collection time January-February.
JALI RED has a light green color. Its skin is smooth, dimpled. Bubbles with juice are
very large in size from 3 to 6 mm, dark pink in color with a minimum number of seeds. It
has a rather sweet and aromatic taste with a stimulating lime flavor. Collect it in January-February.
Byron Sunrise is a dark green color. Bubbles with juice are smaller, dark red in color
with a minimum number of seeds. It tastes like one of the sweetest fruits.
The crop is harvested in January-February. After the culinary "boom", this citrus began
to grow in the French provinces, but so far, it turns out to collect only up to one ton
of fruits per year. So why replace the famous fruit and spend big money? Everything is very
simple, it is done for the sake of effective presentation in restaurants.
The popularization of finger citrus is gaining momentum every year. In some restaurants,
pulp has become a branded ingredient in dishes. The French were among the first to recognize
this overseas delicacy, and began to combine caviar with seafood and sushi. They make salads
and desserts from these exotic fruits. Due to its piquant sourness, the fruit goes
well with seafood, it is complemented by side dishes and is used in confectionery. The dried
peel of the plant has also found its place in cooking as a spice. Citrus is an essential
ingredient in Latin American recipes and is widely used in Southeast Asian cuisine. But
in Russia, finger lime is not so popular due to the high price offer and insufficient supply
to the retail network. After heat treatment, the fruits of finger
limes lose their taste, therefore, in most cases, they are eaten in raw form, after having
been peeled. In the USA and Australia, lime "eggs" are added to various alcoholic beverages,
as well as decorate dishes with them. Local restaurants offer jams, desserts and finger
lime ice cream. Finger lime is popular in Michelin star restaurants,
and some dishes are decorated with fruits. Taste buds go crazy when a person first tastes
another Michelin masterpiece, the eggs burst right in the mouth, giving the dish an unsurpassed
citrus aroma. The chefs unanimously say that during the
creation of another masterpiece, lime caviar is one of the central elements. It is she
who awakens the dish and is able to surprise the client. For this reason, establishments
are willing to pay extra money for this explosion of flavor. Thus, finger lime is a new discovery
of the culinary world, and it can only be truly appreciated by trying it.
These magnificent fruits usually grow on a shrub no more than three meters high or a
small tree up to ten meters high. Having reached a height of half a meter, the plant begins
to bear fruit. The trunk of the plant is thin, two to three cm in diameter. The bark is dense,
rough and gray-brown in color. The crown of the trees is not dense. The branches of the
finger lime are densely covered with thorns, which serve as protection for the plant from
animals that are very fond of enjoying its fruits. The leaves are narrow, bright green,
elongated. They are much smaller in size than other citrus fruits.
The culture blooms in late autumn, and after 6 months the fruits begin to ripen. On the
basis of the wild-growing species, remontant varieties were created, in which the first
harvest is carried out in June, and the last fruits are removed in November. Optimal conditions
for vegetation are shade from the crown, high air humidity, loamy soils and sufficient rainfall.
Finger lime looks very beautiful at all stages of flowering. When the plant blooms, its crown
is covered with numerous pearl beads-buds. The flowers are miniature, pink outside, and
white inside, up to 1.5 cm long, exude a very pleasant aroma, not typical for citrus culture.
Flowering occurs in late summer or early autumn. The grafted plants begin to bear fruit in
the third year, but the number remains limited until the fifth or sixth year, when they can
produce up to 20 kilograms. Trees usually only bear fruit once every two
years, although this may depend on climatic conditions and variety. It also affects when
different varieties ripen, although this usually occurs between December and June. It is necessary
to collect only fully ripe fruits, their ripeness is determined by the color of the peel, it
should become a rich color. Pickers should wear eye protection and gloves when harvesting
because sharp thorns can be pricked. Unripe fruit may taste slightly bitter.
The fruit is picked randomly every 10-14 days for 6-8 weeks, depending on the age of the
tree and the variety. Harvesting is done by hand, as finger lime is very delicate and
prone to skin damage. When the finger lime ripens, the peel bursts, and bubbles filled
with juice appear on the surface. About 50% of the crop goes into the second grade or
is sent for processing. Once harvested, finger limes are stored for
4-5 weeks in a cool place. As with other citrus fruits, care must be taken to avoid hypothermia,
so fruits should not be stored below 8 ° C.
For sale, fresh fruits are packed in perforated one or two kilogram plastic bags, which are
stacked in cardboard boxes. In this form, they end up in supermarkets. Shelf life is
about a month at a temperature of 5 to 10 degrees. Part of the crop is frozen. At -18ºC,
they can be stored for 3 to 6 months. And, of course, such frozen products are not afraid
of long and long-distance transportation. After defrosting, fingerlime caviar does not
lose its structure and excellent taste. Thus, it is available for consumption throughout
the year. Most Australian-grown finger limes are sold
in central vegetable markets in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. About 50% of the grown
products are exported to Europe and Asia. Eating fingerlime has a powerful immunostimulating
effect on the body, increases resistance to viruses and other causative agents of colds.
The inclusion of Australian microcitrus in a regular diet reduces the fragility of bones
and teeth, is an excellent prevention of stomatitis, strengthens blood vessels, heart, nail plate,
reduces the risk of strokes and heart attacks, removes toxins, heavy metals and toxins, allows
you to maintain vigor and beauty longer. It has been experimentally proven that lime
juice, together with the sun, can disinfect water no worse than boiling. It has been found
that lime contains a special component, psoralen, that resists the proliferation of pathogens.
There is no glucose in the composition of finger lime, therefore, the fruits are recommended
for people with diabetes mellitus. Australian medicine men use the juice and peel of fingerlime
to brew a potion to treat bronchitis, pneumonia and even asthma. With lichen and psoriasis,
lime
eggs are crushed, and a bandage with juice is applied to
the affected areas. The main prohibition for taking an Australian
exotic fruit is a personal intolerance to the product, an
allergic reaction to citrus fruits, as well as gastritis, pancreatitis and stomach ulcers.