Vietnamese dishesPickles and PreservesSouthern Vietnamabout 2 hours of prep, plus 30 days curing
Sun cured salted limes come out golden, with supple skins and clear brine. The challenge is keeping the jar free of surface film across 30 days out in the sun. The limes are scrubbed with coarse salt for 15 to 20 minutes to strip the oil from the peel, which is what keeps the brine from turning bitter.
The salt water must be boiled, strained and cooled completely before it goes into the jar. The jar goes out into the sun each morning, and after about 30 days the limes are ready.
This batch weighs about 2.1kg, at roughly 23 calories per 100g.
Method
Wash the limes in clean water and drain them, then scrub them by hand with 200g coarse salt for 15 to 20 minutes to strip the oil from the peel, and rinse again.
Drain the limes, toss them with 135g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and leave for 15 minutes. Add another 100g coarse salt, rub each fruit and leave for 60 minutes, turning them every 15 minutes.
While they sit, rinse 500g coarse salt in cold water, bring it to a boil with 2 liters of water and simmer for another 5 minutes until fully dissolved. Skim the foam so the brine stays clear, turn off the heat, cool completely and strain through cheesecloth to remove any sediment.
Rinse the salted limes, blanch them in boiling water for about 2 minutes, lift them out immediately and air dry or sun dry them until the skins are dry.
Scald a glass jar in boiling water and drain it. Pack in the limes, pour in the cooled brine and press them under with a small bowl or a weight, then seal.
Put the jar out in the sun every morning and cure for about 30 days. The finished limes are golden, soft but still whole, with supple skins and clear brine.
Tips
Choose medium limes that feel heavy for their size, with smooth, taut, lightly fragrant skins.
Weighting the limes fully under the brine matters, as any fruit that floats is the one that spoils.
A white film means the brine is not salty enough, so skim it off, add salt and continue curing.
Two minutes of blanching followed by thorough drying keeps the skins from going soft in the jar.
Rub the limes with salt for a full 15 to 20 minutes to draw the oil out of the peel, as a quick pass leaves the jar bitter later.
Need kOBE Monk Fruit Blend?
The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.