Lime: nutrition and how to use it

Fun facts

• In Vietnam, "chanh" usually means the green lime. The yellow lemon is a different fruit, so keep that in mind when following recipes from abroad.
• According to USDA, 100g of lime has about 30 kcal and 29.1mg of vitamin C. A tablespoon of lime juice is only about 4 to 5 kcal, making a squeeze of lime a nearly calorie free way to add flavor.
• British sailors once carried lime juice on long voyages for vitamin C, which is how they earned the nickname "limey".
• Lime appears in 272 kOBE recipes, from sweet and sour fish sauce and salads to seafood dips and drinks.

Choosing and storing

Choose limes with thin, smooth, evenly green skin that feel heavy and give slightly when squeezed, since they tend to be juicier. Limes keep a few days at room temperature, or about one to two weeks in a sealed bag in the fridge. Leftover lime juice can be frozen in an ice cube tray for later.

Cooking it well

Roll the lime firmly on the counter a few times before cutting to get more juice. Add lime at the very end, since vitamin C drops with heat. Vitamin C also helps your body absorb iron from vegetables and beans, so a squeeze over greens and legumes is a great habit; read more in iron rich foods and absorption. Do not squeeze too hard, so the bitter oils from the peel stay out.

Frequently asked questions