Lime

The lime is a small citrus fruit, with a thin green skin and ajuicy, pale green pulp. It is grown in tropical and sub-tropicalclimes, such as California, Florida, Mexico, and the Caribbean.

The most widely used type of lime in the United States is thePersian lime. It is available year round, and when buying youshould look for a bright colored fruits, heavy for their size, andwith smooth skin.

Another type if the Key lime from Florida. It is smaller,rounder and has a more yellow color than the Persian lime. It can behard to get outside Florida.

In cocktails, lime is used both for its juice (see relatedingredients) and as garnish.

To store limes, refrigerate in a plastic bag for up to five days.Uncut limes can be stored in the same way for up to 10 days.

Because limes are an excellent vitamin C source, British sailorsused it as a scurvy preventative, something that lead to the nickname"limey".