I love lime! Not lemon, not tangerine, but lime and the ripe one at that. Weird huh? Not to me. When we were growing up, my mom used to flavor our papaya (what we Nigerians call pawpaw) with an extract from this fruit and a pinch of salt. According to her, it was necessary to tone the sweetness of the fruit. Up until my days at the university, I thought that was all the fruit was good for. You can imagine my joy when I walked in on a friend and saw her drinking lime juice. Knowing that the citrus’ natural sour and tangy taste packs a punch when eaten solitarily, curiosity got the best of me and I asked her for the recipe.
Why Lime?
Before I disclose a trade secret of an affordable homemade drink, I find it expedient to explain why we should incorporate this small but mighty fruit into our diet every now and then. For one, it has no saturated fats, cholesterol, Iron and negligible amounts of Sodium. It is a good source of dietary fiber and Vitamin C as with all citrus fruits. That’s not all; traces of essential minerals such as calcium, folate, potassium, magnesium, manganese, pantothenic acid, niacin, riboflavin, thiamine, copper as well as Vitamin B6 can also be found in it.
This makes lime, like any citrus plant, an ideal candidate for the prevention of diseases (e.g. cardiovascular, stroke, neural tube defects, anemia, cancer, etc.). It is also used for preventing micro and over nutritional deficiencies because it contains phytochemicals. Unlike most citrus plants, lime specifically kills the bacteria that cause dysentery, cholera, typhoid and helps people in weight-loss programs lose weight effectively. So it is clear just how much we need this fruit in our weekly diet.
How to use Lime
The question remains how do we incorporate it into our meals? I’ll share a few:
Limeade – use the extract of ripe lime mixed with sugar syrup (boiled water and sugar) or just water and granulated sugar to form a drink. Chill the limeade for maximum enjoyment.
Pawpaw flavoring – squeeze the juice of the unripe citrus onto the pawpaw and then add salt. You can eat it like that or refrigerate it so the lime juice can soak into it.
Flavoured teas – after dipping your teabag into a teacup with hot water, squeeze an unripe lime in and add sugar for taste.
Five fruit salad – mix the following in a bowl: seedless grapes, sliced banana, orange and pineapple chunks, cubed rock/mush melon (if available), finely chopped mint leaves, peeled and grated lime. Then squeeze in lime juice and concentrated orange juice. Serve when done.
Chicken – yes, it can also be squeezed on grilled chicken or can be used to make a Caribbean Lime Chicken meal. This is done by combining chicken in a dish with 3 tablespoons lime juice, the garlic, salt, thyme, pepper flakes, and black pepper. Mix well, Heat oil until hot and place ‘combo’ on an 11 -12 inch skillet. Ensure both sides of the chicken are cooked until brown then add onions and stir till they are both well cooked. Add tomatoes and curry powder to pan, leave to cook for a few minutes then stir in 1 tablespoon of lime juice. Serve with Ginger Rice (this is simply boiling rice with water and minced fresh gingerroot).
Once I found out how often this awesome fruit can be applied in my diet, I spared no expense in securing this very affordable fruit. Ingenuity and creativity lie in the least of us. It is how we use it that makes the difference. I like to see the upside of things and it this case with the lime, the benefits are richly rewarding. Try it someday.
