10 Types Of Lime, Explained

The Rutaceae, or what we commonly call the citrus family, grow on flowering shrubs and trees. They span a wide range of fruits, from lemons to oranges, grapefruits, tangerines, pomelos, and limes, which, in turn, can be divided into subcategories. Since we've explored the many unique types of lemons, let's round up the different kinds of lime, bearing in mind that subspecies like Spanish limes and Rangpur limes don't technically belong in that group, despite their misleading names.

Used in cooking, juicing, baking, and cleaning, all citrus fruits add a tangy punch to our dishes and sauces and are low in calories. Not to mention that they're said to provide us with several health benefits, from boosting our immune system to providing us with fiber, an essential digestive aid, and lowering the risk of kidney stones. For all those reasons, citrus fruits are widely grown and consumed in various parts of the world.

Let's round up the most common varieties of lime, from the Mexican Key lime to the sudachi lime — each with its own set of alternative names, physical characteristics, and uses in the home.

Botanically labeled as citrus x aurantiifolia, the juicy Mexican Key lime is small, firm, and green with a yellowish blush and a soft, yellow-green flesh. It's native to Southeast Asia and wasn't popularized in the Florida Keys until the 19th century. Dessert lovers know that this tropical American archipelago is the birthplace of the beloved Key lime pie, made from sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, Key lime juice and zest, and a graham cracker crust. Fortunately, this popular fruit is available in stores year-round, but you can always store its juice in the freezer for up to three months.

Considered sweeter and more fragrant than its Persian counterpart, the Key lime thrives best in sunlight, a temperate climate, and a moist and neutral soil, be it indoors or outdoors. Its tree can grow up to 12 feet and yields delicate, pinkish white blossoms.

Go to any bar, and you'll notice that the Key lime is the go-to ingredient for bartenders in the preparation of fruit punches and cocktails like margaritas, gimlets, mojitos, and martinis. As for Mexican cuisine, it calls for that fruit in both savory dishes and pastries, from sopa de lima (chicken, vegetable, and lime soup) to fish tacos and Carlota de limón (Charlotte lime icebox cake).

The Persian lime is a cross between a lemon and a Key lime and is scientifically known as citrus x latifolia. It likely originated in India, China, and Myanmar, reaching California in the 19^th century via Tahiti. The tree itself has an ornamental value: It can grow up to 20 feet and yields star-shaped blossoms that are white with a hint of purple. As for its medium-sized fruit, it's either oval or round-shaped, with a shiny, smooth, green-to-yellow skin, and a juicy, soft, and seedless interior.

In the kitchen, the Persian lime is often incorporated into frozen drinks, marinades, desserts, and garnishes. Plus, you can easily use it as a substitute for the Key lime when making Key lime pie.

Its benefits don't stop here, though, as cosmetologists and herbalists use its rind to prepare potent essential oils, cosmetics, and skincare products.

Hailing from Southeast Asian nations like Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos, the kaffir lime, also known as citrus hystrix, definitely stands out with its glossy, double-lobed leaves and rough, warty, dark green texture. The zest, leaves, and juice can all be incorporated into Asian stews, soups, marinades, dressings, and curries, but in reasonable quantities, as they pack quite a sour punch.

Though their harvesting and preparation are time-consuming and difficult, makrut lime leaves are a common component of Thai, Indonesian, Vietnamese, and Laotian cuisines, especially. Think of them as bay leaves that best release their flavor in boiling liquids, enhancing soups like Tom Yum. If freshly picked, you can even freeze those leaves for later use.

As for the kaffir lime's other benefits, they include making an organic cleaning product and a potent hair treatment. It's believed that its citric acid and essential oils have antibacterial properties that can help strengthen hair follicles and reduce dandruff and hair loss.

Distinctively elongated, with soft, refreshing, caviar-like spheres on the inside that easily pop on your tongue, the tiny finger lime is tangy and tart. You might notice those aesthetically pleasing vesicles as a garnish on cheese boards and in cocktails, or alongside oysters, fish, salads, tacos, and desserts.

Because it's produced extensively on the east coast of Australia, this unique fruit's binomial name is citrus australasica. It's apparently packed with potassium and vitamins C, A, and E and may thus help boost collagen and gum and eye health, as well as reduce elevated blood pressure, joint pain, and flu symptoms. Stored in a sealed container, this adorable teardrop lime can remain fresh up to a month in your fridge.

The caviar lime grows on thorny shrubs or small trees that thrive best in a tropical or subtropical rainforest, specifically in a nutrient-rich, slightly acidic soil. Its blooms are white or light pink, while its rugged rind can range from purple to yellow, green, brown, and black, and the pulp is either yellow, green, or pink.

Classified botanically as citrus × floridana because it was first bred in Florida in 1909, the limequat is a cross between a Key lime and a kumquat. Donning smooth, glossy, dark green leaves, white flowers, and thin, oval, yellow, yellow-orange, or green fruits, the shrubs or small trees grow best in subtropical zones. In urban zones, you'll often find them planted in pots to spruce up patios and gardens.

Limequats are very tart and are typically consumed whole as a snack. If kept in a sealed container, they can last you a month in the fridge. In the kitchen, they're mostly used in jams, marmalades, juices, sauces, cocktails, and mocktails, but they also work well with poultry, fish, avocado, chocolate, goat cheese, and cheesecake. Here's a crucial tip for preparing a limequat jam or candied treat: To reduce that bitter aftertaste, it's best to remove the seeds before cooking.

Classified as eremocitrus glauca, the tiny but sharp Australian desert limes grow on thorny shrubs or small trees that can withstand both the cold and the heat, as well as brief drought spells. This berry-sized type of lime can be used in the preparation of chocolate, chutneys, jams, salads, stir-fries, cider, and marinades, or just to add some zest to your water or drink.

Fun fact: The desert lime is considered a superfood, as it contains three times the vitamin C content of an orange and 10 times more calcium than a blueberry, among other beneficial nutrients. As such, it's thought to help firm, heal, and revitalize the skin, improve eye health, lower blood pressure, boost immunity, and reduce inflammation.

You can also find the desert lime in the form of freeze-dried powder, to be used as a seasoning, or dried chips, to be enjoyed as a crunchy snack.

The blood lime is yet another colorful addition to the citrus family. It's a hybrid between a red finger lime and either an Ellendale mandarin or a Rangpur lime (which is actually not a lime, but rather a mandarin and lemon mix). This small, dimpled fruit is egg-shaped and sports a red or burgundy color, with a thin, perfectly edible rind, purple and white flowers, and glossy green and purple leaves. It grows rather slowly on shrubs that thrive best in warm temperate and subtropical zones, preferably in a somewhat acidic soil.

As such, this luscious lime makes for a visually appealing garnish, but it can also be used as a flavor enhancer in drinks, sauces, condiments, and preserves, or barbecued alongside meats. It's also sold in powder form, to be added to a gym shake, a cocktail, a dessert, or a marinade.

Classified as citrus x microcarpa, the calamansi is a small, round, and juicy citrus fruit that is widely cultivated in Southeast Asia and Central America. Now included in the lime category, it's technically more of a hybrid between a mandarin and a kumquat.

This beloved fruit, a staple of Filipino cuisine, can thrive in confined spaces, which is why it's often potted and used as an ornamental plant. Its sour and slightly sweet juice is usually squeezed into dips, sauces, marinades, and drinks, while the peel can be used to perk up desserts like sweet sticky rice or lemon cake. You can also pair the calamansi with pork, chicken, or shrimp, or mix it with papaya, pineapple, coconut, and mango for a refreshing fruit salad.

Tip: Keep the calamansi at room temperature for a week and up to three weeks in the fridge for optimum freshness.

There exists a roundish, dark green citrus with a rough, thick, and bumpy skin and a somewhat dry, orange-yellow flesh. It's called a dooja or a gympie, and it's classified as microcitrus australasica among scientists. This lesser-known type of lime grows best in well-drained soils, primarily in Beenleigh and Queensland, Australia.

You can use the fruit to make preserves and candied sweets, or even zest up your seafood dishes and liqueurs. As for the plant itself, its slender size and intense green shade render it an aesthetic addition in your home, as long as you're careful around its tiny thorns.

Fun fact: Research has shown that the dooja lime's genome could possibly help counter a common, widespread citrus disease called Huanglongbing, which causes damage to a fruit before it even ripens. This would certainly be a step up from harmful chemicals.

You're probably familiar with yuzu, the sour and tart yellow citrus fruit that is widely used in Japan and South Korea and can make a potent addition to a summer cocktail. But have you heard of the sudachi? Cultivated abundantly in the Japanese prefecture of Tokoshima, it's a small and round type of lime that is genetically related to both the yuzu and the Tachibana orange. 

When it ripens, its skin turns bright yellow, but it's typically picked when it's still green for juicing. Indeed, that juice is so sour that only a few drops are enough to enhance the flavor of your soy sauce, grilled meats, sashimi, ceviche, dressings, or noodles.

Thankfully, the sudachi keeps well in the fridge for two weeks, while the zest and juice can be frozen for much longer.