Fruit confusion
First we had questions over the various types of banana available in Brazil. Then more recently there was a great lemon-lime confusion. Today we need to talk about the fruit that has no rhyme: the orange. A few days ago I found myself browsing around ‘Zona Sul’, a fairly fancy supermarket that stocks a good variety of fruit and vegetables. I decided that I needed to try one of these Limas da Persia that apparently go so well in a caipirinha. As I found this mystery ‘lemon’, my eyes wandered to the right:
On the left you can see Lima da Persia. But what is this to the right? Laranja Pera?! A ‘Pear Orange’?!
Let’s leave to one side the fact that these oranges are quite clearly green – they are called Pear Oranges! Oranges that taste of pears? Sounds kind of exciting doesn’t it? I popped a few in my basket. I decided to check what other oranges they had:
OK, someone is trying to be confusing now. Laranja Lima?! Lemon Oranges?
I dropped the Lemon Oranges into my basket and made my way to the checkout. As I queued I realised that there were no identifying stickers to help out the girl on the checkout. I looked again at the two different oranges – they didn’t look very different – perhaps the checkout workers are all trained to be experts in fruit identification?
Think again people! The Limas da Persia and the first set of oranges went through without a comment. Then she got tot he second set of oranges and stopped. She brought out the laminated booklet with identifying pictures of various fruit and vegetables. The pictures looked almost identical. She asked me “Which oranges are these?” (in Portuguese of course). I said that one set were Laranja Lima and the other lot were Laranja Pera. She asked which were which. I said I didn’t know but what I really meant was “You are Brazilian and these are your crazy Brazilian fruit, so you tell me!”. We ended up having a laugh about it and agreed that this was some kind of fruit madness!
When I got home I decided that some taste-tests were required.
The Usual Suspects. From left to right we have Lima da Persia, Laranja Pera, Laranja Lima, Limão Tahiti. Everyone got that?
I started off with the Lima da Persia. What a weird fruit! Looking a bit like a fat lemon, this citrus has a very fragrant peel/zest. It reminded me of Lemonbalm or Lemon Geranium. But get this – it’s not even a little bit sour! In fact it has quite a subtle flavour and as Andrew said some time back, it is kind of watery.
Here you see a Lima da Persia and my super-sharp knife that I bought in London. If anyone knows someone from Sabatier, please let them know that they owe me for this free advertising (I will accept payment in kitchenware).
Lima da Persia makes a pretty decent Caipirinha, but for my mind, the flavour is a little too subtle.
OK, so let’s move on to the oranges! I was kind of excited about the idea of trying an orange that had a hint of pears (Laranja Pera). I’d never heard of such a thing, but perhaps there was some kind of hybrid taste sensation awaiting!
It might be green on the outside, but it’s pretty orangey on the inside isn’t it?
Sorry to disappoint, but there was nothing remotely pearish about this orange. It tasted exactly like a perfectly normal orange. Nothing more, nothing less. Is this the work of some overzealous fruit enthusiast in the Zona Sul marketing department?
OK, I moved on to the Lemon Orange (Laranja Lima). At this point I wasn’t expecting much. I mean, a lemony orange? Isn’t that just an orange that hasn’t ripened yet? Anyway, I carried on with an open mind. As I was starting to come down with a cold, I decided to make a version of a hot toddy.
And just a couple of weeks ago I said I didn’t like cocktails with scotch! Still, this is basically medicine, right? (As with the Sabatier product placement earlier, I will happily accept payment in Whisky – pay up Johnnie Walker!).
Well, I was surprised to find that this orange was the most boring of the lot. It had the general flavour of a normal orange, but it was just a bit dull. A few years back I tasted the extremely sour oranges that the Colombians serve alongside fish and that is pretty much what I was expecting here, but instead I got an orange so boring that I ended up adding lime to make my drink more interesting. Ah well, I will keep searching!
And after all those ‘test’ caipirinhas (plus the hot toddy to finish) I started feeling a bit creative and snapped this micro-thin slice of lime. I cut this slice with my Sabatier knife (come on Sabatier, that must be worth at least a carving knife and a sharpening steel…).
Tom,
Laranja Pera is just the name, you are right, it’s not supposed to taste anything like a Pera.
The Pera japonesa is a mix of Pera and an Apple and you can taste both fruits in it, but the Laranja Pera is nothing like it, just a name.
Laranja Lima is the least acid orange, it is more expensive and not so easy to find, it is usually given to small children or people who have little tolerance for acid fruit.
I am glad you are making all these experiments, there is no better way to learn and know first hand about all of them.
Great post Tom, I am sure a lot of people will learn the differences among Brazilian oranges from your experiment.
:)
Abracos
Ray
Cool, thanks Ray! Good to get some confirmation about the Laranja Lima – that’s exactly what it was like: a low-acid orange.
Happy to help with my ‘research’ (especially when it involves tasting caipirinhas! :D )
Caipirinha and hot Toddy consumed during the same drinking session: now that’s something you don’t read everyday. And maybe there’s a reason for that . . .
Uh, I do this all the time…
Thanks Alex – I knew I wasn’t alone on this. And after the hot toddy I often move on to a Green Chartreuse, a Fernet and coke and then finish things off with a nice refreshing egg nog. Yum!
(I do not have a problem…)
So did the laranja lima and the laranja pera look the same on the inside after all?
Hey Danielle – yes, at least the ones I got looked pretty much identical, inside and out. Just that the Laranja lima was all sweet and no sour.
Tom,
Laranja Pera é uma variedade de laranja para sucos. Ela tem o mesmo sabor da laranja comum, mas muito mais suco.
Existe a laranja baiana que á considerada laranja de mesa, pra ser consumida ao natural.
Lima da Persia é a fruta mais sem graça que existe, na maioria das vezes ela é amarga.
Laranja Lima geralmente é bem doce e tem uma cor mais amarelada, e é muito boa gelada. A que você comprou parece estar verde.
Um link sobre laranja-lima: http://caras.uol.com.br/noticia/laranja-lima
Eri
Olá Eri! É verdade – acredito que as Laranjas Peras deram mais suco!
Então, você não gosta de Lima da Persia? ;) Concordo – foi um pouco chato… Seria mais interessante se o sabor foi mais forte.
Obrigado pelo link. Estou aprendendo todos os dias! :D
Any idea if the Lima de Persia are what are called Meyer lemons in the states? I always walk by them and think I should buy a couple to see what they`re like, I don´t know why I haven`t though now I have even less motivation based on your negative recommendation, ha. The orange limes that you mention from Colombia are probably what are called lima mandarina in Spanish, rangpur lime in English, they make fantastic gin and tonics and actually I´ve found them at the Gloria farmers market here as well, they´re the small ones that have grey blotches on the skin (no idea what they´re called in portuguese, though)
Hey Eva!
Hmmm, looking at the Meyer Lemons on Google, I think they’re different. Apparently Meyer Lemons are officially called: Citrus × meyeri. Lima da Persia are: Citrus limettioides.
Regarding the name (Meyer Lemon) isn’t it refreshing that they decided not to use a fruit name to subdivide another fruit name! What next? The Banana Melon? Wait, you are kidding me…
“Rangpur Lime” – now there’s a good name for a fruit. Though having just checked on Wikipedia I have to go back on the objections in my previous paragraph to say I rather like its alternative name: lemandarin! I will try to track them down on Sunday… Aha! Wikipedia also tells me that these are known as limão cravo in Brazil (as mentioned by Eri a couple of weeks ago).
Pretty soon I will be a citrus expert! :D
Yep, I should’ve googled before I wrote anything (though I hate that, why can’t the internet leave me be in my ignorance), it looks like lima de persia are what are known as sweet lemons in the middle east and are prized for…dah dah! not being acidic. As far as the fruit you had in Colombia, I don’t know if it was lima mandarina or naranja agria (bitter or Seville orange) that you had, cause (according to the all-knowing google) it looks like they use naranja agria there too although I’ve only had lima mandarina.
Tom,
Next time you are out, ask about the “Limao Caipira”, it’s a orange colored lime, or lemon, it is very good for caipirinha, and very exotic, kinda of hard to find, but you should definitely go for it, in your saga to become a Brazilian expert… ;)
Abracos
Ray
Hi there Ray – sorry I missed this! I will definitely keep an eye out for this Limão Caipiri – you know I’m always looking for new and exciting ways to spice up my caipirinhas! :D
Is Naval Orange the same as Laranja lima? Please help me!THank you
Hi Andreia,
I don’t think Laranja Lima are the same as Naval Oranges. As far as I can remember, Naval oranges have those funny little ‘bobbles’ which give them their name, right? I found Laraja Lima to be quite sweet but lacking in the acid that makes oranges so delicious. I always go with Laranja pera nowadays. Are you looking for naval oranges for a recipe?
Hello Tom,
I love your blog. It is interesting to me, as a Brazilian to see our foods and our reality described by an “outsider”–no offense here :-)
The lemon you had in Colombia is most likely what is known in some regions of Brazil (including Rio, I would believe) as “limão cravo”: http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limão-cravo. There you go! One more hybrid to add to your confusion!
Limão cravo is used as “cavalo” (the base plant for grafting other citrus species). When I was a child we had a “pé de limão cravo” in our backyard, as a result of aggressive pruning inflicted onto our “laranja bahia” tree. By the way, the equivalent to navel oranges is called “laranja bahianinha” in Brazil.
Take care and good luck with your food adventures!
Debora.
Hi Debora and thanks for your comment :) The world of citrus fruit is indeed a confusing one. Now I need to go to a quiet place and practice saying the world “Bahianinha” – Buy-ee-ah-NEE-nya?! :D
Hello, I am an English teacher in Curitiba, Brazil and found this forum to be interesting. I have a student here who is going to visit New York City in September. Does anyone have a recommendation on where a person can buy the “laranja lima” (Lemon Orange)? I remember Ray mentioning in a previous post that this type of fruit is hard to find. Can anybody offer any places that may have this fruit? Thank you, David.
The pera part of the name could be a reference to the shape of the fruit rather than it’s flavor. Although the example in the photo above did not look particularly pear shaped, it could be the origin of the name, and the name stuck while the fruits changed over time.
Putz, eu estava exatamente tentando explicar essa confusão pra minha esposa canadense e teu post caiu como uma luva, adorei! E ela também lol. Looking forward to reading your other posts, awesome work, congrats!
Ah, que legal! Escrevi isso tanto tempo atrás, tenho que ler de novo! Fico feliz que vcs gostaram :)