FRUITS OF BRAZIL - Limes and Lemons (Limões)

The extended family of fruits called citrus (or cítrico in Portuguese) is tremendously important to Brazil in all kinds of ways. In the economic sphere their importance to the Brazilian export market in agricultural products is enormous - Brazil is the world's largest exporter of oranges and among the largest in the export of limes. Gastronomically, the sharp acidic tang is absolutely essential to a vast number of Brazilian dishes, which wouldn't be the same at all if another acidic substance, vinegar for instance, was substituted. Citrus juices, particularly fresh-squeezed ones, not only provide acidity to a dish, they add a sparkling fresh quality - a taste of a sun-soaked orchard - that cannot be duplicated. And then again, there's the whole business of cocktails. Brazil's increasingly-popular "national cocktail" the caipirinha relies on chunks of macerated whole limes and their juice to provide the non-alcoholic part of its punch, letting cachaça liquor provide the high-proof part.

Citrus fruits have moved far beyond their origins in Central or Southeast Asia and today are eaten all around the world. They are cultivated practically everywhere the climate allows, which means the world's tropical and sub-tropical reasons. You'll never find an orange grove in Canada or Finland no matter how hard you try, it's just too cold. Fortunately, though, citrus fruits travel well, and today fresh oranges, grapefruits or limes can be found in markets and supermarkets high above the Arctic circle as well as in the word's temperate zones, where most of North America and Europe lie.

Citrus fruits really are a family, and not just in the taxonomic sense. There is the sharp-tongued, lively bachelorette aunt, the lemon. There is the sensible, hard-working and slightly dull breadwinner - the navel orange. There's the mom who's always on weightwatchers, Ruby - she's a grapefruit. And there is the relative who only shows up at Christmas time - the mandarin orange. Each has its own personality and utility, just like in human families.

What's interesting though is that the Brazilian family of citrus fruits is quite different than the North American or European one. Some very common citrus fruits in the USA or Canada, like the grapefruit, are virtually unkown in Brazil. Others, like the exotic beauty Brazilians call  limão-cravo, are unobtainable north of the Equator. Some, of course, are common almost globally, but not all are.

In the next few posts on Flavors of Brazil, we'll look at Brazil's just one part of the citrus fruit family, the one that happens to be the most common in Brazilian cooking and gastronomy. Brazilians call them  limão, in English they're limes. We'll discuss which ones are common, which are found only regionally in Brazil, and which ones are just now making their way into the market. The market for citrus is changing rapidly in this country- in our newly globalized world, some citrus fruits that were unknown in Brazil as recently as three or four years ago are popping up with increasing regularity in fruit markets and supermarkets all over Brazil. We'll highlight the standard varieties of Brazilian limes and discuss the new entries - with recipes for all, new and old.

RECIPE - Crystalized Mandarin-Lime Peel (Casquinha Cristalizado de Limão-Cravo)

This recipe, based on traditional Brazilian recipes for sweets and conserves made from the peel of almost any type of citrus fruit, is translated and adapted from the website Ptitchef. Although the recipe calls for the peel of the citrus called rangpur or mandarin-lime in English and limão-cravo in Portuguese it can very easily be adapted to any citrus fruit. If the fruit you want to use is very thin skinned, you need do nothing to prepare the skin other than wash it well. If the fruit is one that has a thick white pulp under the outer surface of the peel, you must remove that, leaving only the outer peel, fragrant and colored. Otherwise, you'll have a very bitter "sweet."

The technique of boiling fruit or fruit peels in a thickened, concentrated sugar syrup originated as a means of preserving the harvest-time bounty at a time when there was no refrigeration. Often the fruit is left in the syrup and preserved that way. In this recipe, the fruit peels are removed from the syrup after cooking, dried and then rolled in granulated sugar. If you prefer, you can eliminate this last step and leave the fruit in its syrup. It makes an excellent dessert, served drained with a dollop of whipped cream or a ball of ice cream.
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RECIPE - Crystalized Mandarin-Lime Peel (Casquinha Cristalizado de Limão-Cravo)

12 large, whole mandarin-limes (or equivalent weight of any other citrus fruit)
1 lb (500 gr) granulated white sugar
1 cup (250 ml) water
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Thoroughly wash the whole fruit. Cut in half, and squeeze out all the juice, reserving the juice for another use. Remove the remaining pulp and any bitter white inner peel that may exist - use the tip of a spoon. Cut the outer peel that remains into strips about 1/2 inch (1 cm) wide and 1 1/2 inches (3 cm) long. Put the sliced peel in a mixing bowl, cover with lots of fresh water and let sit for a few hours. Drain.

In a medium saucepan, add the drained peel, cover with water, bring to a boil rapidly, then drain the peels in a sieve or colander and refresh with cold water. Repeat this operation two or three more times, or until all trace of bitterness is removed (taste a small piece to verify). Drain again and reserve.

In a heavy-duty sauce pan combine the sugar and 1 cup water and heat over medium heat. Stir to completely dissolve the sugar and bring to a slow boil. Continue to cook until the syrup reaches the thin-thread stage. Add the reserved peel and cook for about 5 minutes more. Remove from heat. If you wish to serve preserved peels in syrup, the dish is complete.

To make crystalized peels, remove them from the syrup with a slotted spoon (reserving the syrup for another use). Drain thoroughly in a sieve for at least 30 minutes. Spread a layer of granulated sugar on a cookie sheet, then roll the peels in the sugar to completely cover them.

Remove the peels from the cookie sheet with tongs and place on a sheet of wax paper, making sure that they are separated to avoid clumping. Let dry overnight. When completely dry, place in a cookie tin or other dry container until ready to use. Can be served as is, or used to decorate cakes and other desserts.

INGREDIENTS - A Tangerine By Any Other Name Would Taste As Sweet

Amidst the wonders that is the fruit section of a Brazilian market or supermarket - between the stacks of sapoti, acerola, buriti, and other fruits with names that are unknown or unpronounceable - usually sits a nice selection of tangerines. For a North American or European visitor to Brazil the sight of tangerines in the market brings a sense of comfort - "here's something familiar, delicious, easy to handle and eat, and dependable" - and often leads to buying a bagful. Usually it's a good purchasing decision, for the tangerines in Brazil are most often juicy, sweet and delectable.

Tangerines, like all citrus fruits, are not native to Brazil, but they have adapted well to growing conditions in this country and are one of the most commonly available fruits year round. Brazil is the third-largest tangerine-producing country in the world, being surpassed only by China and Spain. The annual harvest is about 1.2 million tons per year, and most of the production is consumed domestically.

Tangerines were brought to Brazil by Portuguese colonists early in the colonial period, and have been consumed in Brazil for centuries. In early colonial times transportation between various settlement areas in Brazil was difficult if not impossible due to topography and ocean currents and consequently there was little contact between the colonies of what is now the north, the northeast, the southeast and the south of Brazil. Due to lack of contact and trade, colonies went there own wayin many things, and developed local differences, preferences and terminology. Because of this, what we know in English as the "tangerine" goes by a large number of names in Brazil, and the name used varies principally by region.

Today, the tangerine has at least the following names in Brazil (there are probably more):

• In the south of Brazil, in the states of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, it's called bergamota or vergamota
• In the southeast, in the states of Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo, it's known as mexerica
• In the northeast, the local name is laranja-cravo (clove orange in English)
• In the states of Piauí and Maranhão, it's a tanja
• In the city of Curitiba be becomes a mimosa
• In the central-western states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, it's called poncã

All of which makes the English-language nomenclature - tangerine, mandarin, clementine - quite simple and straightforward, doesn't it?

However you call it, and wherever you eat it, though, an easy-to-peel, cold, sweet tangerine is one of the most refreshing fruits on earth, in Brazil or anywhere else. It's no wonder that million-plus tons of tangerines cultivated every year in Brazil never makes it to the export market.