{{Short description|Lime that has lost its water content after being dried under extensive sunlight}} {{Infobox food | name = Dried lime | image =200px| | caption = Whole ''loomi'' for sale in market in Manama, Bahrain | alternate_name = | place_of_origin = Oman, Iraq and Iran | region = Middle East | associated_cuisine = Middle Eastern | year = | mintime = | maxtime = | type = Dried food | course = | served = }} thumb|right|200px|Dried, ground black Persian limes
'''Dried lime''', also known as '''black lime''',<ref>{{cite book|title=Middle Eastern Cooking|last=Mallos|first=Tess|page=16|isbn=9780794650346|publisher=Periplus Editions|location=VT, USA|year=2007}}</ref> '''''noomi basra''''' (Iraq),<ref>{{cite web|title=What is Noomi Basra?|author=Ayelet's Comfort|date=2015|url=http://ayeletscomfort.com/2012/03/04/what-is-noomi-basra|access-date=10 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151202101219/http://ayeletscomfort.com/2012/03/04/what-is-noomi-basra/|archive-date=2 December 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> '''''limoo amani''''' (Iran), and '''''loomi''''' (Oman),<ref name="Basan">{{cite book|title=Middle Eastern Kitchen|last=Basan|first=Ghillie|pages=78|location=NY, USA|publisher=Hippocrene Books Inc.|isbn=9780781811903|year=2007}}</ref> is a lime that has lost its water content, usually after having spent a majority of its drying time in the sun. They are used whole, sliced, or ground as a spice in Middle Eastern cuisine. Originating in the Persian Gulf<ref>{{cite web |last1=Billock |first1=Jennifer |title=Heard of Black Lime? Here's How To Use It. |url=https://talesofthecocktail.com/techniques/heard-black-lime-heres-how-use-it |website=tales of the cocktail |access-date=23 August 2018 |date=2017-11-15 |archive-date=2018-08-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180824065727/https://talesofthecocktail.com/techniques/heard-black-lime-heres-how-use-it |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=GERSHENSON |first1=GABRIELLA |title=SOUR POWER: COOKING WITH DRIED LIMES |url=https://www.saveur.com/article/Kitchen/Sour-Power-Dried-Limes |website=saveur |date=27 July 2011 |access-date=23 August 2018}}</ref> – hence the Iranian name ''limoo amani'' and the Iraqi name ''noomi basra'' ('lemon from Basra') – dried limes are popular in cooking across the Middle East.
==Uses== Dried limes are used to add a sour depth and flavor to dishes, through a process known as souring.<ref>{{cite book|title=Veggiestan: A Vegetable Lover's Tour of the Middle East|last=Butcher|first=Sally|chapter=Legumes and Pulses|isbn=9781909108226|year=2012|publisher=Pavilion Books|location=London, UK}}</ref> In Persian cuisine, they are used to flavor stews and soups.<ref>{{cite book|title=The New Persian Kitchen|last=Shafia|first=Louisa|pages=10|publisher=Ten Speed Press|location=CA, USA|isbn=9781607743576|date=2013-04-16}}</ref> Across the Middle East, they are used with fish; in Iraq, they are added to almost all dishes and forms of stuffing.<ref name="Basan"/> They can also be used to make dried lime tea. Powdered dried lime is also used as an ingredient in Middle Eastern-style ''baharat'' (a spice mixture). It is a traditional ingredient in the cuisines of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and other countries of the Persian Gulf.{{Cn|date=May 2025}}
==Flavor== Dried limes are strongly flavored. They taste sour and citrusy like fresh limes, but have an added earthy and somewhat smoky taste and lack the sweetness of fresh limes. Because they are preserved, they also have a slightly bitter, fermented flavor, but the bitter accents are mainly concentrated in the lime's outer skin (zest) and seeds.{{Cn|date=May 2025}}
==Tea== Dried lime tea is a type of herbal tea made from dried limes and is a popular beverage in Iraq, where it is used to aid indigestion, diarrhea, and nausea.<ref name="nawalnasrallah2013">{{cite book |last1=Nasrallah |first1=Nawal |author1-link=Nawal Nasrallah |title=Delights from the Garden of Eden: A Cookbook and History of the Iraqi Cuisine |date=2013 |publisher=Equinox Pub. |isbn=978-1-84553-457-8 |page=508,512 |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Delights_from_the_Garden_of_Eden/4RZAPgAACAAJ |access-date=8 October 2025 |language=en}} </ref>
==See also== * List of dried foods * {{portal-inline|Food}}
== References == {{reflist}}
==External links== {{Commons category|Black lime|Dried lime}} *[http://gernot-katzers-spice-pages.com/engl/Citr_aur.html Spice Pages: Lime] *[http://mideastfood.about.com/od/middleeasternspicesherbs/a/black_lemons.htm Black Lemons] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906160756/http://mideastfood.about.com/od/middleeasternspicesherbs/a/black_lemons.htm |date=2015-09-06 }} {{Herbs & spices}} {{Citrus}}
Category:Arab cuisine Lime Category:Iranian cuisine Category:Iraqi cuisine Category:Spices Category:Limes (fruit)