Name: Finger lime (Citrus australasica, also classified as Microcitrus australasica), sometimes called caviar lime.
Description
The finger lime is a spiny native Australian shrub or small tree that produces slender, elongated fruits, typically 4–10cm long, in shades of green, yellow, red, or near-black depending on variety. Cracking one open reveals its signature feature: tiny, round juice vesicles that separate cleanly like fish roe, which is why the fruit is widely marketed as “lime caviar.”
Long used by Aboriginal Australians as a bush food, finger lime has more recently become an emerging commercial crop both in Australia and abroad, prized by chefs for the visual and textural novelty of its popping vesicles rather than for high juice yield the way conventional limes are grown.
Main nutrition value
As with other limes, the main nutrient of note is vitamin C, alongside modest fiber and potassium. In practice, finger lime is used in such small garnish-sized amounts that its nutritional contribution to a meal is minor.
How best to be consumed
Finger lime is almost always used fresh: the fruit is sliced open and the vesicles scooped out to scatter over seafood, salads, cocktails, and desserts, where they add bursts of tart juice and visual appeal rather than being juiced or cooked down like other citrus.
Overconsumption could cause…
Finger lime is eaten in small quantities as a garnish, so overconsumption is rarely a practical concern; the acidity is similar to other limes and could contribute to enamel wear or stomach irritation only with unusually large, frequent intake, which is not how the fruit is typically used.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, FoodData Central — Limes, raw (FDC ID 168155), 100g portion: https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/168155/nutrients (no USDA entry exists for finger lime, a niche/emerging crop; the general raw-lime figures below are the closest documented relative) Encyclopaedia Britannica — Finger lime: https://www.britannica.com/plant/finger-lime
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