Name: Kaffir lime, increasingly called makrut lime (Citrus hystrix), also known as Thai lime or kieffer lime. The two names refer to the exact same fruit — “makrut” is now preferred by many publications and cooks because “kaffir” is a racial slur in parts of the world, though both terms still appear in older recipes and reference sources.
Description
Kaffir/makrut lime is native to South and Southeast Asia — Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines — where it grows as a thorny, shrub-like tree with distinctively bumpy, knobbled green fruit. Unlike most citrus grown for their fruit, this plant is valued chiefly for its leaves and fragrant zest: the leaves have a double-lobed, hourglass shape and a citronella-like aroma prized in Thai and Indonesian cooking, while the thick, bumpy rind is grated into curry pastes.
The pulp inside is sour, pale yellowish-green, and contains very little juice, so the fruit itself is rarely eaten or juiced the way other limes are. It was introduced to English-language gardening literature in the early 20th century by Scottish botanist H.F. Macmillan, and it remains a specialty crop grown mainly for its leaves and peel in international markets.
Main nutrition value
Because kaffir/makrut lime is used as a flavoring rather than eaten, its practical nutritional contribution to a meal is minimal; the figures above only illustrate what a typical acidic lime provides in vitamin C and fiber if the fruit were eaten the way other limes are.
How best to be consumed
The leaves are the main culinary part: torn or thinly sliced into curries, soups (like tom yum), and stir-fries, or steeped whole and removed before serving, similar to a bay leaf. The zest is grated into curry pastes for its intense aroma, while the sparse, sour juice is occasionally used in small amounts. The fruit itself is essentially never eaten out of hand.
Overconsumption could cause…
In normal culinary quantities — a few leaves or a little zest per dish — kaffir/makrut lime poses no particular risk. As with other citrus peels, the rind and juice contain furanocoumarins that can irritate skin exposed to sunlight after contact, so handling a lot of fresh zest before spending time outdoors is worth being mindful of, though this is a minor concern at typical cooking amounts.
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 kaffir/makrut lime, which is rarely eaten as flesh; the general raw-lime figures below are the closest documented citrus relative) Encyclopaedia Britannica — Kaffir lime: https://www.britannica.com/plant/Kaffir-lime
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