Preserved Key Limes…

…lemons and oranges!  Oh my.

Florida old timers (really old) knew of an interesting condiment called, “Old Sour”.

Old Sour is a mixture of fresh lemon juice and salt.  This liquid is bottled and stored for at least one month to create an unusual condiment.  A Scotch Bonnet or two can be added to this mix if you want some heat.  Mostly, it’s used to dress grilled or fried fish …That is, if you can find an old timer to make it for you.

Preserved lemons make a nice substitute.  As a matter of fact, I think they might even be superior.  So, to put a Florida spin on this batch of preserved lemons, I thought I’d make 4 batches:  1 bottle of traditional preserved lemons, 1 bottle of lemons & oranges, 1 bottle of limes and 1 bottle of key limes.

This is an experiment.  But, I’m very optimistic.

Preserved Key Limes

key limes
kosher salt

Fill a large bowl with water.  Scrub each key lime and wash thoroughly.  Then, place them in another large bowl of clean water.  When all of the key limes are well-cleaned, pour approximately 1 cup of Kosher salt into a bowl.  Slice each key lime in half.  And, toss each half in the salt.  Place in a sterile glass jar.

If the key limes aren’t juicy enough to fill the jar with their own juices, top off the jar with additional salt and then cover key limes with freshly squeezed key lime juice.

For my next experiment, I’ll be adding a variety of hot peppers to the mix (and/or mixes).