Last week, I was browsing in Safeway when I discovered a small yellow fruit a little smaller than my palm. There was no sign marking what these odd little yellow bulbs were, no price tag, either. Intrigued, I brought it up to the cash register and the clerk entered the PLU in to the computer: lemon plums.
Huh?
I had never heard of a lemon plum before, but the little bulb so intrigued me, I bought it and brought it home. On the Internet, I learned the lemon plum is a scarce fruit, native to South America and is only available for a few weeks each year in the US. It tastes like a plum with a refreshing shot of citrus in it. However, most lemon plums sold in the US are unripe, so you leave the lemon plum on the counter for about a week until the lemon skin turns a blushed red pink color.
So I waited - until Sunday. My lemon plum had turned from a pale yellow to a rosy blushing red.
It was a little softer than when I bought it, but I'd still call it firm. The taste? Exactly as you'd expect a plum shot with a zing of citrus to taste - and this little plum was amazingly juicy!
Plus side? A deliciously different piece of fruit I eyed with anticipation for almost a week - rewarded with a burst of lemony plum taste. I would eat another again in a heartbeat!
Negative? Completely not native to the Eastern seaboard of the US - or even this continent. Expensive. Rare.
Would I buy more if given the chance? Undoubtedly. I loved the light lemon taste to it. What a nice reminder that Spring is right around the corner.