Uses
- Main Article: Succade; Main Article: Etrog
The citron is unlike the more common citrus species, such as the lemon or orange. While those more popular fruits are peeled to consume their pulpy and juicy segments, the citron's pulp is dry, containing a small quantity of insipid juice, if any. The main content of a citron fruit is the thick white rind, which adheres to the segments, and cannot be separated from them easily.
Thus, from ancient through medieval times, the citron was used mainly for medical purposes: to combat seasickness, pulmonary troubles, intestinal ailments, and other disorders. The essential oil of the flavedo (the outermost, pigmented layer of rind) was also regarded as an antibiotic. Citron juice with wine was considered an effective antidote to poison, as Theophrastus reported.
Today the citron is used for the fragrance or zest of its flavedo, but the most important part is still the inner rind (known as pith or albedo), which is a fairly important article in international trade and is widely employed in the food industry as succade, as it is known when it is candied in sugar. There is a rising market for the citron in the United States for the use of its soluble fiber found in its thick albedo.
The citron is also used by Jews (the word for it in Hebrew is etrog) for a religious ritual during the Feast of Tabernacles; therefore is considered as a Jewish symbol, and is found on various Hebrew antiques and archeological findings. Citrons used for ritual purposes cannot be grown by grafting branches.
In Iran, the citron's thick white rind is used to make jam; in Pakistan the fruit is used to make jam as well as pickled; in South Indian cuisine, the citron is widely used in pickles and preserves.
In Korea, it is used to create yujacha, a type of Korean tea. The fruit is thinly sliced (peel, pith and pulp) and soaked or cooked in honey or sugar to create a chunky syrup. This syrupy candied fruit is mixed with hot water as a fragrant tea, where the fruit at the bottom of the cup is eaten as well. Often preserved in the syrup for the cold months, yujacha is served as a source of fruit in winter. It is also popular in Taiwan and Japan, where it is known by its Chinese/Japanese name 柚子茶 (Pinyin: youzi cha, Japanese: yuzucha).
Read more about this topic: Citron