Limau Asam Boi / Lime & Plum Juice – 3 Ingredients

If you’re visiting Malaysia, one of the drinks you must try in this beautiful tropical country is Limau Asam Boi or Kat Chai Suen Mui (桔子酸梅), in Malay and Cantonese respectively. This drink is a thirst quencher favoured by most Malaysians on a hot day.

It’s commonly available in Malaysian kopitiam as calamansi lime grow very well here. I like ordering this juice knowing that it’s definitely freshly squeezed. Because calamansi lime is inexpensive, vendors are generous with it. You may get diluted watermelon juice but you will unlikely to get a diluted limau asam boi.

This fresh juice is has an interesting tanginess from calamansi lime and sweet-salty sour plum, also known as asam boi. Order this juice on a hot day and especially if you’re going to eat something spicy or heavy. The refreshing juice will cool you down and improve your appetite. It’s also high in vitamin C. So swap your Coke with this drink instead.

TOOLS

• Glass
• Sieve
• Blender

RECIPE CARD

SHORT RECIPE

Add 1/2 tsp sugar + 2 sour plum + 1/4 cup hot water into a glass. Squeeze 3 calamansi limes into the glass through a sieve. Blend lime peel + 1/2 cup water. Pour into glass through a sift. Top with ice.

STEP-BY-STEP

STEP 1: DISSOLVE SUGAR & STEEP SOUR PLUM IN HOT WATER
Add sugar and sour plum into a glass. Pour in 1/4 cup of warm water to dissolve the sugar and steep sour plum.

STEP 2: EXTRACT LIME JUICE
Wash lime and cut them into half. Squeeze the juice into a glass through a sift.

STEP 3: BLEND LIME
Blend lime skin with 1/2 cups of water. Pour juice into the glass through a sift.

STEP 4: TOP WITH ICE
Top glass with ice cubes.

TIPS

1. Use calamansi lime (limau kasturi). In Malaysia and Singapore, there are two common type of lime that can be used in juicing: key lime (limau nipis) and calamansi lime (limau kasturi). Use the latter. The flavour is less sharp and sweeter than key lime. What’s the difference between key lime (limau nipis) and calamansi lime (limau kasturi)?
2. Flavour with honey. If you’re not trying to achieve the same taste that you get at kopitiam, you can use other sweetener. At home, I prefer to sweeten my drink with pure honey instead of granulated sugar. It produces a milder and smoother taste. Do not dissolve honey in hot water as it may destroy its nutrient.
3. Less lime and plum for a lighter  juice I like my juice ‘kau’, a Malaysian slang used to describe beverage that is heavy/strong. If you prefer a milder taste, use two limes and one sour plum.

Enjoy!