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NeKKo
A ripe yellow yuzu with knobbly, thick peel
Photo: Jpatokal and Andrew c, CC BY-SA 3.0
  • Citrus fruit
  • 柚子

Yuzu

The aroma lives in the peel, not in the juice.

Flavor profile

Citruspeel aroma 95%
Acidityacidity 80%
Bitternessbitterness from the pith 45%
Sweetnessfaint sweetness 20%

The strengths are editorial judgments on a scale within the family, not measurements. They can be compared across the citrus varieties, not directly against another family.

Origin originally from inland China

Yuzu is the family's aromatic. The peel is knobbly and thick and carries a fragrance no other Japanese citrus comes close to, while the flesh gives almost no juice and is full of seeds. So yuzu is grated rather than squeezed: a sliver of peel in a clear soup, zest in yuzu kosho and shichimi. It is also the only one in the family with an evening of its own, the bath at the winter solstice.

Sensory analysis

Pyramid and character

Aroma

from the peel

  • peel
  • blossom
  • resin

Taste

on the tongue

  • acidity
  • bitterness
  • perfume

Finish

what lingers

  • long
  • floral
  • cool
ACIDITYSWEETNESSBITTERNESSPEEL AROMAJUICE YIELDFRESHNESS

Character 0-100 per axis, set relative to the other entries in the same family. An editorial judgment of a typical serving, not measurements.

Background

Facts

Origin
originally from inland China; within Japan, Kochi accounts for 40 to 50 percent of production, and Kochi, Tokushima, and Ehime together for about 80 percent
Kinship
Citrus junos, which genetics place as a cross between ichang papeda and a mandarin relative, which explains both the cold hardiness and the thick peel
Size
about 110 grams and 4 to 8 centimeters across, the same size class as a kabosu and three times a sudachi
Distinction
the juice is scant and the seeds many; the peel is the product here, unlike the rest of the family
Harvest
green yuzu from mid-August to October, yellow from November; the green is sharper and more herbal, the yellow rounder and more perfumed
Cultivation
the tree is cold-hardy down to about minus 7 degrees Celsius, unusual for citrus, but slow, and a Japanese proverb lists how long fruit trees make you wait and gives yuzu eighteen years
The custom
at the winter solstice whole fruit or peel is floated in the bath, yuzuyu, a custom still kept at home and at the public baths

At the table

Use

Dosage
a sliver of peel per serving is enough; the juice is used sparingly and almost always alongside something else
Timing
the peel goes onto finished food or floats in the soup for the last few seconds; boiling takes the aroma
Note
the seeds make the fruit impractical to squeeze straight over food, so strain the juice or reach for another in the family when juice is what you want

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