Ume

What it is

Ume is Prunus mume, the Japanese apricot: a round, fuzzy fruit about 2.5–3.2 cm (1–1.25 in) across, with a stone in the middle. It is low in sugar and sharply acidic.

Green fruit is firm; fully ripe fruit turns yellow, soft and fragrant. Nanko, a variety from Minabe, has thin skin and plenty of tender flesh, and is rated the finest variety for umeboshi.

Where it comes from

Despite the English name Japanese apricot, ume comes from south-central China and Laos. Japan has made it an orchard crop as well as a flowering garden tree.

Around Minabe and Tanabe in Wakayama, farmers have grown ume on steep, stony slopes for about 400 years. Orchards share the hills with woodland that supplies charcoal wood and homes for pollinating bees. The woods help hold water and protect the slopes, while grass between trees keeps soil in place.

How it's eaten where it grows

In Japan, umeboshi brings a salty, sour centre to an onigiri rice ball. Chopped pickled ume can also be folded through rice with toasted sesame seeds, then wrapped in nori seaweed.

Green ume has another life in drinks. Rock sugar draws out its juice for ume syrup, which is diluted with still or sparkling water or poured over shaved ice. Green fruit also goes into umeshu, the Japanese plum liqueur.

How it's grown

The tree flowers on bare branches before its leaves appear. In Wakayama, green ume for drinks is picked by hand. Fruit destined for umeboshi can ripen on the tree and drop into nets spread underneath. Farmers salt that soft, fragrant fruit on the day they gather it.

When and where you'll find it

In Wakayama, green ume is usually harvested from late May to mid-June, with fully ripe fruit following from mid- to late June. In California, the season usually runs from mid-May to early June.

Salted, dried ume travels year-round. In New York, Kalustyan’s lists a Nanko umeboshi flavoured with red shiso leaves.