My colleagues and I recently received attention-grabbing party invitations which contained several fresh limes. Nobody else wanted the fruit so I took their limes home and now have to work out ways to use so many of them.
There are three kinds of limes commonly available in Hong Kong - Persian, Thai and kaffir. Kaffir limes are odd-looking fruit - they're very fragrant, have bumpy, thick skins and not much juice.
I have a strong suspicion that the small, round Thai variety might be what in the United States are known as Key limes, which are used in the famous Key lime pie. There are several variations on this pie. Some are topped with meringue, others with whipped cream. Some recipes use cream cheese and don't need to be baked, but the version I prefer uses condensed milk. The name should probably be changed to Thai lime pie, which has a nice assonant ring. Using a whisk, gently stir together three egg yolks (save the whites), one small can of condensed milk, 1/2 cup of Thai lime juice and the finely grated zest of one lime. Pour into a graham cracker crust (home-made or purchased) and bake in a pre-heated 160-degree Celsius oven for 10 minutes. Cool completely, then refrigerate. Using a clean, dry bowl, whip the egg whites with a pinch of salt and 1/3 cup of sugar until stiff peaks form. Spread the meringue over the chilled pie and bake in a 170-degree oven until lightly browned. If you don't like meringue, whip chilled heavy cream with sugar to taste and spread over the lime filling.
Another great use for limes is ceviche, in which the acidity of the lime 'cooks' the other ingredients. Make sure the fish and seafood are absolutely fresh and come from a safe source. Marinate raw fish and/or seafood (scallops and shelled shrimp) in freshly squeezed lime juice until the seafood is opaque (if it's cut in smaller pieces it will 'cook' faster). Toss with thinly sliced shallots, minced fresh chillies, diced tomatoes and peppers, chopped cilantro and salt and pepper to taste.