New in the Garden this year: Yuzu

Having grown up in southern California, where lots of folks are lucky enough to have orange, lemon, or lime trees in their yards, I have been scheming to figure out how I can too, even though I live in the Pacific Northwest.

Well, yuzu might just be the answer. I hope so. I've never had a fresh yuzu fruit, but the descriptions sound entrancing; fragrant tart, complex, combining flavors of grapefruit and mandarin. Best of all it is relatively frost hardy and can be grown in regions where other citrus will not grow.

this photo generously shared by benketaro on flickr

The zest and the juice are used in Japanese and Korean cuisine. I have a feeling this may be one of those Next Big Thing, things. Bars will serve yuzu infused cocktails and candles will be scented with yuzu, any day now, if not already. You can buy bottled yuzu juice at Asian grocers. But I should like nothing better than to be able to pick my own tangy yuzu off a tree in my own yard.

I bought a small yuzu tree last week at Pistils Nursery.
It may be a few years before it bears fruit, but it will be worth the wait.