Li hing mui

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Li hing mui is salty dried plum. It can be found in Hawaiian and Asian markets. It has a strong, distinctive flavor, and is often said to be an acquired taste, as it has a combination of sweet, sour, and salty taste. It has also been described as tart, and even tangy. Originally from China, the name "li hing mui" means "traveling plum". "Li hing" is "traveling" and "mui" is "plum." Li hing mui was first brought to the Hawaiian Islands by Yee Sheong, an Asian immigrant. Li hing mui is also good for dry and scratchy throats, as it improves salivation.

Contents 1 Powder 2 Alcoholic beverages 3 Cancer scare 4 See also 5 External References

[edit] Powder

The red powder (the shade of red depends on the retailer), called li hing powder that covers the dried plum can be sold separately. Li hing powder is used for many things, but is mainly used to sprinkle different items, such as fruits like apples and pineapples. Some keiki (children) of Hawaii also like to put li hing powder on almost everything, including sour gummy bears, sour gummy worms, sour watermelon candy, sour patch kids, shave ice, sour apple candy, rock candy, popcorn, and arare (also known as kakimochi and mochi crunch).

[edit] Alcoholic beverages

Recently, people have also been putting li hing powder into their alcoholic drinks—mainly tequila and cocktails. Many bars in Hawaii replace salt with this powder, since this powder is not only salty, but sweet and sour as well. Other people also feel that it gives a tart and sometimes tangy twist. Many bars in Hawaii also rim their glasses with li hing powder in addition to putting it in the drink.

[edit] Cancer scare

There was also a scare about li hing products; many people believed that li hing products could cause cancer. Dr. Landis Lum, a family-practice physician from Kaiser Permanente explained about li hing powder and cancer in The Honolulu Advertiser, a newspaper from Hawaii.

Dr. Lum explains that li hing products often include the artificial sweetener, aspartame, however Aspartame is not linked to any cancer risk. He further states that the salt and sugar from li hing mui can increase blood pressure and cause tooth decay.

[edit] See also

• Umeboshi

[edit] External References

• Chan, Janna. “GroupThink: Asian American Foods and Recipes.” GroupThink. 05 July 2005. Janna Chan. 4 Jul 2008. <http://www.jannachan.com/groupthink/archives/000072.html>
• FoodNerd. “FoodNerd!: li hing mui.” FoodNerd!. 17 May 2008. www.paisleysky.net. 2 Jul 2008. <http://www.paisleysky.net/foodnerd/archives/000458.html>.
• Kathy. "A Passion for Food: Gecko on the Curtains, Li Hing, Fried Rice, Shoyu Poke @ Costco, and Xi Mui Soda." A Passion For Food. 24 May 2008. A Passion For Food. 7 Jul 2008. <http://apassionforfood.blogspot.com/2008/05/gecko-on-curtains-li-hing-and-xi-mui.html>.
• Laudan, Rachel. "http://www.flavorandfortune.com/dataaccess/article.php?ID=109."
• Flavor & Fortune. 2005. Flavor & Fortune. 7 Jul 2008. <http://www.flavorandfortune.com/dataaccess/article.php?ID=109>.
• “Li Hing Plum Candy « The Tasty Island.” The Tasty Island. 14 June 06. The Tasty Island. 2 July 2008. <http://tastyisland.wordpress.com/2006/06/14/li-hing-plum-candy/>.
• Lum, Landis. “Does li hing powder pose cancer risk? | The Honolulu Advertiser | Hawaii’s Newspaper.” The Honolulu Advertiser | Hawaii’s Newspaper. 21 Sep 2006. The Honolulu Advertiser. 30 June 2008. <http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2006/Sep/21/il/FP609210307.html>.
• Martin. “Robot Lounge - Li hing junkies!.” Robot Lounge. 21 Dec 2006. Giant Robot. 2 July 2008. <http://www.giantrobot.com/forums/showthread.php3?s=d01be7183b6da4a991092341d43b902d&threadid=37136&perpage=15&pagenumber=1> and <http://www.giantrobot.com/forums/showthread.php3?s=d01be7183b6da4a991092341d43b902d&threadid=37136&perpage=15&pagenumber=2> (continuation).
• Walter, Claire. “CulinaryColorado: Hooked on Li Hing.” Culinary Colorado. 03 July 2007. Culinary Colorado. 2 July 2008. <http://culinary-colorado.blogspot.com/2007/07/hooked-on-li-hing.html>.

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