Plums are stone fruits of the genus Prunus, with juicy flesh around a single hard stone. Fresh plums are eaten around the world, and dried ones become prunes. In Asian snacks, though, “plum” often refers to the Chinese plum or ume (Prunus mume), a very sour fruit that is botanically closer to the apricot, which is why it is also called Chinese or Japanese apricot.
These sour plums are rarely eaten fresh. Instead they are salted, dried and then sweetened, sometimes with honey or liquorice, into the sweet, sour and salty preserved plums popular across East and Southeast Asia. Fuji Plum - Salted Cured Plums are 84% plums cured with sugar, salt and natural flavouring, while Moniegold’s Plum & Tamarind Ball mixes plum with tamarind, cane sugar, salt and chili.
Preserved plums can be strongly salty. Some dried fruits are treated with sulphites, which must then be declared on the label.
