There is a specific, sharp mist that hangs in the air when you slice into a calamansi. The fruit is small, usually no larger than a marble, with a thin green skin that yields an abrasive, floral acidity — something halfway between a key lime and a sour mandarin 1 . Last week, standing in my kitchen, I halved a handful of them and squeezed their juice into a Dutch oven full of simmering chicken and okra 2 .

Calamansi limes for sale in Vancouver’s Granville market.

The dish was bamya asam . If you consult a standard cookbook, bamya is a Middle Eastern staple, a slow-braised lamb and okra stew whose character relies on a deeply savory tomato base heavily perfumed with garlic.…