umeboshi

[ oo-muh-boh-shee; Japanese oo-me-baw-shee ]

noun

, plural u·me·bo·shis.

1. a salty and tart Japanese condiment made from unripened plums pickled in a brine.

Word History and Origins

Origin of umeboshi¹

First recorded in 1820–30; from Japanese ume “Japanese apricot” + -boshi, combining form of hoshi “a drying,” verbal noun from hosu ( Old Japanese posu ) “to dry”

Example Sentences

For fillings, our vegetarian kids like a bite of pitted umeboshi plum or a slice of pickled cucumber or radish, or some combination.

From Seattle Times

Taki even grows a small number of ume plums, used to make Japanese plum wine and “umeboshi” salted plums.

From Seattle Times

But Taki also makes his own umeboshi from apricots and red shiso — which he says have nearly the same flavor as real umeboshi — and sells them at his booth through the summer.

From Seattle Times

It derives from a pickled stone-fruit snack called see mui in Cantonese, which is itself related to Japanese umeboshi, a snack made of salted ume plums or apricots pickled into sour little balls of delight.

From Seattle Times

Mr. Miyano’s grandfather, who grew and pickled his own plums in Chiba, shaped onigiri with homemade umeboshi for his grandson’s breakfast.

From New York Times