Let’s Talk Citrus!

One only needs to touch a citrus fruit to have that aromatic scent on your hands and in the air. Citrus is synonymous with winter, but these days, lemons are available all year round, which is great news for cooking and seasoning your food.

So versatile

Citrus can be used in many different ways and with every meal of the day – from being part of breakfast to a snack or added to a lunchbox, an ingredient in a side dish or salad; to a seasoning in a dressing or marinade. Have you roasted lemon wedges with a whole chicken before? Lemons adds lots of flavour to many dishes – just think of fish and chips with a piece of lemon, you almost can’t have one without the other. Lemons, limes and oranges are very popular baking ingredients to create a wide range of special baked treats or dessert.

If you have followed our food and recipe blogs and social media posts over the past few months, you would know by now that Heleen Meyer just loves to cook and season food with lemons. She says lemons have the ability to bring out the natural flavours of almost any ingredient. She calls lemon the ‘new salt’ as that is her go-to when it comes to seasoning food, before adding salt. Most of the citrus aromas are locked into the brightly coloured rind and the deliciously sweet-sour juice and flesh, so she uses all the ‘parts’ of a lemon to their fullest.

Here are more of Heleen Meyer’s TIPS with CITRUS in the kitchen:

1. Remove any white pith underneath the colourful rind, as it tends to be bitter, especially when cooked.
2. If you often use the grated rind of a lemon in food, do invest in a good-quality, sharp grater or zester. It makes the task to remove the rind, so much easier. Look for firm, fresh fruit as it is much easier to remove the rind from.
3. A sharp veggie peeler is perfect to slice broad strips of citrus rind, so that you don’t include too much of the white pith. Next time add two strips of lemon rind to a pot of rice and only use half the salt – delicious!
4. If you have lots of lemons or other citrus, freeze the juice and finely grated rind in ice cube trays and use when you need it.
5. Toss the juice and finely grated rind of a lemon into hot, drained pasta for extra zing to any pasta dish.
6. Place a few thick slices or wedges of lemon or lime in a pan or on the braai grid and toast for a few minutes. The charred citrus is a delicious accompaniment with fish, chicken, steak, pork and veggies – just squeeze out the flavourful juice and flesh.
7. Remove strong smells from a work surface, your hands and chopping boards with a bit of lemon juice.
8. A squeeze of juice in a glass of water or jug of iced tea, makes it even more delicious and it’s good for your gut.
9. Lemon juice can also prevent fruit like apples, pears, bananas and avocados from turning brown.
10. Rub half a lemon over your braai grid to break down any fat, making it easier to clean the grid.

Remember that citrus peel takes a while to break down, so cut it up into small pieces before adding it to your compost heap.

A citrus, cucumber and cabbage combo for winter

In this easy salad recipe, made with typical winter ingredients, Heleen Meyer shows us how well citrus, cucumber and cabbage work together. The ingredients are marinated in a dressing for a short while to create a slight pickled flavour. Don’t leave the fresh elements in it for too long, as you still want some crunch to them. Fresh dill, also available in winter, has a lovely fresh and unique flavour and is the perfect partner to this combo. If you can’t find it, then use Italian parsley instead. The balance between pickled and fresh ingredients makes this salad perfect with braaied chicken, pork or fish.

Citrus & cabbage salad with dill

Recipe by Heleen Meyer from Make five/Maak vyf

Serves 4 – 6

60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil

60 ml (¼ cup) apple cider vinegar

10 ml (2 tsp) honey

30 ml (2 tbsp) chopped fresh dill or Italian parsley

salt and pepper

1 small white cabbage, halved and cut into thin wedges

½ cucumber, thinly sliced

2 oranges, segmented (see tips below)

1 pink grapefruit, segmented (see below)

handful fresh dill or Italian parsley

1. Mix oil, vinegar, honey and chopped dill or parsley until well combined. Season to taste. Gently stir cabbage and cucumber into the oil mixture and allow to stand for 15 minutes.
2. Arrange the cabbage and cucumber on a large platter. Place oranges, grapefruit and herbs in between the veggies. Serve immediately with remaining dressing.

Tips:

1. When in season, add avocado to the salad.
2. How to segment an orange or grapefruit:

* Use a sharp serrated knife to cut the top and bottom off the fruit.

* Place ‘upright’, with one of the cut sides on a chopping board. Keep the knife as close to the flesh of the fruit as possible and cut off the rind and white pith.

* Hold the fruit in the palm of your hand, over a bowl. Carefully cut between the membranes, toward the centre of the fruit, to loosen and remove each segment.

* Catch the juice in the bowl, which you can use later for another salad dressing or substitute half of the vinegar in the dressing with the juice.

* Once the segments are removed, squeeze any leftover juice from the bits left in your hand.

Visit Heleen’s website for more recipes like this.

Image by Neville Lockhart