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Saturday, March 13, 2010

Lemongrass Jelly

Lemongrass

Lemon Grass Jelly2

Lemon Gass Jelly 3


Lemongrass Drink

When I was in Bangkok earlier last week for a short business trip, I headed for my favourite supermarket jaunt after my appointment. I love going to this particular supermarket at the basement of the upmarket mall, Paragon - for 2 reasons -
1. the variety of local fast food is a treat, there is so much to eat but so little space in the stomach to hold them.
2. the spread of local fruits, vegetables and Thai cooking ingredients are so complete that I can spend hours wandering up and down the aisle.

As this was a short trip, I did not bring a check in luggage with me, hence, I really had to retrain myself as I browsed. Mangoes are in season now and faced with the plump, juicy fruits, I watched longingly as shoppers buy them by the boxes. Then, there were the pink pomeloes, pomenagrates, biwas... as tempting and colourful as they may be, I am glad I didn't get any of them. I ended up buying, of all things - Lemongrass!

I have always loved lemongrass and I will find ways to add them to different dishes. The scent of Lemongrass calms me and whether it is just sipping a Lemongrass drink or burning the oil in my oil burner, it always evoke an exotic, spa-like atmosphere.
Lemongrass are readily available in Singapore and are not uncommon for us. But the ones that caught my eyes at the Thai supermarket are so clean, white and young - I just couldn't resist. I ended paying S$0.50 for about 15 pieces of  lemongrass. When I worked with them today, I really regretted not getting more, for the fragrance is so much more superior than the ones we get in Singapore.

It has been terribly hot in Singapore for the last 2-3 weeks.  Making a cold treat with the Lemongrass is a no-brainer. I used to serve a drink made by boiling Lemongrass and pandan leaves at my gathering parties. It has somewhat become my signature drink among friends. Improvising on this leads to a jelly recipe I saw in Forest Leong's Thai Cookbook. Forest Leong is local celebrity chef Sam Leong's wife. She is Thai and one of the sweetest ladies I have ever met. I have attended one of her cooking classes and her instructions were clear and she was eager to impart knowledge.

The concoction, gelled with gelatine and served with a squirt of lime juice and a dollop of Lime Sorbet is the ultimate chill out dessert for today's hot and humid weather. I thought I could even sense a breeze blowing as I dug into the jello...

Lemongrass 2(100)
Recipe (adapted from Forest Leong's Cooking Classics, Thailand)

Lemon grass           10 stalks, bruised and chopped
Kaffir Lime leaf       4-5
Pandan leaves         3, knotted
Mint leaves             a handful
Water                     3 litre
Gelatine powder     40g
Sugar                      200g (I cut it down by half)
Lime                       1

Method :

1. Bring Lemon grass, kaffir lime leaf, pandan leaves and mint leaves and water to boil. Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour.

2. Remove from heat and strain out the leaves. Continue to heat the strained liquid while adding sugar and gelatine powder. Stir well until sugar is completely dissolved .

3. Pour into container to cool down. Chill in fridge to solidify jelly.

4. Scoop out jelly into serving bowls and top with lime sorbet, lime zest and a squirt of lime juice.

22 comments:

Zurin said...

Oh yes the lemon grass stalks do look clean and young! I wonder if the frangrance of those in Malaysia are as good as teh thai variety. thats interesting.

the jelly looks so refreshing Shirley. good on a hot day definitely.

La Table De Nana said...

The jelly looks so good~ We like lemongrass..my son in law bought some too..he experiments and is terrific at it..your photos have inspired me to look into this jelly..I think they had kaffir leaves at my store..I will bring a list next time..
Thank you for sharing the recipe..these are things I would not learn otherwise~

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Monique,glad that I can bring something different to the table. Do try it, it is so exotic, it is definitely going to delight and impress.

pierre said...

i love the flavour of lemongrass which can be used on every dish from appetizers to desserts !! cheers from Paris Pierre

zenchef said...

That looks fabulous, Shirley!
So refreshing. I wish you could teleport a big bowl to me right now. :)

I'm bookmarking it for when the weather gets warmer.

Kitchen Corner said...

WOW! Very special dessert! I must try it once I get the ingredients. This dessert looks so refreshing. Thanks for sharing this good one! Cheers!

Trissa said...

Lemongrass is horribly expensive in Australia! You're lucky to have been able to find some and make this fantastic jelly. Sounds like a very refreshing dessert.

WendyinKK said...

Ohhh.... I must try this one day.
I once tasted lemongrass tea in Bali and it was so good.

Irene's Footprints said...

Shirley
You can open a eatery...you have so much variations up there in your amazing kitchen!

The lemongrass looks sooooo fresh.
Bet you will stock up more on ur next visit.

: O

Ju (The Little Teochew) said...

That's a fantastic treat! I feel cooler already, just looking at it. LOL. The lemongrass you bought sure looks a lot fresher than the ones we have back home ... usually darkened and dry. The lime sorbet on top is brilliant!

MaryMoh said...

Looks very refreshing and delicious. Would be great for summer.

Passionate About Baking said...

Hi Shirley,
I've always been a great fan of lemongrass. However, I don't know how else to use them except for a refreshing drink or curries. This lemongrass jelly looks really good! Thanks for sharing!

tigerfish said...

It is so hot these days that such refreshing jellies work magic.

The lemongrass you brought back from Bangkok looks very fresh indeed.

M. said...

I love lemongrass, it is so flavorful, this jelly recipe sounds really refreshing.

tasteofbeirut said...

I just discovered your blog: beautiful pictures, I am impressed; love the titbits about Singapour, my brother and his family live there and I like to find out small details like the weather and stores and products and such.
Great recipe, I would have never thought of it in a million years!

Anonymous said...

Very interesting!! I love to try lemongrass in sweet desserts.

Patty said...

Wow your photography is fantastic it really captures the colors and textures perfectly! I can't wait to try out this recipe thanks for posting!

Linda said...

It looks so refreshing! Definitely great for summer! :) Too bad lemongrass is not readily available here in Massachusetts.

Shirley @ Kokken69 said...

Linda, thanks for dropping by. You may want to check out the Asian food supply stores - You may be pleasantly suprised by what they have there..

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

Hehe Shirley this is so serendipitous! I bought 5 sticks of lemongrass and I have no idea why! LOL They are sitting in my fridge waiting for a magical fate-something like this perhaps! :)

Terrianne said...

Wow! What interesting recipes and beautiful photos you have. I'm eager to try out new flavors. You have a lot of ideas for me. Thanks!

Fred said...

I have never made marmalade before but have some citrus trees in the backyard that have produced a lot of fruit so I thought I would try. I followed the recipe but used limes, navel oranges, lemons and lemonade fruit from the backyard.

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