Last month, I started an experiment to see if I can make preserved lemons. These are often used (chopped up with the peel and all) in Moroccan cuisine, and they taste very nice. It was my lunch at Baraka in San Francisco's Potrero Hill which made me appreciate it so much. The lemon recipes you find on the web are a bit confusing. Here's an example of part of the recipe from the Seasonal Chef:
Set a lemon on one end and make a vertical cut three quarters of the way through the fruit, so that the two halves remain attached at the base. Do not cut in it half. Turn the lemon upside down and make a second vertical cut at a 90-degree angle to the first, again three quarters of the way through fruit.Well that makes no sense. If you stand it on end and make a vertical cut, then turn it upside down and make a second vertical cut, they won't be perpendicular, they will be parallel. But the idea is simple, salt a lemon inside and out, stuff them into a jar, press them down. They should be in a mixture of salt and a little lemon juice covering the entire thing. Leave them there for 1 month I think I had too much lemon juice to salt, since my lemons came out mushy. But they tasted nice! I already have made a Moroccan Chicken Tagine (without a tagine), with saffron, olives and preserved lemons. I'm having it for lunch at work today, but I tasted the sauce last night, and it's quite tasty.
Last month I also received a bunch of limes. I didn't really need them, so I decided to continue by citrus preserving experiments by trying to make Persian-style dried limes. I know that the things we call limes in the store are not what Persians call limes. In fact, they aren't the true limes. The true limes are the Mexican / Key limes / Persian limes. What is commonly sold in the stores in a cross between the true limes, and lemons. But I wanted to make do with what I had, and Google wasn't helping in my quest to learn how to dry a whole lime, so I called up my Persian friend Farhang, and asked him what to do. He had no idea, and neither did his wife. He did manage to find something on the internet which said to boil it in salt water, then dry it. Well, that seemed good enough for me. I boiled them in salt water for about 5 minutes, then left them on the balcony to sun-dry. It didn't work. After a few weeks, they all went bad. There must be a better way. But if I need them, I think I'll just go and buy them.
Posted by ahyatt at June 9, 2003 09:50 AMYou sir, have too much free time. Actually, I find that impossible, since you have twin babies, work a full-time job, read about a book a day and work out three times a week. And then there's that froth obsession ...
Personally, the problem I have with cooking is that I never want to spend more time making and cleaning up after a meal than I do eating it. That and I never start to think about eating until I'm starving and can't put it off any longer. Needless to say, I eat a lot of cereal and frozen burritos at home. Luckily, there are some good restaurants within a couple blocks of our house.
Posted by: Brian on June 10, 2003 11:46 PMHee hee! I concur with Brian!
Posted by: Greta (Andy's wife) on June 11, 2003 08:47 AMIf you think I have too much free time, check out this foodie blog:
http://www.obsessionwithfood.com/
I want to get invited to his parties, after reading that...
Have you seen the fotolog of the guy who photographs all his food?:
http://www.fotolog.net/cypher/
Posted by: Brian on June 13, 2003 09:45 PMBack in the 80's I dated this guy from Saudi Arabia. He taught me how to make Basmati rice adding whole cloves, cardamum and dried limes. I too have been wondering about the dried limes. I've never seen dried limes at the Whole Foods store and I haven't been to an Asian or Middle Eastern food store lately to find them. I would like to know how they are made? Back in the day, I made the Basmati rice at my parent's house. I forgot to remove the dried limes and my dad happened to get one in his plate. He scooped it up with his rice and pondered one moment as it was in his mouth but not wanting to be rude or question what was foreign to him, he swallowed it whole. My poor dad. When we realized what he'd done we all had a good laugh. He said he thought it was a mushroom:) We are of Mexican heritage so dried limes are not a usual spice in our cuisine. My mom still likes to try and make the Basmati rice from time to time but we have not been able to find dried limes. I think I can find a spice store online.
Posted by: Diane on March 14, 2004 09:43 AMHi my sister is an artists and she wants to to make a sculpture using lemons and limes. she asked me to find out how you dry whole lemons and limes out I thought you might be able to answer this question for my sis
Rachael
Posted by: Rachael on May 19, 2004 05:35 PMI personally can't think of a much better way to use your time, than to make good food for your family. Well done!
Do you by chance have any recipes for dried limes? I bought some for a watermelon salad, & have many left over. The flavor of these little gems made this salad.
Regards Scott.
Posted by: Scott on May 22, 2005 03:19 AMlook up a recipe for capsa/kabsah... a really good way to use dried limes... you will really be pleased with the results!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Annette on July 27, 2005 09:55 PM