If you do any Thai or Vietnamese cooking, you’ve undoubtedly run into recipes calling for lemongrass. Maybe you just skip it, or substitute a little lemon or lime juice hoping to achieve a similar result. There’s no reason to shy away from this grassy herb. It’s relatively inexpensive, available at most groceries and any market that provides ingredients for Asian cuisines. Sometimes you’ll find individual stalks and sometimes you’ll find several stalks bundled together. Choose the freshest looking lemongrass you can find.
Once you get it home, how do you use it in your cooking? A stalk of lemongrass is like a leek. The usable part is the light green or white lower stalk. The outer leaves, base and the top of the lemongrass are not used in recipes, although they can lend their flavor to a pot of chicken broth.
Because lemongrass is a product of tropical climates, it seems almost seasonless. But Karen Chong, Asian produce and grocery buyer for the Buford Highway Farmers Market, says fall, winter and spring are prime time for lemongrass. Most of her lemongrass is grown in northern California. In the summer, the price is at its highest for the year.
You can grow lemongrass from seed, but the easiest thing to do is to buy a few extra stalks and put them into water like flowers in a vase. In a few weeks the base will sprout and you’re ready to plant several stalks together in a container. Your lemongrass will be happiest in bright sun and warm temperatures and will reward you by multiplying. You can harvest it by cutting off an outside stalk or two.
Chong finds lemongrass is particularly popular with the market’s Vietnamese, Laotian and Thai customers. In addition to adding flavor to soups and curries, she says lemongrass is used for making a cleansing tea, and that some believe it will repel snakes and ghosts.
Bill Schroeder, Buford Highway Farmers Market’s “culinary guide”, suggests that you stock up when you find lemongrass at a good price. “Well wrapped, it will hold in the freezer for several weeks, or clean it up for cooking and then freeze the chopped pieces. You use it right from the freezer,” he said.
Schroeder also notes that lemongrass is extremely fibrous and even finely chopped pieces can be a little stringy. For those who like the flavor of lemongrass but find the texture too tough and chewy, he has a suggestion: “In that instance slice the lemongrass thinly and add to recipe to infuse the flavor with long slow cooking, like soups and curries. Either remove before serving or instruct [your guests] to remove while eating,” he said.
Before taking his job at the market, Schroeder owned Roswell’s PanAsia Bistro, where he used lemongrass extensively in Thai coconut soup, stir fries and curries. He provided us with the lemongrass marinade and stir fry recipes below and offered a few quick tips for successful stir frying.
• Stir frying requires high heat throughout the cooking. Adding too many ingredients to the pan will lower the heat and your stir fry will be soggy.
• You don’t need a wok to make a stir fry. Your usual sauté pan will work fine, and you won’t be heating a bigger pan than you need.
• The secret is to cut your meat into relatively large pieces. Gently lower each piece individually into the hot oil and cook on one side before flipping to cook the other side. Once the meat is done, you can add the vegetables and then the sauce. The pan will stay hot and the ingredients will cook quickly and evenly.
At local farmers markets
Local markets with winter hours
Dacula Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., Saturdays. www.ranchoalegrefarm.com
Decatur Farmers Market, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Saturdays,3-6 p.m. Wednesdays. www.decaturfarmersmarket.com
Dunwoody Green Market, some vendors take pre-orders and deliver 10:30 a.m.-noon Wednesdays. www.dunwoodygreenmarket.com
Emory Farmers Market, noon-5.p.m., Tuesdays during school year. www.emory.edu/dining/emory_farmers_market.php
Morningside Farmers’ Market, 8-11:30 a.m. Saturdays. www.morningsidemarket.com
For sale
Vegetables: Asian greens, cherry tomatoes, cilantro, collards, green onions, kale, lettuce, mache, microgreens, parsley, radishes, sweet potatoes, turnips
From local reports
Lemongrass Beef Stir Fry
Hands on: 15 minutes
Total time: 15 minutes, plus marinating time
Serves: 2
This recipe is meant as a guide. Substitute any vegetables you like and have on hand. Change the protein to pork, chicken, seafood or tofu. Schroeder suggests serving with rice or gingered Korean sweet potatoes. For the prettiest presentation, he suggests “stacking” the stir fry by putting a little on the plate, then stacking a little more on top, then a little more on top of that.
1/2 (half) pound sirloin steak, trimmed, cut into strips 1/2{half)-inch-by-2-inches and 1/4(quarter)-inch thick
3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons Lemongrass Marinade (see recipe)
1 cup junior Shanghai bok choy, sliced in half (about 1/4 [quarter] pound)
1/2 (half) cup carrots, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 1 medium)
1/4 (quarter) cup sweet chili sauce
In a medium bowl, toss steak with 1 tablespoon oil to coat strips lightly. Add cornstarch and toss again to make an even coating. Add marinade, toss again and marinate beef at least 30 minutes. Can be prepared up to 1 day ahead of time and refrigerated.
When ready to cook, heat large skillet over high heat. Add remaining oil and when it is hot, carefully lay pieces of beef in the hot oil. Do not crowd the pan. Cook in batches if needed. Cook until top of beef strips begins to look cooked, about 2 minutes, and turn to brown the other side. Cook on second side 1 minute, then remove from pan and keep warm. Continue with remaining beef.
To the same hot skillet, add bok choy and carrots. Stir and shake skillet to keep vegetables moving. When color begins to brighten, about 2 minutes, add sweet chili sauce and stir to coat. Heat until sauce begins to boil and vegetables are bright with color, about 2 minutes. Do not overcook. Return beef to skillet, toss to combine and serve.
Per serving: 490 calories (percent of calories from fat, 67), 23 grams protein, 17 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 37 grams fat (9 grams saturated), 72 milligrams cholesterol, 143 milligrams sodium.
Lemongrass Marinade
Hands on: 10 minutes
Total time: 10 minutes
Makes 1 cup
7 stalks lemongrass
1 large green onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic
1-inch piece ginger, peeled, coarsely chopped
1/2 (half) jalapeno, seeded and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 1/2 (one and a half) tablespoons oyster sauce
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon chile sauce, or to taste
Juice and zest of one lime
Prepare the lemongrass by trimming the top down to the white lower stalk. Cut off the root end, trim off any dried outer layers. Coarsely chop the remaining tender white portion. The trimmings can be saved to flavor a chicken stock.
In the jar of a blender, combine chopped lemongrass, green onion, garlic, ginger, jalapeno, fish sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, chile sauce and lime juice and zest. Process until smooth. Store in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Per 2-tablespoon serving: 22 calories (percent of calories from fat, 29), trace protein, 3 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, 1 gram fat (trace saturated fat), 1 milligram cholesterol, 22 milligrams sodium.
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