Hi,
Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic. We garden
and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how to use it for cooking
( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon grass for currys etc ) . It
seems very very tough - any help and advise would be appreciated.Thanks

just us wrote:
> Hi,
> Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic. We
> garden and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how to use
> it for cooking ( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon grass for
> currys etc ) . It seems very very tough - any help and advise would
> be appreciated.Thanks

Hi

I can't help with your query but I just wanted to say welcome

Ophelia

just us wrote:
> Hi,
> Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic. We
> garden and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how to use
> it for cooking ( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon grass for
> currys etc ) . It seems very very tough - any help and advise would
> be appreciated.Thanks

I use it with coconut milk and remove it before serving. I grow it, too.

kili

On Sun, 22 Jun 2008 08:06:25 -0400, "kilikini"
> wrote:

>just us wrote:
>> Hi,
>> Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic. We
>> garden and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how to use
>> it for cooking ( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon grass for
>> currys etc ) . It seems very very tough - any help and advise would
>> be appreciated.Thanks
>
>I use it with coconut milk and remove it before serving. I grow it, too.
>
I've never cooked with it, but I think I remember seeing a tv cook
take a hammer or mallet to it. Is that what you do?


--
I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number of carats in a diamond.

Mae West

sf wrote:
> On Sun, 22 Jun 2008 08:06:25 -0400, "kilikini"
> > wrote:
>
>> just us wrote:
>>> Hi,
>>> Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic. We
>>> garden and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how to use
>>> it for cooking ( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon grass for
>>> currys etc ) . It seems very very tough - any help and advise would
>>> be appreciated.Thanks
>>
>> I use it with coconut milk and remove it before serving. I grow it,
>> too.
>>
> I've never cooked with it, but I think I remember seeing a tv cook
> take a hammer or mallet to it. Is that what you do?

I just toss it in with whatever I'm simmering. I use it like a bay leaf.
Does that make sense?

kili

On Sun, 22 Jun 2008 10:44:59 -0400, "kilikini"
> wrote:

>sf wrote:
>> On Sun, 22 Jun 2008 08:06:25 -0400, "kilikini"
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> just us wrote:
>>>> Hi,
>>>> Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic. We
>>>> garden and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how to use
>>>> it for cooking ( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon grass for
>>>> currys etc ) . It seems very very tough - any help and advise would
>>>> be appreciated.Thanks
>>>
>>> I use it with coconut milk and remove it before serving. I grow it,
>>> too.
>>>
>> I've never cooked with it, but I think I remember seeing a tv cook
>> take a hammer or mallet to it. Is that what you do?
>
>I just toss it in with whatever I'm simmering. I use it like a bay leaf.
>Does that make sense?
>
Meaning you take it out before serving. So you don't bruise it in any
way? Are you using particularly young shoots?

I should try growing some, how much cold can they take? How much
water do they need? Remember, this area doesn't get much (any) summer
rain.



--
I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number of carats in a diamond.

Mae West

sf wrote:
> On Sun, 22 Jun 2008 10:44:59 -0400, "kilikini"
> > wrote:
>
>> sf wrote:
>>> On Sun, 22 Jun 2008 08:06:25 -0400, "kilikini"
>>> > wrote:
>>>
>>>> just us wrote:
>>>>> Hi,
>>>>> Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic.
>>>>> We garden and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how
>>>>> to use it for cooking ( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon
>>>>> grass for currys etc ) . It seems very very tough - any help and
>>>>> advise would be appreciated.Thanks
>>>>
>>>> I use it with coconut milk and remove it before serving. I grow
>>>> it, too.
>>>>
>>> I've never cooked with it, but I think I remember seeing a tv cook
>>> take a hammer or mallet to it. Is that what you do?
>>
>> I just toss it in with whatever I'm simmering. I use it like a bay
>> leaf. Does that make sense?
>>
> Meaning you take it out before serving. So you don't bruise it in any
> way? Are you using particularly young shoots?
>
> I should try growing some, how much cold can they take? How much
> water do they need? Remember, this area doesn't get much (any) summer
> rain.

Well, it does like water and mine is in a planted in a pot, so I'm not sure
how it would differ from being in the ground. But, no, I don't bruise it
before I use it in a dish. I treat it exactly as I would a bay leaf. Toss
a few blades in and remove before serving.

Not too long ago, my husband came home with a bag of live mussels. I was
racking my brain as to what to do with them and then I realized, tada! I
had coconut milk and lemongrass. Done deal.

Here's a picture of the lemongrass with onions, garlic and butter simmering
in a pot:
http://i31.tinypic.com/9jodch.jpg

The coconut milk added:
http://i29.tinypic.com/2val36w.jpg

The final dish (yes I didn't remove the lemongrass, but it's easily picked
out):
http://i31.tinypic.com/2bwv92.jpg

Afterwards I still had mussels and broth left over so I made a chowder out
of it sans lemongrass:
http://i31.tinypic.com/2vwy4d2.jpg

It was all yummy! :~)

kili

just us wrote:
> Hi,
> Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic. We garden
> and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how to use it for cooking
> ( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon grass for currys etc ) . It
> seems very very tough - any help and advise would be appreciated.Thanks

I took a curry-cooking class and the instructor told us to bruise the
lemongrass stalk by whacking it with the back of the knife, then put it
into the curry dish, to be removed before serving. That's the way I've
done it since, and it seems to be working well.

Serene

"Michael \"Dog3\"" > wrote in
:

> "just us" >
> : in rec.food.cooking
>
>> Hi,
>> Am new to this group so I hope I am not going over an old topic. We
>> garden and have lemon grass growing. I am not really sure how to use
>> it for cooking ( have in the past bought pre crushed lemon grass for
>> currys etc ) . It seems very very tough - any help and advise would
>> be appreciated.Thanks
>
> Use it as a flavor enhancer. I don't think I've actually eaten it as
> is. I have infused it with oil to use in wok cooking and I've used it
> to flavor stock but the grass part is removed prior to cooking.
>
> Michael
>

Bruising the lemon grass with blows from the back of a largish knife
helps to release the flavour, peeling off the outer dried out layers is
also very important.

--

The house of the burning beet-Alan