It’s everywhere, in the latest chef recipes, on cocktail menus, cookbooks, creative cooking menus, but…what is lemongrass?
Lemongrass—or lemon herb, and many of the other names it goes by in different parts of the world—is a plant from the hot and humid regions of Asia, mostly India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, or Vietnam. It is similar looking to leeks but more rigid and with a flavor closer to citrus fruits compared to other vegetables like lettuce—although it also has a bittersweet taste. Its main gastronomic uses are mostly for teas or soups and curries, as salad dressing, or sauces or marinades, and also as a garnish on dishes featuring seafood. In order to prepare it, you must pull away the external leaves—which are very rigid—until you reach the heart of the lemongrass, which is white. Raw, it is rather spicy, so it must be used cautiously in our dishes.
If you now are really interested in tasting lemongrass, we recommend that you look in your Latin American or Asian sections in your supermarket, perhaps you will find it there and can begin to experiment with lemongrass and become part of this trend that seems it has come to stay.