So often when we look for a way to convey freshness, we reach for a member of the citrus family. We drink fresh-squeezed orange juice to start the day. “Lemon†and “fresh†have become synonymous, something to look for in fresh laundered sheets and sparkling just-washed dishes. In southern Spain, orange trees grow in the street and in rows in courtyards, displaying fruit and scented blossom against glossy green leaves, to freshen and beautify the heavily hot days.
And here, the citrus season comes right on cue to usher out the grey of winter.
Citrus covers such a wide range of taste experiences – from lemons preserved in salt to lemon meringue pie, classic duck a l’orange to marmalade, hot lime pickle to cool lime granita. Not to mention kumquats, grapefruit, blood oranges, mandarins and tangelos.
Surprisingly, tangelos have the brightest orange colour. Surprising, because they are the offspring of comparatively pale-skinned mandarin and grapefruit. This gives them a mandarin’s ease of peeling, the tang of grapefruit and the highest juice rating for all citrus fruits.
Weighty matters
Choose citrus fruit that feels heavy for its size – it’s an indication of its juiciness. The skin should be wrinkle-free and the fruit should smell fresh. Fruit that you can squeeze, but is not soft, will yield more juice. Mandarins that have too puffy or loose a skin may be dry.
Citrus will keep longer in the fridge, but then, a cheery, scented display of orange and lemon is to be sniffed at!
Lemons and limes
Many a Tasmanian backyard has a lemon tree; a flourishing lime tree is less likely given our frosty winters. Limes grow in the tropics and are thought to have originated in Malaya, whereas lemons and most of the citrus family spread west from China. The cuisines of Mexico, Tahiti and Asia are all influenced by their native limes.
Limes have one and a half times as much acid for equal weight as a lemon, so if substituting lemon for lime, use more lemon than the recipe stipulates. A squeeze of lime juice sharpens the flavour of tropical fruits such as avocado and papaya.
The limes grown commercially in Australia are Tahitian limes; the other main variety is Mexican limes. Tahitian limes are picked throughout the year but the bulk of the crop is ready from January to March, so at other times they are reasonably expensive.
Citrus species were first introduced into Australia in 1788 by members of the First Fleet, and Tahitian limes came from Brazil about 1824. Some 100 years later, botanists discovered six species of Australian native citrus. The two best known of these occur in the south-east Queensland rainforest, the finger lime and a round lime known as the Gympie lime.
Thai cooking often calls for kaffir lime leaves. These figure-eight-shaped leaves are sold fresh and can be frozen if you don’t use all the leaves in your dish. The leaves need to be crushed, chopped or bruised to release the full aroma.
A lemon a day
During the Age of Exploration, European mariners planted citrus trees along the trade routes in order to have fruit to prevent scurvy. Scurvy, caused by vitamin C deficiency, killed more sailors than any other peril of the high seas until 1700 when James Lind, a physician with the Royal Navy, discovered that the juice of lemons cured and prevented scurvy, after which English sailors became known as “limeysâ€.
In the Californian gold rush, a diet of salted meat and little or no fresh food meant miners quickly succumbed to scurvy too, until the word got out that citrus fruit prevented the illness and the price of lemons went through the roof to $1 each!
In our times, citrus is recommended, along with dark green leafy vegetables, to assure adequate levels of folic acid and decrease the risk of stroke by 30 per cent.
Always a-peeling
In citrus fruits, the aroma is in the oil in the skin, and the juice holds the flavour. For a full-strength citrus hit use both in a dish. But if only one is required, don’t waste the rest.
If you want only the juice or flesh, scrub to remove any wax and, before juicing, remove the rind in a long strip with a vegetable peeler. Leave it to dry in the kitchen for a few days, then freeze or put it in an air-tight container. Peel can be added to lamb, beef or game stews or Asian cooking or stored in caster sugar to impart a delicate flavour.
If the zest is what you are after, use a zester or a Microplane grater (available at Habitat) to remove the aromatic rind from citrus fruits. These gadgets will prevent the white, bitter pith being grated along with the rind.
Extract the juice and freeze (or drink) it straight away, because the fruit will not last long without its protective skin. You will get more juice from citrus if it is heated first – rolled, microwaved for 30 seconds or stood in hot water for a few minutes.
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