Lemongrass is a pungent herb with the potential add bitter notes to a dish and blanching can help to prevent that.

If you’d like a strong lemongrass flavor, add minced lemongrass at the start of cooking, browning it along with the other aromatics.

Using a rolling pin or meat mallet, whack down the core to bruise it.

Do you want to learn how to cook with lemongrass? The outer stalk of lemongrass is too woody to be eaten, but the bulbous inner core from the lower portion of the plant can be prepared in a number of ways. Typically lemongrass is used in Asian cuisines. Lemongrass is widely used in coconut-based curries, but is great in sweet and savoury dishes, as well as beverages. Lemongrass tea is soothing, citrusy, and absolutely delicious. Lemongrass is a tropical variety of grass with a sweet, lemony scent. Some species (particularly Cymbopogon citratus) are commonly cultivated as culinary and medicinal herbs because of their scent, resembling that of lemons (Citrus limon). However, in Vietnamese cooking, they use lemongrass a bit differently. After placing the lemongrass into boiling water for about a minute, remove it and place into ice water to cool it down. Peel off the tough layers, as you would peel a scallion, to get to the pale, compact inner core. How to cook with lemongrass. Lemongrass, also called fever grass, is a perennial plant with thin, long leaves that are indigenous to many Asian countries. This 15 minute lemongrass tofu recipe infuses lemongrass to make it fresh and light. It's not actually tea, since it's made from lemongrass stalks instead of tea leaves, but this herbal beverage is perfect served hot or cold. How to Make Lemongrass Tea. It is particularly associated with Thai and South East Asian cooking. How To Buy & Prepare Lemongrass. We’ll try looping some of the leaves into rings and hanging them to dry. With its strong citrusy aroma and light lemon flavor, lemongrass is a cook's friend in dishes beyond the curries with which it's most associated. Lemongrass: A Little Background. In Thai cuisine, you generally throw the whole stick of lemongrass into a soup or curry to infuse it with flavour. However, in Vietnamese cooking, they use lemongrass a bit differently. Whole freeze-dried … It is typically sold fresh, but it's also available dried and powdered. When you’re ready to cook with your lemongrass, peel away and discard any dry, papery, or bruised outer layers from the stalks, then use a sharp knife or cleaver to trim away the bottom root end, and cut off the woody top two-thirds of each stalk as well so you’re left with 5 or 6 inches. How to Use Fresh Lemongrass. Lemongrass is easier to prepare than you think! As the name implies, lemongrass smells like lemon, but it tastes milder and sweeter. Because lemongrass freezes well, it is often sold in frozen packets of about six to eight stalks. Our lemongrass plant had an unfortunate run-in with a gust of of wind, resulting in a few snapped stems and a whole heck of a lot of leaves. This 15 minute lemongrass tofu recipe infuses lemongrass to make it fresh and light. In Thai cuisine, you generally throw the whole stick of lemongrass into a soup or curry to infuse it with flavour. To use whole, slice off the very bottom of the stalk, and peel off any dried-out layers, then bash the woody top end with a rolling pin to soften, and help release some of the aromatic oils. Citral is also found in the oil of regular lemons, and lemon zest or juice can be used as substitute for lemongrass, but the flavor is decidedly different. By Shreya Srivastava. Cymbopogon, also known as lemongrass, barbed wire grass, silky heads, Cochin grass or Malabar grass or oily heads, is a genus of Asian, African, Australian, and tropical island plants in the grass family. Lemon grass is a tropical grass with a lemony scent and taste that's used in cooking. Lemongrass features in Indonesian, Malaysian, Sri Lankan and Indian cooking and is widely used in savoury dishes and meat, poultry, seafood and vegetable curries. This releases the oils in the stalk that provide the lemongrass flavor. How to Use Lemon Grass. You can use lemongrass whole, sliced or pounded to a paste. Source: How to Cook with Lemongrass… About Lemongrass. Confession: I was afraid to cook with lemongrass up until our trip to Vietnam. It is particularly associated with Thai and South East Asian cooking. For a lighter, fresher lemongrass flavor, add it near the end of cooking.