Lemon in recipes
Let's take a look at the lemon, yellow or green, which is used in a whole host of recipes, both sweet and savoury. It brings both its taste, and the small acidity that makes its charm. Mind you, I'm not talking about lemon used as an anti-oxidant that prevents it from turning black, or to just spice up the taste of a dish, but as an ingredient in a recipe, like "something with lemon".
13 K 5/5 (14 reviews)
Last modified on: October 23th 2017
Lemon in recipes
In many of these recipes, you very often have two options: zest, or juice, meaning that you use one or the other in the recipe depending on the "tone" you want to give it. Let's say, to simplify things a bit, that when you want the tangy side of the lemon, you use the juice.
And when you want the lemony but more neutral tone, you use the zest.
Well... in principle it makes sense, but in reality it's not really a good practice, because lemon flavours are both complex and at the same time complementary. In fact, you should not limit yourself to one or the other, but try to combine both, both sweet and savoury.
Let's take a savoury example: lemon chicken. There are 36 ways to make it of course, but do you know the one where you simply pan-fry chicken fillets in a little clarified butter and lemon zest, then drizzle lemon juice over them at the end to finish them off by gently caramelising? The mix of the two, zest and juice, will give a very marked "lemon" tone to your chicken, and a great taste!
And a sweet example: the lemon tart. Here too, there are a large number of recipes, personally I am an absolute fan of the sanded pastry + lemon custard, and for the custard, you need to infuse the milk with the zest, and add lemon juice to the custard as soon as it's done cooking. You will also have a very, very marked "lemon" identity, which will have a small effect when tasting.
In summary: In a recipe that uses lemon, always try to use zest and juice.
And when you want the lemony but more neutral tone, you use the zest.
Well... in principle it makes sense, but in reality it's not really a good practice, because lemon flavours are both complex and at the same time complementary. In fact, you should not limit yourself to one or the other, but try to combine both, both sweet and savoury.
Let's take a savoury example: lemon chicken. There are 36 ways to make it of course, but do you know the one where you simply pan-fry chicken fillets in a little clarified butter and lemon zest, then drizzle lemon juice over them at the end to finish them off by gently caramelising? The mix of the two, zest and juice, will give a very marked "lemon" tone to your chicken, and a great taste!
And a sweet example: the lemon tart. Here too, there are a large number of recipes, personally I am an absolute fan of the sanded pastry + lemon custard, and for the custard, you need to infuse the milk with the zest, and add lemon juice to the custard as soon as it's done cooking. You will also have a very, very marked "lemon" identity, which will have a small effect when tasting.
In summary: In a recipe that uses lemon, always try to use zest and juice.
Lasts posts
The thermometer is your friend
There are many recipes or foods that require a (very) precise cooking temperature: foie gras, sugar for caramel, meats and fish, and not forgetting pastries. For these few examples, getting the cooking temperature wrong can spoil the whole recipe or dish: undercooked, it's no good or misses the...April 10th 20251,0485
Travel cakes
You may have come across the term "travel cakes" ("gateaux de voyage" in french) for certain pastries, so let's take a look at what they're all about.January 27th 20252,806
The aromatic power of sugar
In the kitchen, sugar doesn't just sweeten, it also has an exceptional ability to capture flavors. Combined with aromatic ingredients, such as citrus zest, it acts as a veritable sponge for aromas. By taking the time to let the sugar soak up the flavors, you can transform your desserts, making...December 25th 20243,2105
The little trap of thick cream
When you need to add cream to a recipe, you might be wondering: thick (heavy) cream or liquid cream? In most cases, there's no big difference: you can use either. But there is one exception, and that's when the cream needs to be cooked, for a sauce for example, and here the difference between...December 13th 20243,4245
Sauce and salad: When and how to mix them?
When dressing a salad, there's a kind of golden rule: add the dressing very shortly before serving, especially if your salad contains crunchy elements such as croutons or fresh vegetables, which will retain their crunchiness or crispiness. But, as is often the case in the kitchen, there are...November 29th 20243,5535
Other pages you may also like
Is it really necessary to cream egg yolks?
Let’s try and answer a question that crops up in cookery and patisserie, even if it verges on the existential: do the egg yolks in a custard recipe really need to be beaten until pale, or not?February 28th 201840 K4.3
The skin of the almonds
If you like almonds, in their dried fruit version, you must use them quite often in cooking or baking, whether powdered or whole. It is not obvious, but in fact there is 2 kinds of almonds in the market, wholesale with or without the skin. .February 8th 202020 K4.7
Cleaning endives
If you buy your endives elsewhere than in supermarkets, and in this case the best is of course from a market gardener, he or she is the one who planted and harvested them, in this case you will have endives full of earth or sand, depending on where they were grown, which is normal and reassuring, we...March 24th 202022 K4.6
Should I believe my oven?
Can you really trust your oven? This is an important question as we are always tempted to take the temperature indicated as gospel truth and, unfortunately, this is rarely very precise. .July 4th 201129 K4.6
Markers in cooking
When it comes to cooking, there is only one real rule, and that is that there are no rules! By that I mean that everything is possible, everything can be combined, everything or almost everything can go with everything, but you have to like it, you have to find it good. I have friends who...July 3rd 20218,9425
Post a comment or question
Follow this page (as 2 people already do)
If you are interested in this page, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the page is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.