Lemongrass ~
Dig into a thick lemongrass stem and the sweet and effervescent aroma of citrus-lime obliterates everything else. It is a comforting and lingering perfume reminiscent of the kitchens and gardens of tropical Asia. Although it can be used in many combinations, care should be taken not to overpower this scent with too much shrimp paste or other invasive aromas.
The lemongrass I was familiar with at home was the one we grew in our backyard in Malaysia. As a child, I helped to prepare the pastes used to make curries, long before I set off for school. A favorite chore of mine was to cut one or two plump stalks from the clump, remove the outer skins and then grind them in a mortar. The strong scent of this herb would fill my nostrils and cover my hands, leaving the citrusy oils on my palms for the rest of the day. What a wonderful difference from the sharp aromas of garlic and ginger that I normally had to work with! I often wore the perfumes from my garden to school. Lemongrass was naturally my favorite scent.
When I moved to Australia, my mother couldn’t bring in fresh lemongrass. She used to brine the stalks and bring them in as salted pickles so that we could make curry pastes from these brined herbs. This was never satisfactory but we managed as best we could. Imagine my delight and surprise when I whiffed the delicious citrusy scent of lemongrass as I walked past the school ground—one of my Vietnamese students in Canley Vale was savoring a bowl of noodles with the aroma of fresh lemongrass. It used to surprise me when I found out that people in Perth drank lemongrass tea.
Lemongrass has been in Asia for centuries, growing wild on the fringes of the tropical forests. Locals must have discovered their scented lemon aroma, perhaps by brushing against the leaves of the main clump that would have grown like tropical elephant grass. Today, this citrus-scented, lemony herb is used all over the world wherever Thai and other Southeast Asian foods are cooked.
The fragrant grass grows in clumps to a height of 20 in (50 cm). The lemony aroma comes from the tightly-packed, creamy-colored lower part of the stem and up to 4 in (10 cm) of the stalk; these have the most flavor and aroma. Lemongrass should be used when fresh and juicy; once the stems dry out they lose their aroma and flavor and appear woody. The thinner top leaves may be used for tea or for a soup stock (as I found out a long time ago). If lemongrass is your favorite herb, you can grow it in pots and use it throughout the year.
Purchasing: Choose firm stems that end in fat bulbs with no signs of wilting.
Culinary uses: Lemongrass is ground with garlic, galangal, onion and chili pepper into a paste used to make curries and soups. Its distinctive aroma is best complemented with the use of coconut milk. Very finely-sliced lemongrass is often used raw in salads and bruised lengths of the stem are also added to some soups and curries for flavoring. The entire stem, trimmed to a point, can also be used as an aromatic skewer for grilling meats and seafood. In Thai, Cambodian and Laotian temples, lemongrass tea has been served for years as a calmative. Dried lemongrass stems are also used in cupboards and meat safes as an insect repellent. Replace after two months.
Preparation: Use only the inner part of the thick bulb of the stem (the bottom one-third of the stem). Peel off and discard the tough outer leaves to get to the portion, then bruise, slice, chop or grind as directed in the recipe.
Storing: Stand the stems in a glass with their ends in water and keep in a warm place, or wrap stalks of them in paper towels and refrigerate. Lemongrass keeps for 2 weeks in this manner. Do not freeze them.
Substitutes: Sliced lime leaves or sliced lime or lemon rind can be substituted.
Mint ~
A breath freshener and a touch of spring—all in a mint leaf. As one of the most favored herbs—I have found mint invaluable when cooking Indian food—it is not only used in pharmaceutical products such as toothpaste and mouth-fresheners, lotions and bath soaps, but has even invaded the massage tables of spas. It is impossible to imagine that mint has taken on such importance from being a humble aromatic herb that grows wild near taps and garden hoses. Unchecked mint plants can become invasive in temperate gardens. For a long time, mint has always been a very useful and prized herb in Asia, used not only in cooking but also as an insect repellent and potpourri in the cupboards of Nonyas (Straits Chinese) in Malacca.
There are many varieties of mint; peppermint and spearmint are the most common. Peppermint has a strong, true mint flavor and is used mainly in pharmaceuticals and candy. Asians prefer the type of mint which has dark-green, crinkly round leaves, sometimes called Moroccan mint. Asians also use spearmint—the Vietnamese add them to bowls of pho noodles while Thais use them for stuffing fish or cooking shrimp. In this book, spearmint is used in the recipe for Grilled Beef Parcels with Thai Herbs (page 34).
Purchasing: Look for fresh leaves on green stems, with strong aromas of mint.
Culinary uses: Mint often forms a part of Asian table salads and is used as a garnish for laksa and curries, especially those made with fish. It is also an ingredient in Vietnamese spring rolls. Mint Pesto (page 30) can be made with mint as the main ingredient instead of curry leaves. You may have to use a dash of lime juice to keep the refreshing flavors intact. Mint is also a well-known calmative and a cure for nausea. A little mint infused in hot water for 2 minutes is an ideal drink to have when you’re stressed.
Preparation: Pull the leaves from the stems just before using and always garnish with whole leaves unless otherwise stated in the recipe.
Storing: Mint leaves keep well when left on the stem. Wrap the mint leaves in paper towels enclosed in a plastic bag and refrigerate as you would other herbs.
Substitute: Use 1 tablespoon dried mint leaves in place of 1/4 cup (10 g) fresh leaves.
Pandanus leaves ~ daun pandan
Pandanus leaves, described as the “vanilla of the East,” have been used for generations because their subtle grassy fragrance combine with the freshness of mint and rich coconut. Though a member of the pandanus palm family, this plant is a far cry from the stiff and thorny cactus-like spikes of the pandanus. The glossy green domestic pandanus leaves are narrow, spear-like and pliant, with a firm central vein. Their distinctive and subtle grassy aroma is only released when the leaves are bruised, twisted or ground into a paste.
Pandanus leaves grow in small clumps in domestic gardens in Southeast Asia, where they are used in a variety of dishes—from drinks, jellies, meat and fish dishes to rice dishes and desserts—and also in many domestic applications. Asians are fond of green colored foods and drinks dyed with pandanus juice pressed from the ground pandanus leaves. As a child, I used to be intrigued by my mother’s Nonya friends and their pandanus-perfumed face powder. The powder was made from rice flour ground in an intricate process until it was so fine it could pass through the finest muslin. The pandanus juice was then added and the strained drops piped onto sheets of greaseproof paper where they would be dried in the sun. To use it, they mixed a little bit of water with a drop of the rice powder and spread it on the face. You could always tell a true Nonya lady from the subtle perfume of the pandanus rice powder that she wore. In my memory, this is the aroma of hospitality, of New Year cakes and good cooking.
The Fragrant Pandanus Coconut Rice (nasi lemak — see page 103) served with various sambals in Malaysia, Indonesia and the rest of Southeast Asia is often perfumed with the addition of pandanus leaf, which is added to the rice as it cooks.
Purchasing:
