Kaffir lime

The kaffir lime belongs to the citrus family

The Kaffirlime is a small tree or shrub that grows in Southeast Asia. They are particularly widespread in Thailand. However, they are also cultivated in Malaysia and Indonesia.

Thorns about 3 cm long grow on the stems. The leaves look as if they are divided in two, they are dark green and shiny.

They smell strongly of lemon, similar to the leaves of the lemon tree, so they can be replaced by lemongrass, lemons, or limes. The fruits look like a cross between limes and lemons but have rougher skin and almost no juice. They are green when unripe and turn yellow when ripe.

I have a small plant in a pot; in summer, I leave it outside in the garden, and in winter, I take it indoors. That way I always have fresh, aromatic leaves for my Thai dishes. Unfortunately, it hasn’t produced any flowers or fruit yet.

In Asia, the kaffir lime peel is used in cooking, but in Europe, only the leaves can be found and even these are usually only dried.

It is mainly used in Thai and Indonesian cuisine for soups, curries, chicken, and fish. The whole leaves give off their wonderful aroma but are not eaten as they remain tough. In Thai green curry paste, the leaves are crushed and ground, and then eaten.

Perhaps you have already eaten a dish with kaffir lime for example a green Thai curry.

They are a MUST in green curry pastes. I have a recipe for a vegetarian version. Yes, in Thailand the curry paste usually contains dried prawns.

You can also use kaffir limes for desserts, for example, Ginger-kaffir lime-orange mousse. Or for ice cream.

Kaffir lime oil is used in the perfume industry.

What do you do with kaffir limes?