KAFFIR LIME LEAVES
| Botanical name: |
Citrus hystrix |
| Family: |
Rutaceae |
| Other names: |
Papeda |
The Kaffir Lime tree is a south-east Asian citrus plant whose aromatic leaves
play an important role in Thai cuisine. They impart a unique flavour that has
become synonymous with Thai cooking. Kaffir Lime leaves are used in many various
dishes in the south-east Asian countries of Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia.
The leaves have a strong and clean lime/lemon fragrance and flavour which can
not be easily substituted with other citrus products. They are most commonly used
in soups, fish, chicken, laksa, salads, curries and stir-fries. Some well-known
Thai dishes that use the Kaffir Lime Leaves are Tom Yum, a hot and sour soup,
and sambel, a spicy sauce. The leaves have been used for centuries to preserve
foods and make cooking dishes more appetising.
Thai women have been famous through the ages for their wonderfully silky and
clean hair. Traditionally they use the juice of the Kaffir Lime to wash their
hair which leaves it clean and smelling fresh. The acid of the juice tightens
the hair cuticle and makes the hair silky smooth, and the natural fragrance of
the juice leaves the hair smelling fresh and clean.
The dark green and glossy leaves of this tree grow in doubles and look like
two separate leaves joined end to end. The tree itself is very thorny, making
the hand-picking of the leaves a very slow process.
The fresh leaves have a shelf-life of 30 days, but can be kept frozen for many
months - and there is no need to defrost, just use as normal. The leaves can be
used whole or finely sliced or if required we can also provide the leaves dehumidified
and finely milled which has a shelf-life of twelve months. Whole leaves are generally
used as one would use bay leaves to flavour a broth or stew. So that their strong
flavour is more evenly distributed the finely sliced or milled leaves should be
added to salads, stir-fries and curries.
Our leaves are grown and hand-picked in a boutique plantation in northern New
South Wales without the use of any chemicals insecticides or fungicides. This
product is suitable for Vegans, Coeliacs, Lactovegetarians, and Ovo-Lacto-Vegetarians
and does not contain any GM material.
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