Makrut lime leaves

Flavour and aroma

intense lime zest, floral, fresh.

Heat

No heat

Forms

fresh, frozen, dried

How to use it

• infuse · Simmering technique

  Tear or crush whole leaves and add to curries and soups for the last 5–10 minutes; remove before serving or leave as a garnish not meant to be eaten.

• use raw

  For salads, fishcakes and stir-fries, strip out the central rib, stack the leaves, roll tightly and slice into hair-thin shreds; thick pieces are tough.

• crush · Dry grinding technique

  Pound finely sliced leaf into curry pastes.

• Thai curries and curry pastes
• Tom yum and tom kha soups
• Shredded into fishcakes and salads
• Indonesian rendang and sambals

Identifying good quality

Glossy, dark green leaves shaped like two leaves joined end to end (a figure-of-eight). Crushed, they smell intensely of lime peel. Fresh or frozen leaves are much better than dried.

• Not to be confused with Bay leaves: Bay leaves are single, matt and smell of eucalyptus; makrut leaves are double, glossy and smell of lime.

Origin and history

Origin: Southeast Asia (Citrus hystrix).. Grown and used: Grown across Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos and Cambodia; used in their cooking and sold fresh, frozen and dried elsewhere..

Makrut lime leaves are a traditional aromatic of Thai, Lao, Cambodian and Indonesian cooking, used in curries, soups such as tom yum and tom kha, and fishcakes. The older English name 'kaffir lime' is now widely avoided because 'kaffir' is a racial slur in South Africa; 'makrut' is the Thai name.

Well documented

In masalas, pastes and sauces

• Sambal matahSauce1.2 g per batch
• Bumbu kacang (peanut satay sauce)Sauce0.6 g per batch