Preserved Kaffir Limes

Kaffir limes (makrut in Thai) are an important part of Thai cuisine. They are a separate species in the genus Citrus from the conventional lime. The leaves are two-lobed. The fruit is smaller than a Persian lime and knobbly, with thick rind and very little juice. Both the leaves and the fruit are very fragrant with a distinctive aroma. The fresh leaves (bai makrut) are used in many Thai soups and dishes. The rind is a key ingredient in Thai curry pastes. Fresh kaffir lime leaves are pretty easy to find; the limes themselves are hard to find in the US. There is a far larger market for the leaves and most growers pick off and discard the fruit after flowering to encourage the trees to produce more leaves. Most recipes for Thai curry pastes call for kaffir lime leaves rather than rind because the limes are so hard to find.

importfood.com, a grocery website specializing in Thai spices, sauces, condiments, and produce, sells fresh kaffir lime leaves. Fortunately they freeze well. They also get an allotment of whole kaffir limes once a year. I bought some once, but I found that they don't freeze all that well and, anyway, I've stopped making my own Thai curry pastes because there are commercial producers (especially Mae Pranom) who do a much better job than I do.

I'm a big fan of Moroccan-style preserved lemons. The thick rinds of kaffir limes got me thinking that the Moroccan salt-preserving technique could be applied to kaffir limes and one might be able to make dishes such as tagine that will get that wonderful kaffir lime scent and flavor. Yesterday I took delivery on the kaffir limes. Soon I'll be making Moroccan-style preserved limes from them. I will be adding conventional limes as necessary to get the appropriate amount of lime juice.

-Paul W.

Yesterday I prepared a batch of 20 kaffir limes preserved Moroccan-style. With lemons the procedure is to quarter each lemon vertically but leave the quarters attached at the bottom. Then put a layer of salt in the jar, put a teaspoon of salt in the lemon, then push the lemon open side down into the jar, flattening it. Repeat with more lemons until the jar is full. Top up with sterilized water.

Kaffir limes are about half the size of a lemon, have thick, rigid rinds, and very little juice. I cut the quarters all the way through so I could flatten them a bit, and I squeezed the juice out into the jar. I topped up the jar with juice from Persian limes. My hope is that the kaffir lime rinds will retain their amazing, fragrant character and not be overwhelmed by the Persian lime juice. They should be ready for use by the end of October, when I plan to make a lime-based version of chicken tagine.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

I can't wait to hear how these turn out. Kaffir lime is one of the most enchanting flavors on earth--I remember exactly where I was the first time I tasted it. It's also one of the flavors that seems to be missing from most Thai food I have these days in the relatively lousy Thai restaurants in our area. Good luck with your project--clever to use the Persian lime juice.

The limes go into the fridge tonight. I had to top up the jar with some sterilized water this morning, and that wonderful kaffir lime aroma came up from the jar. I was worried that adding conventional lime juice might overwhelm or eliminate the kaffir lime aromas but that does not seem to be the case.

I can understand why a Thai restaurant might use Thai basil in place of holy basil, but fresh kaffir lime leaves are not at all hard to find and they freeze perfectly. No need to cut corners there.

-Paul W.