What is lemon zest. Useful properties and contraindications for use. Dishes with a fragrant ingredient. How to use the top layer of lemon peel in cooking. Topical use of lemon peel removes pigmentation and whitens teeth.
It is necessary to dwell separately on the anti-cancer properties of the product. Back in 1970, there was extensive scientific research into the properties of the top layer of lemon peel. As a result of 23 experiments, it was found that the complex of useful substances of this ingredient destroys 12 malignant strains, including cancer of the pancreas, stomach, prostate, breast and rectum.
Contraindications and harm of lemon peel
When using the product as an ingredient in dishes or as a component of traditional medicine, one should take into account the possible harm of lemon peel to the body.
There are such contraindications to its use:
- Allergic reactions, polyvalent allergy. This product is a strong allergen and stimulates the production of histamine.
- Stomatitis, exacerbation of chronic tonsillitis, pharyngitis, peptic ulcer and gastritis with high acidity. The top layer of lemon peel has a pronounced irritant effect on the mucous membrane.
- Heartburn, as the product stimulates the production of enzymes.
Do not overuse flavor when preparing children's meals. If you have a history of citrus allergy, manifestations will also appear on the zest.
How to make lemon zest
To prepare the lemon zest, wash the citrus peel thoroughly and blot it immediately with a paper towel to prevent excess moisture from absorbing. Leave the fruit to lie down for a while to dry out.
There are several ways to remove the zest from a lemon:
- Peeler … Only used for thick-baked lemons. If the rind is thin, then you can touch the bottom white layer and the zest will taste bitter.
- With a thin sharp knife … This method is preferred if the zest is planned to be first introduced into the dish for flavoring, and then removed.
- Using a fine grater … The method is the simplest. You can rub the zest as much as you need without touching the bottom layer. Such a product is added to baked goods, they are decorated with desserts and drinks.
If the zest is needed only for decorative purposes, zester is used to cut it off. This is a special knife for peeling citrus fruits. The stripes are beautiful, even, rolled into rings, like a serpentine.
The choice of accessory for obtaining the product depends on the purpose of the application.
Lemon zest recipes
Perhaps there is no type of food for which lemon peel is not used. It is introduced into desserts, used for cooking meat, fish, sauces. Simple desserts with this ingredient can compete with sophisticated baked goods.
Dishes with lemon zest:
- Candied lemon … The dish is very simple both in preparation and in the number of ingredients. Melted sugar in a saucepan by adding a few tablespoons of water. The less water, the better, the more crisp the "sweets" will be. Cut the zest with a thin knife, dipped in boiling syrup and cook for about 30 minutes. The readiness of candied fruits is judged by their appearance - the pieces of the peel will become almost transparent. They are taken out, laid out on a sieve to get rid of excess syrup, and allowed to cool. After about 20 minutes, sprinkle with icing sugar and leave to dry. You can store it in a closed dry container, but this is difficult to do. Too "addictive" dessert, it is usually eaten in 1 sitting.
- Marinade for chicken and turkey meat … In half a glass of olive oil add a quarter of a glass of lemon juice, 2 cloves of crushed garlic, a teaspoon of dried rosemary and thyme, 2/3 teaspoon of lemon zest. Everything is thoroughly mixed and cooled in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
- Lemon zest pie … If you don't have time to mess around with cake, you can quickly bake a lemon cake. Beat 100 g of butter with a quarter cup of sugar, add 2 eggs, a tablespoon of lemon zest, a teaspoon of vanillin, half a glass of flour and a tablespoon of baking powder to the oil mixture. They are baked like lemon cake. At the same time, the cake increases by 2-3 times, rises. Decorate with mint leaves.
- Spicy sauce … In a ceramic bowl, mix: 12 tablespoons of olive oil, 6 tablespoons of lemon juice, 16 stalks of green onions and 100 g of fresh parsley, a little more than a glass of date pulp, 4 teaspoons of lemon zest, some pine nuts. The greens and pulp of the dates should be chopped very finely, and the nuts should be crushed into powder. Mix everything well, add some salt to taste and add pieces of habanero paprika. Cool well before serving.
- Marinade for fish … To prepare a dish according to this recipe with lemon zest, you need to take 1 tablespoon of zest, so 2 lemons may be needed. It is enough to squeeze the juice from half of the citrus. Mix in a ceramic bowl 2 tablespoons of white wine and lemon juice, add lemon zest, a teaspoon of crushed tarragon and 2 teaspoons of tarragon or wine vinegar, 1 crushed garlic clove. Pour half a teaspoon of black pepper powder into the cooled marinade and mix again. Chunks of fish are marinated for at least 3 hours. To bring the fish to readiness, it can be baked on the grill or in the oven, in foil or parchment. The last cooking method is more successful - it will become very juicy and acquire a delicate taste.
- Beef with zest … Starchy white rice, 5 tablespoons, washed, soaked in cold water, boiled until cooked without seasoning and salt. Beef, 300 g, cut into thin pieces, fried in olive oil. Pour 2 crushed garlic teeth and 2 tablespoons of lemon zest into the pan, fry until crust. At this stage, add a teaspoon of thyme, marjoram and white pepper powder, add sea salt. A little water is added to the same pan and is already brought to readiness over low heat. Orange large bell peppers are cut into ribbons, fried for 3 minutes separately in olive oil, and then stewed for 10 minutes by adding water. Serving: a pad of rice, pieces of meat surrounded by bright ribbons of pepper. The dish is beautiful and tasty.
- Lemon zest cake … Calculation of products for 4 cakes. Beat 6 eggs with sugar. Sugar needs 1, 5-2 cups, depending on the size of the eggs. When the egg mixture becomes completely light, almost white, add 2, 5 cups of flour and 1 teaspoon of soda, slaked with apple cider vinegar, to it. The cakes are baked on a baking sheet covered with parchment. The oven is heated to 180 ° C and each cake is baked for 15-20 minutes. Check the readiness with a toothpick, like ordinary biscuits. If the end of the toothpick, which was taken out of the dough, is dry, you can take it out. While the cakes are cooling, beat the cream: 2, 5 cups of sour cream are combined with 2 cups of sugar, adding a teaspoon of vanillin, 1 lemon zest and lemon juice to taste. For better whipping, sour cream should be cooled. The cakes are greased with cream, a cake is formed, and removed for soaking in the refrigerator for 4-5 hours.
- Lemon Peel Jam … Zest, 200 g, for jam, cut with a thin knife, cut into equal pieces and soak in cold water for 2 days. The water is changed every 8-10 hours. It is not necessary to thoroughly rinse the pieces, it is enough to add clean water to the required volume. Then the crusts are thrown back on a sieve, rinsed under running water, poured over with clean water and boiled for 10 minutes. At the same time, sugar syrup is boiled: 1 liter of water - 600 g of sugar. The cooked rinds are again thrown back on a sieve, then dipped in syrup and cooked over low heat until the syrup thickens. The finished pieces of zest become transparent.
Drink recipes:
- Refreshing Lemon Peel Tea … The antimicrobial effect of the drink is the same as that of tea with lemon juice. It has a diuretic and laxative effect. In a saucepan, boil 0.5 liters of water along with the zest of 1 lemon. After 15 minutes, remove the container from the heat, allow to cool to about 40 ° C, and add honey for flavor. If the goal is to fight colds, then it is better to add ginger to the composition.
- Tincture on lemon zest with mint … Remove the zest from 3 lemons with a grater, finely chop 150 g of fresh peppermint leaves and pour everything into a regular half-liter bottle of vodka. Close the neck with a stopper and remove the container on a shelf in a cabinet for a week. You do not need to take it to the pantry, since you need to shake it 3-4 times a day. When the tincture is ready, a cotton-gauze filter is made: the gauze is folded into 4 layers, and a layer of sterile cotton is placed between it. The liquid is decanted, poured into a clean bottle through a funnel. You can store it at room temperature.
If you add lemon zest to baked goods and do not overuse desserts, the fat layer will not form. Metabolic processes are accelerated, diet disturbance does not produce any harmful effect on the body.
Interesting facts about lemon zest
Lemon zest or extract from it is used by the pharmaceutical industry for the manufacture of medicines and vitamin and mineral complexes. The powder of the product is included in "Vitamin P", "Calcimin" and "Alphabet".
Traditional healers use lemon zest in the treatment of malaria, for diseases of the bladder, for nervous disorders and insomnia, and for convulsions.
To treat the nervous system, the skin is simply removed from the lemon, placed in a small glass container with a tight lid and inhaled when anxiety develops.
No additional ingredients are needed to soften the skin on the heels. Steamed feet are rubbed with fresh zest or a compress is made from it.
For constipation, the product is taken in the morning on an empty stomach in the amount of a teaspoon.
For general health improvement, the lemon zest is cut with a knife and left in the freezer. A small piece of the peel daily is an excellent stroke prevention.
If healers used the top layer of lemon peel in 1-2 centuries AD, then the ingredient came to cooking much later, in the Middle Ages in France and Italy. Then in the cities they already began to feel a lack of food, and the fact that with the help of one lemon you can cook several dishes, began to be appreciated.
The zest has found particular recognition in Russian cuisine. Lemons were expensive, and the Russian nobles liked the opportunity to save money. Gourmet dessert - candied lemon peel - an invention of Russian serf chefs. How to make lemon zest - watch the video:
You should not try to replace the zest in dishes with mint, a mixture of cinnamon and vanillin. The dessert will be tasty, but you won't be able to get a pleasant sourness. In fish and meat dishes, and even more so in sauces, it is irreplaceable.
