Preserved Lemon problem
I made the food52 recipe for Braised Moroccan Chicken & Olives – wonderful ingredients but I did not have a jar of preserved lemons. Instead, I used Mark Bittman’s recipe for same-day preserved lemons (http://nyti.ms/9iRFH7). I used regular lemons (not organic or Meyer) and knowing they were waxed, followed a tip I’d read to first drop them in boiling water for a few minutes to dissolve the wax, then wipe them thoroughly before adding the salt, etc. Even so, they were dreadfully bitter and unfortunately ruined the dish. Does anyone know if it was definitely wax that caused this problem? (I’ve got a new batch of preserved lemons going using Paula Wolfert’s traditional 30-day recipe and Meyer lemons.) If so I guess the boiling water tip is not fool-proof. Thanks.
8 Comments
When I made them I used organic lemons because there's more than wax on those skins!
Interesting: the imported preserved lemons I've seen in decent local gourmet stores (imported via the sexy shipyards of Newark, NJ) are all teeny and appear thin-skinned. Obviously they are entirely different fruits than what is available to us in NorthAm.