01.Kaffir Lime Lemonade or Lemongrass Lemonade
Ingredients
500g sugar
500mls water
12 kaffir lime leaves, crushed to release the oils or 1 lemongrass stick, bruised and roughly chopped (see below)
250 mls lemon juice approximately 8 - 10 lemons
Soda water
Crushed ice
Cordial
- In a medium saucepan, combine sugar and water, stir over a medium heat until sugar has dissolved.
- Add either kaffir lime leaves or lemongrass.
- Reduce heat to low and simmer gently without stirring for 10 minutes.
- Remove from heat.
- Cool.
Serving suggestion
- In a large 2 litre jug add 2 cups of crushed ice, 200mls of the cordial, 100mls lemon juice and 1.25l of soda water.
- Mix well.
- Garnish with lemon slices.
Tips
Lemons
- If you have an abundance of lemons remove the rind using a microplane grater this makes it so much easier and place into freezer bags.
- Freeze up to 2 months.
- Then juice the lemons and freeze the juice.
Kaffir Lime leaves
- Any left over kaffir lime leaves can be frozen for later use and used in curries and soups.
Lemongrass
- Peel away the tough outer layers to reveal the pale lower section of the stem. Use a sharp knife to trim the base.
- Press the stem with the flat side of a knife to bruise and release the flavour. This is essential when infusing soups and syrups.