Lemongrass

When I was writing the BBQ Chicken and Ribs post, I realized I've never specified in many recipes what kind of lemongrass to buy. Lemongrass is frequently used in Vietnamese dishes to flavour meats; in these recipes, minced lemongrass is used. You could process your own lemongrass (below). However, you can also purchase minced lemongrass in the frozen section of your nearest Asian grocery store! It's much easier to keep a container of minced lemongrass in your freezer, to use whenever you need it.


Frozen minced lemongrass.

Recipes using minced lemongrass:
Bò Lá Lốt (Beef Stuffed Wild Betel Leaves)
BBQ Lemongrass Chicken Drumsticks and Ribs
Bún Thịt Bò Xào (Vermicelli with Stir-Fried Beef)
Sườn (Vietnamese Style Pork Chops)
Thịt Nướng (Grilled Pork and Beef)

Some recipes do call using whole lemongrass (like curries which I have not written about yet). You should use fresh lemongrass in these instances. To get the maximum flavour, the ends should be smashed and included in your recipe. Lemongrass can be well kept frozen (I think; I still have some in the freezer). Also, you could process lemongrass for your own minced lemongrass as is required in Wandering Chopsticks' Lemongrass Chili Sauce.



For some lemongrass recipes:
* Bún Gà Xả (Lemongrass Chicken Soup)
* Lemongrass Chili Sauce