Lemon Grass & Ginger Jelly
Lemon Grass and Ginger Jelly is a very versatile and aromatic savoury jelly, delicious with Asian-style roast meals, such as Chinese crispy-fried duck. Light and subtle tasting it also works very well on poached fish, or grilled poultry on a BBQ.
A clear preserve like this jelly needs a ‘jelly bag’ to strain the fruit juice through – best left overnight. Do not be tempted to squeeze the jelly bag while it is draining, or the jelly will become cloudy.
Lemon Grass & Ginger Jelly Recipe
Makes about 1 Kg of jelly to pot.
Recipe Ingredients:
- 2 lemon grass stalks
- 1.5 litres water
- 1.3 Kg un-waxed lemons (washed and cut into small pieces)
- 50g fresh root ginger (unpeeled, thinly sliced)
- – approx 450g preserving sugar (added pectin)
Recipe Method:
Wash the lemons and roughly cut them up. Bruise the lemon grass, then chop roughly. Put the chopped lemon grass in a preserving pan and pour over the water. Add the chopped lemons and thinly sliced ginger. Bring this up to the boil, then reduce the heat, cover the pan with a lid, and simmer for 1 hour, until the lemons are pulpy.
Pour the fruit and juices into a sterilized (scalded) jelly bag suspended over a large bowl. Leave to drain for at least 5 hours – leave until the juice stops dripping.
Measure the juice into the cleaned preserving pan, adding 450g of preserving sugar for every 600ml of juice.
Heat the mixture gently, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved completely – then boil rapidly for about 10 minutes, until the jelly reaches setting point (105°C / 220°F). Remove from the heat.
Skim any scum off the surface using a slotted spoon, then pour the lemon grass and ginger jelly into warmed sterilized jars, cover and seal. Store in a cool, dark place and use within 1 year. Once opened, keep in the refrigerator.