Lemongrass

Containing the same oils as lemon zest combined with a beguiling scent of its own, the flavour of lemongrass is the secret behind so much South East Asian food. The part we buy is usually just the base of the long reedy grass. There is nothing I enjoyed more in Indonesia than being able to pluck my own lemongrass stalks and lime leaves from my garden as I needed them. It is worth seeking out fresh rather than dried. Trim off the hard base and any coarse green top; if the outer layers are woody, remove these too. You will be left with the pearly white heart, streaked with lilac and pale green. Smash it with the base of your knife to release the flavours. Then either finely chop or grind into a bumbu (it does need to be sliced first as the food processor will have a hard job breaking the fibres down). Otherwise a useful Indonesian trick is to tie the whole bruised stalk into a knot and throw it into the simmering pot to perfume the food as it cooks, though if yours is too short to tie then just bruise and add whole. Don’t worry unduly about removing it before serving - very often whole spices and aromatics are left in the dish. Whoever’s plate it ends up on gets to suck it clean, extracting the last of the flavour.