LR- well of knowledge

[Sluggy!]

Prohero wrote:
 
> Ok, I am going to the Well of Knowledge here.
 
> When a recipe calls for lemon or orange "zest",   just what is that and where
> can it be found?  Is there a suitable substitute?

I'm glad you asked! That is one of my favorite ingredients!

Orange zest is the oily outter layer of the peel of an orange, the
orange colored bit, if you will. It is a big part of the wonderous scent
when you peel an orange. The extracted oil makes orange extract.

Zest finds it's way into many foods, but I find it most prevalent in
Chinese and desserts. It is much of what flavors Orange Beef or Orange
Chicken. Lemon zest really perks up a lemon pie and is an attractive
garnish on top of meringue. Lime zest for a Key Lime Pie, obviously, but
I like a bit of lime zest in a margarita, too.

There is a cute tool for harvesting zest from an orange. Looks like a
tiny grater on a stick. Pretty fool resistant. Personally, I prefer to
just use a sharp knife and shave little (dime size or smaller) medalions
off the orange. Don't go too deep; the white part is bitter. Thinner
skinned oranges have stronger tasting zest, but navel oranges have a
really thick zest that's easy to get.

You can find dried orange peel in larger spice sections of super
markets. It's pretty common in Middle Eastern market's, too. However, I
would encourage you to use the fresh from an orange. It tastes MUCH
better and doesn't look like a dried up orange.

Happy zesting!

Sluggy!
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