August is a great month for preserving because there’s some great produce in season that can be quite expensive at other times throughout the year.
It’s this month when I almost but my lime and citrus stocks for the year and do all my juicing, zesting and making preserves. Here’s just a few of the things I get out of the way in August ready for the next 12 months.
You will need to have some kitchen and freezer storage to achieve this if you want to do it in any sort of bulk.
Zesting and Juicing Limes and Lemons
Amazingly, zest freezes really well. I buy several kilos of lemons, limes, and oranges and zest and juice them.
- First, scrub the rind with a scourer and detergent to remove the wax they often have as a protective coating then dry them thoroughly.
- Now, using a zester or grate (zest created with a zester will hold its flavour for longer when frozen so invest in a good one) the rind first before juicing, place it in a zip lock bag as quickly as possible, expel as much air and seal. It will keep for up to six months in the freezer.
- You can then halve the zested fruit and squeeze the juice with a citrus juicer. I then pour the juice into ice cube trays and freeze it for when I need it for dressings and marinades or to make acidulated water. Just remember to remove the cubes from the trays when they’re frozen. If you leave them in the trays, the juice will evaporate very quickly from the cold dry air of the freezer. Frozen juice keeps for quite some time.
Marmalade
The best fruit for marmalade is Seville oranges and they’re at their peak season during winter. You can make marmalade with any orange but the Seville, or bitter orange blends best with the sugar for marmalade and has the highest concentration of pectin for a good set.
Again make sure you scrub the rind to remove the wax, then follow my recipe for marmalade below. It’s extremely easy and very fulfilling to make homemade marmalade, not to mention how delicious it tastes on hot buttered toast.
Preserved Lemons
This is the time of year I also make my preserved lemons to last the rest of the year. How much you make will depend on how much you use preserved lemons. I’m a big consumer of them and one jar only lasts about 3 weeks for me, so I have to make a lot. In a 250g jar you’ll fit 1½ to 2 lemons, depending on the size.
The best lemons for preserved lemons are the smooth skinned lemons. This variety usually have less seeds and are juicier, which is what you need to preserve them.
The only ingredients in preserved lemons is salt, lemons and natural lemon juice, so make sure you buy good quality produce and salt. I use a flaked salt which dissolves well without any heating. If you use table salt or a coarse salt you’ll have to heat the juice to get it to dissolve and this will affect the flavour of the lemons. Preserved lemons also take between four and six weeks to mature, so it’s a good idea to always have a jar in the pantry in readiness.
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