The Power of Lemons

Most people only think of lemons as something to add to their drinks. But lemons can also be used in cooking such meats as fish, shrimp, turkey and chicken and even with fruits.

Lemon juice can neutralize the fish’s natural smell and taste. I find it best to let fish marinate in lemon juice for no more than 10-15 minutes before throwing it on the skillet. You shouldn’t worry about the strong taste and scent of the lemon juice overpowering the flavor of the cooked meat. As the meat cooks, the juices seep inside and leave a faint aroma and flavor that can actually improve a fish meal. Shrimp can also be marinated in lemon juice for about 5-10 minutes before cooking it.

Lemons can serve as a tasty meat tenderizer when cooking turkey or chicken, and they are especially effective at tenderizing thighs and breasts. Cut a lemon in half and squeeze it over your meat in a separate bowl before cooking it. Tenderizing loosens the muscles in the meat and allows it to cook faster and makes it easier to cut and chew.

I don’t like using that super-salty powdered meat tenderizer (most of these are like 75 to 90 percent sodium!) that people shake on their steaks, and I’m a bit too lazy to pummel my beef with that little spiky iron mallet. I find lemons to be a much tastier, healthier and easier alternative to others methods of tenderizing meat.

Everyone knows that fruit oxidizes, or turns brown, immediately after you slice it open. But a little dash of freshly squeezed lemon juice on fruit will help slow down that process. This is especially helpful when the fruit being sliced or exposed to the air is for a recipe (like a fruit salad or sangria, which I call “fruit salad for alcoholics”) and not going to be eaten right away. A squeezed lemon will produce more juice if you microwave it for about a minute.

Ironically, my earliest memories of lemons actually have nothing to do with cooking. As a little girl, my family would go to my uncle’s home for dinner every Sunday and I would smell a wonderful aroma throughout the living room during the winter. The aroma was actually lemon and orange peels that he had placed on his radiator with some water in an empty coffee can. The heat piping out of the radiator not only amplified the aroma from the peels but the air pushing out of the radiator spread the wonderful scent around the apartment.

* * * Trivia Time * * *

Most experts agree that the lemon originated in India and was introduced to southern Italy around 200 A.D. It was a very popular crop in the Arab world and the Mediterranean. In fact, the word lemon is derived from the Arabic limun and the Old Italian limone. The Egyptians were the first ones to make lemonade, although I’m not sure who was the first to make it pink. Small pox and gunpowder weren’t the only things Europeans brought to the New World, as Columbus’ ships were full of lemons to feed the sailors.

Lemons are a great source of Vitamin C and have been found to have antioxidant and anti-cancer properties. Smokers should take note that lemons can also wipe away some of the carcinogens created by cigarettes. Just like fish, lemon juice is added to many household cleaners to neutralize the pungent odor most of these chemicals emit. The citric acid in lemon juice actually makes lemons useful as tiny batteries. You remember all those elementary and junior high school science fairs? There was always that one kid who hooked up electrodes and a tiny light bulb to a lemon. The Japanese even discovered that the scent of lemons reduce stress in mice, which may explain all those peaceful, happy dinners at my uncle’s.

So next time you’re walking by a fruit stand or by the produce section in your supermarket, don’t just pass by the lemons. Pick up a few and brighten the rest of your day. They’re cheap, they’re useful, they smell great and they’ve been enjoyed for thousands of years.