Jennifer Peace Rhind and Gregor Law
These are so delicious! They’re ideal hot or cold as a mezze dish, starter, snack, or spicy picnic addition. Kaffir lime leaves are commonly used in Thai, Indonesian, Cambodian, Malaysian, and Vietnamese cooking and can be sourced in frozen form quite easily from Asian grocers. They impart a very distinct citrus note unlike any other ingredient I know—just their aroma makes me hungry. Inevitably, lemongrass goes very well with them, but the sweetness of roasted carrot and the slightly bready caraway seeds just make this dish irresistible. Lime leaves are double-shaped, making them perfect to wrap around things for cooking. Otherwise, wrap a large single leaf around each carrot piece. You don’t eat the leaves, by the way … but you knew that, right?
Tips
- You can leave out the chili if you prefer—these kebabs still work really well.
- For quicker prep, instead of roasting the kebabs at 200 C (400 F), preheat the oven broiler and broil the kebabs for 1 to 2 minutes to get them lightly charred.
Carrot and Lime Leaf Kebabs and Beetroot and Coconut Dip recipes were extracted from Cooking for the Senses: Vegan Neurogastronomy by Jennifer Peace Rhind and Gregor Law, published by Singing Dragon. Order your copy at singingdragon.com.
Carrot and Lime Leaf Kebabs with Lemongrass and Caraway Seeds
Ingredients
4 large carrots, peeled and sliced on a diagonal into 1/2 in (1.25 cm) coins
1/4 cup (60 mL) canola oil, preferably lemongrass flavoured
Pinch of chili flakes
1 tsp (5 mL) caraway seeds
1/2 tsp (2 mL) ground turmeric
Pinch of sea salt
2 to 3 grinds of black pepper
Kaffir lime leaves, fresh or frozen and thawed (16 double leaves)
4 long bamboo skewers, soaked in water
Nutrition
Each serving contains: 153 calories; 1 g protein; 14 g total fat (1 g sat. fat, 0.3 g trans fat); 7 g total carbohydrates (3 g sugars, 2 g fibre); 89 mg sodium
Directions
01
Bring medium pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Parboil carrots for 10 minutes.
While carrots are cooking, make marinade. In large bowl, combine oil, chili, caraway seeds, turmeric, salt, and pepper.
Drain carrots and add to marinade. Allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes, tossing them around occasionally.
While carrots are marinating, preheat oven to 200 C (400 F).
Wrap each carrot piece in a lime leaf, then skewer. Repeat till you have skewered all carrot pieces equally between the 4 bamboo skewers. Lay skewers across small roasting dish so carrot pieces are suspended. Drizzle with remaining marinade and roast for 20 to 25 minutes, until tender and lightly charred.
