3 Kaffir Lime Plant Recipes You Have To Try

From curry to macaroons, the kaffir or kaffir lime plant (and more importantly, the leaves), make for an incredible citrus ingredient to improve your recipes.

Are you looking for new and fun ways to use your kaffir lime plant? 

When many people think of citrus, they usually only think of juicy fruit. Sure, you can (and should) use your limes in all kinds of recipes, but did you know that you can also use the leaves?

Kaffir lime leaves are used in plenty of dishes, primarily in Southeast Asian cuisine. The fruit itself isn't very fleshy, so the leaves are the star of the show. 

Not sure how to use your leaves? Try one of these tasty recipes.

1. Pad Thai

Pad Thai is one of the most popular Thai dishes at takeout restaurants. It's spicy, fun to slurp up, and full of protein and vegetables. 

We have both plant-based and standard options.

Ingredients: 

• Kaffir lime leaves and juice
• Sugar or sweetener of choice (3 tbsp or to taste)
• Sambal to taste
• 1/3 cup soy sauce 
• 2 tbsp fish sauce or vegan fish sauce
• Wide rice noodles
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 cloves of garlic 
• Protein of choice
• Veggies of choice
• Chopped peanuts

Bring a pot of water to a boil and pour it over your noodles in a large bowl. Leave them for 6-10 minutes, based on package instructions. Rinse them and set them aside.  

Heat a non-stick skillet and start with your protein. When it's almost cooked, add your garlic and a teaspoon of soy sauce. Then, add your onion and veggies. 

In the meantime, mix your juice, sambal, sweetener, fish sauce, and soy sauce. Add your noodles to the skillet and pour this mixture over everything. Heat through and fold in chopped lime leaves and peanuts.  

2. Curry

These leaves are great for infusing into curries. 

You need:

• 1 can coconut milk
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 3/4 cup broth of choice
• 1 lb protein of choice
• 4 tbs red curry paste
• 1 tsp ginger
• Lime leaves
• Bruised lemongrass
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Sugar to taste
• Veggies of choice

Heat your oil to a skillet on medium heat with your garlic and ginger until the garlic starts to turn golden. Then, add your protein and cook until the outsides are no longer raw. 

Add your coconut milk, broth, vegetables, curry paste, lemongrass, lime leaves, and sugar, and heat until you reach a boil. Turn it down to a simmer and leave it for 10-15 minutes.

Remove the lemongrass and lime leaves and serve with your grain of choice (we prefer white rice). 

3. Macaroons

You can also use kaffir lime leaves (and zest!) with dessert. These coconut macaroons work great!

You need:

• 2.5 cups of shredded coconut
• 3/4 cup of sugar (or more to taste) 
• 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup milk
• Lime zest from 1 lime
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 lime leaves
• 1 cup powdered sugar

Mix together your coconut and lime zest, and set aside. To a large bowl, add 1/4 cup of your milk, a cup of sweetened condensed milk, and flour. If the mixture is too thin, add more flour until macaroons hold their shape. 

Space them out one inch apart on a baking tray and add them to a 350-degree oven for 15 minutes.

In the meantime, add the remainder of your milk and a tbsp of water to a small saucepan and heat on low. Add your lime leaves and allow them to steep for 10 minutes and remove them as you remove the pan from the heat.

Once cooled, mix in your powdered sugar. You want a thin mixture, so add water until it's translucent. 

When your macaroons are cool, drizzle the glaze over! 

How Do You Use Your Kaffir Lime Plant?

The leaves from your kaffir lime plant make a great addition to plenty of meals. Aside from these, add them to soups like you would bay leaves, or mince them and add them to cocktails! Try out all kinds of recipes.

Are you looking to stock up on kaffir lime leaves or other forms of citrus? We're here for you. Check out our shop and get your kaffir lime leaves today!