Kaffir Lime Leaves, Penang Local Cooking

Kaffir Lime leaves (16 August 2008)


Kaffir lime leaves (Hokkien: thai₁ko₃ kam₁-eh₄ heok₁; Malay: daun limau purut) are the leaves of the Citrux hystrix. They are often used in Nyonya cooking, as well as in Thai, Laotian and Cambodian cuisine.

Kaffir lime leaves provides a distinct aroma to Nyonya dishes such as curry kapitan, perut ikan and otak-otak, to name a few. Tomyam, a Thai-inspired dish, also makes good use of kaffir lime leaves. The name of the fruit in Hokkien is thaiko-kam, literally meaning leprosy-lime, in reference to the bumpy exterior of the skin resembling leprosy.

If you are going to cook Nyonya dishes all the time, it is sensible to have the ingredients handy. We were at the market today (14 April 2013) and came back with this kaffir lime plantlet. The kaffir lime leaf features prominently in many Nyonya dishes, so we decided to get our own plant. This one was grown from grafting. According to the seller, this plantlet will not bear any thorns. The leaf was also quite aromatic.

Kaffir lime plantlet (14 April 2013)