Citrus Fruit Salad with Asian Herb Broth

Citrus Fruit Salad with Asian Herb Broth

from Corinne Trang's The Asian Grill

Ingredients:

4 cups spring or filtered water
4 fresh kaffir lime leaves, bruised
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh ginger
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh galangal
10 fresh Thai basil leaves, bruised
2 lemongrass stalks, trimmed, peeled, and thinly sliced on the diagonal (white and light green parts)
1/3 cup sugar
Pinch of kosher salt
2 pink grapefruits
2 lemons
2 oranges
2 limes
12 fresh mint leaves for garnish

Serves 6 to 8

This and many other wonderful
recipes may be found
in Corinne Trang's
The Asian Grill
from Chronicle Books

A blend of refreshing citrus fruits and pungent herbs, this salad in an herbal broth can be a pleasantly surprising and palate-lifting finale to any meal, especially when grilled meats have been served. Grapefruit (pink or yellow), lemons, oranges, and limes are generally available year-round in Western markets, as is mint, and you can work with these solely if you have to. Blood oranges and Meyer lemons are usually available in winter, and they make a wonderful addition.

1. In a saucepan, combine the 4 cups water, kaffir lime leaves, ginger, galangal, Thai basil, lemongrass, sugar, and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until reduced to about 1 cup, 10 to 15 minutes. Strain, discard the solids, and refrigerate the broth until chilled.

2. Peel and segment the fruit.

3. Distribute the citrus segments among 6 dessert bowls. Pour an equal amount of broth over each serving of fruit, garnish with the mint leaves, and serve.