Braised Pomelo Pith Recipe?

[helenjp]

If the pomelo in US supermarkets is the same as in the news clip below, it's a bit different from what I see here in Japan - usually pale yellow pulp. I wonder how different the pith is?

News clip on pummelo/pomelo in the US

The crosses like Sweetie/Jaffa/Oroblanco certainly seem to have thinner skins, and they taste a little different too.

[WYF]

This is a picture of the pomelo that I used.

This is how the pomelo pith looked after a couple hours of braising. I didn't thicken the sauce yet so it might not look quite right.

I have a feeling that perhaps I need to try and use a different pomelo all together.

And helenjp, yup that's what the pomelos look like in the Canadian grocery stores but I always get mine at the chinese grocery stores.

Edited December 6, 2007 by WYF (log)

[Seitch]

This is how the pomelo pith looked after a couple hours of braising. I didn't thicken the sauce yet so it might not look quite right. 

I have a feeling that perhaps I need to try and use a different pomelo all together.

And helenjp, yup that's what the pomelos look like in the Canadian grocery stores but I always get mine at the chinese grocery stores.

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For pith that's been braised, it definitely has too much structure. At the end of soaking it should be much softer than that. You shouldn't be able to see the knife marks. But the pic of the original fruit does look like the kind that we usually eat. I'd say that if you want to make this dish, then try soaking it until you can feel the texture get noticeably softer when you squeeze out the water. Let it go for a week or more if that's how long it takes. It shouldn't be falling apart but it definitely also shouldn't be as dense as it looks in the pic. Good luck!

[helenjp]

I found this in the shops here in Japan - it's called a "lion yuzu" or "devil yuzu" or some other names which might be derived from Chinese or maybe from some southeast Asian source - but it isn't actually a type of C. junos or yuzu, it's a type of pomelo or maybe even grapefruit.

Overall, it seems to lack bitterness and be very fragrant, so I think this may be a great candidate for Seitch's dish.

They weigh a pound or two, as big as a pomelo, but very bumpy peel, and bright yellow.

Anyway! The peel is very fragrant, on the lemon side of grapefruit, a little like yuzu. The pith is incredibly fluffy and soft, much more open in structure than most pomelos. I put some in water to soak, intending to try cooking it with seafood or meat.

The flesh was pale yellow, acidly sweet, no bitterness, and the peel was lemony rather than bitter too.

Citrus pseudogulgulphoto about halfway down the page.

[helenjp]

Still curious! Is the use of pomelo pith to flavor braised dishes a regional thing? If so, which regions is it associated with?

[hzrt8w]

Still curious! Is the use of pomelo pith to flavor braised dishes a regional thing? If so, which regions is it associated with?

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It is a staple in Hong Kong. So it is a Cantonese thing. Not sure if other regions in China also do similar things.

[helenjp]

Ah ha! I figured it must be southern, so I simmered it with pork ribs in a not-too-intense broth I'd simmered chicken in (shochu spirits, little star anise, ginger, soy sauce).

Should it have chili or dividing onion in it?

I don't know how I should have done it, but it tasted wonderful - not bitter, slightly citrusy, fragrant, full of savory broth! The pith was quite soft to start with, and after 3 days soaking, it was obviously softened and ready to use.

The zest and broken up fruit were soaked in honey for a few days - the fruit went on our yogurt, and the peel and honey/juice went into a light fruit cake. Nothing wasted!

[hzrt8w]

The zest and broken up fruit were soaked in honey for a few days - the fruit went on our yogurt, and the peel and honey/juice went into a light fruit cake. Nothing wasted! 

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That's an interesting way to use a pomelo. I bet that it tastes wonderful!

[Dejah]

I've never had braised goo look pei.

My mom usually lets the whole peel dry first, then it is rehydrated in water. When it is pliable, she'd squeeze the peel, change the water, soak again. The process is repeated several times to get rid of the bitterness. The loose pithy stuff is taken off, leaving the firmer pith and peel. She then cuts the peel into chunks and soaks them in soy sauce for a couple of months until they are black and infused with the salt and flavour of the soy sauce.

Whenever she wants to cook some, she'd take a chunk out, slice it thinly, lay these on top of sliced fatty pork, then steamed.

I seem to remember seeing this in cans? sold in Chinese grocery stores. I must check next time. I always save the peel, but never seem to get around to preserving them.

[hzrt8w]

I seem to remember seeing this in cans? sold in Chinese grocery stores. I must check next time. I always save the peel, but never seem to get around to preserving them.

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I have never seen them in cans.