Kumquats, Limequats, Lemonquats: What To Do With 'Em?

[Chris Amirault]

I just got a bunch of limequats and I'm trying to figure out what to do with them. I'm not even sure what they are, exactly.

Can anyone enlighten me?

[andiesenji]

Limequats can be used the same as limes and kumquats or any other citrus. They are a cross of lime and kumquat that supposedly was developed in China. However there is a grower in Vista, CA that is producing large crops and selling at the wholesale produce market in L.A. Two local stores sell them at very reasonable prices, compared to what they sold for just a few years ago.

They make good preserves and you can preserve them like lemons in salt. I've preserved the Mexican or Key limes that way and had good results.

Last year I got some Limettas at the middle eastern market and made spicy lime pickle with them. They are probably not as sweet as limequats.

I used this recipe, my first try with it and it turned out exceptionally well:

http://www.aayisrecipes.com/2009/03/14/lime-pickle/

Edited February 26, 2010 by andiesenji (log)

[slkinsey]

My mother has any number of 'quat trees of various varieties in my parents' yard. Over the years, I have been bequeathed with untold "riches" in limequats, lemonquats, kumquats, etc. both fresh and in a variety of prepared forms. So it is with a heavy heart that I must inform you that I have some bad news: They are virtually useless in cocktails except as a garnish if you have ones that are more or less olive-sized (the entire fruit is "edible"). The juice is... not good in cocktails, to say the least. And the 'quatcello we tried making with the peels was, in a word, execrable.

On the other hand, if you like them and would enjoy a metric ton of 'quat marmalade, candied 'quats, etc. please send me your address.

[KD1191]

They are virtually useless in cocktails

One of the exceptions may be "If you've access to the Alinea kitchen."

Next is the Sazerac. The poached kumquat is first marinated in anise liquer, before its filled with rittenhouse rye gel. It is then garnished with a mist of fresh lemon peel, Peychaud's bitters pudding, demerara sugar, and lemon zest.

[andiesenji]

You could also try this "tea"

http://www.vanillagarlic.com/2010/02/kumquat-tea-and-trivial-things.html

[EvergreenDan]

I love kumquats in salads. They lend a sour/bitter component, that balances well with the dressing and fatty ingredients, like avocado and toasted nuts.

I would think that they would be absolutely fantastic in cocktails. I'm always looking out for novel acids to tame the (damn) sugar, and if they come with bitter, so much the better.

The problem that I see is that they have scant juice. I might puree them, perhaps infusing in some unsweetened spirits, or just add to the shaker and double strain.

Please enlighten me as to what exactly a limequat is (and where you got them)!

[filip]

I've had some good luck muddling some kumquats in a drink like the Third Rail:

http://somethingisinthebloodbank.blogspot.com/2009/08/vin-dorange.html

Instead of the small piece of muddled orange I muddled some kumquats and it was great.

I've also had some good drinks made with mandarin-kuats. I woulnd't call them completely usesless.

[EvergreenDan]

Inspired by you, I bought a container of kumquats. They looked beautiful, and were fairly sweet (for kumquats). I'm infusing a cup of W&P overproof with about a cup of them, pureed. We'll see. My first experiment.

I muddled a couple in a Batida:

Old Sao Paolo

2 oz Cachaca

1/2 oz Elisir M. P. Roux (could sub some green chartreuse and a bit of Pastis)

1/2 tsp simple

2 kumquats (sub some orange w/ peel and a bit more lime?)

2 eights lime

2 dashes Fee WBA bitters

I have to day, it was great. Now, I'm not sure if would have been just as great with a bit of orange and peel....

Edited March 2, 2010 by EvergreenDan (log)

[EvergreenDan]

So I infused about a cup of kumquats (whole fruit was pureed) in a cup of Wray & Nephew overproof rum for 2 weeks and strained through a coffee filter today, yielding 250ml of yellowish-orange rocket fuel. So I made a variation on a Hemingway Daiquiri.

1 oz Kumquat-infused rum

1 oz dark rum (Flor de Cana)

1 oz Orange juice

1 tsp Maraschino

1 1/2 tsp Agave syrup

It was good. Very good. By itself (neat), it had some wonderful bitter notes, fairly sour, with a strong alcohol nose and "funk" from the Wray & Nephew.

If you infused gin with kumquats, you could just add a bit of sugar and drink it straight up as a "Quatlet". Works in my head, at least. Would also make a pretty interesting Martini with a big lemon twist and a sturdy vermouth, perhaps diluted with un-infused gin for balance.

[Yojimbo]

On the theory that almost anything tastes good preserved in brandy, I dropped a batch in some decent VS,

and while I wouldn't put them in most cocktails, they were killer on ice cream.