Adding zest, the outer colored part of the unwaxed peel of citrus fruit, to a dish sure can enhance its flavor, but you may wonder which way is best to zest?
Before you use any zesting gadget, it’s important that you thoroughly wash away any pesticides, waxes and dyes on the fruit. Be careful to scrape off only the rind (colored outer layer) of the fruit and not the pith (white skin layer). Also, spin the fruit after each stroke, trying not to use any section of the fruit more than once.
There are various common kitchen utensils which can be used to create zest, such as a grater, a vegetable peeler, a knife or a microplane (which, btw, is our favorite tool for zesting).
The zest produced from a stand-up grater is not as fine as zest created from a microplane, so that is one main reason we prefer the microplane zester pictured above (plus, it’s easier to wash). Zesting with a vegetable peeler or knife will give you bulky strips of lemon peel. So either dice the peeled strips for a lighter zest or use the zest strips as a special twist in your favorite cocktail.
American’s Test Kitchen, one of our favorite TV cooking shows and publisher of Cook’s Illustrated, offers a twist on zesting by suggesting that you try it ‘upside down’ for a change.
Most cooks normally run the fruit over the microplane grater, turning the fruit slightly after each grating and letting the zest fall onto a cutting board or directly into the dish being prepared. Although this method is most commonly used; unfortunately, this approach means you’re really zesting blind — unsure just how much zest is being accumulated.
So next time your recipe calls for adding an exact amount of citrus zest, try turning your microplane zester upside down and run it over the fruit instead vs. the other way around. This way, you not only see the exact amount of zest being produced, but you’ll also have a built-in zest-catcher in the chute of the grater.
Now, go zest with zest.
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