Stuffed Lemon

Stuffed lemon refers to a savory and tangy dish prepared by stuffing hollowed out lemon halves with numerous filling ingredients often consisting of one or more forms of seafood, lemon juice, and various spices and seasonings. The lemons are cut into two halves, and the juice and pulp are extracted. The juice is used as one of the ingredients in the stuffing mix to lend tanginess to the dish. There are only a few variations of the dish. One of them suggests the use of Worcestershire sauce as one of the lemon stuffing ingredients to impart some spicines to the dish. Stuffed lemons, in the form of pickle, are quite popular in the Indian cuisine, which are prepared by stuffing lemons with several ground spices and seasonings. These are enjoyed as an accompaniment to several Indian dishes.

Commonly Used Ingredients and Preparation Overview of Stuffed Lemon Pickle

A popular Indian stuffed lemon recipe suggests preparing lemons in the pickled form. The ingredients suggested as per this recipe include lemons, nutmeg, pepper, cloves (lavang), cumin seeds, dry ginger powder, red chili pepper, coriander powder, cinnamon powder (dalchini), roasted asafetida, cardamoms (moti elaichi), black salt, salt, and lemon juice.

The preparation process suggests creating four slits in lemons making sure not to separate them from the base. They are then deseeded and stuffed with the mixture of ground, dry ingredients. The stuffed lemons are then placed in a pan after pouring over lemon juice and cooked until the juice boils. The pickled lemons are then stored in an airtight container and kept in sun for around two weeks before serving them with roti or paratha. It is recommended to keep stirring the container after an interval of every 3-4 days to allow the flavors to infuse properly.   

Stuffed Lemon Recipe Variations

A couple of popular variations of stuffed lemon are discussed below:

• Tuna or salmon stuffed lemons- the recipe for this dish suggests dividing large sized lemon into two halves, squeezing out the juice, removing the pulp, and filling both the halves with a mix of tuna or salmon, mayonnaise, celery, lemon juice, and seasonings. The stuffed lemons are garnished with chopped hard boiled eggs and served with bread and butter over a bed of lettuce leaves. The base of lemon halves is cut slightly, before stuffing the halves so as to hold them upright.

• Seafood stuffed lemon- The lemon stuffing for this is a mix of several kinds of seafood like tuna, crabmeat, and prawns, which are shredded and combined with onions, cheese, celery, breadcrumbs, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, salt, pepper, and garlic. Large sized lemon is divided into two halves, hollowed out, and stuffed with this mixture before baking in oven.