Looking over the world cuisine map one thing is apparent, most cultures use citrus in their cuisine; Chinese, Caribbean, Moroccan, Japanese, Spanish, Italian, Mexican, Middle Eastern, African, French, Indonesian... and so on, and on.
There is a good reason citrus is so popular - adding citrus to recipes does many things. It tempers the richness of high-fat foods, enhances natural flavors, acts as a counterpoint to sweet flavors, stimulates the palate, and adds one of the essential flavors to foods - the sour and sometimes sweet. Not to mention it adds nutrition, vitamins, and minerals.
We love the freshly juiced citrus juice straight from our Vinci Hands-Free Citrus Juicer (now available at discounted rates through Kickstarter), but also love adding citrus to recipes for that 'something special.'
Here are just a handful of recipes we have made using our Vinci Hands-Free Citrus Juicer, which makes light work of juicing citrus. Whether you need a gallon of citrus juice or half a cup, the Vinci Hands-Free Citrus Juicer is easy to use, fast, does not require hand-strength, is virtually mess-free, and easy to clean.
Moroccan Mandarin Short Ribs
The savory, sweet flavors of Moroccan spices pair perfectly with mandarin juice to make this dish a wonderfully flavored Moroccan-inspired meal.
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 6 beef short ribs
- 2 medium onions, peeled & chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 12 baby carrots chopped
- 1 cup fresh mandarin juice
- 1 cup beef stock
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon white pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 bay leaf
- salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a large Dutch oven, heat up the olive oil on medium high. Salt and pepper the short ribs, and brown in batches.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-low, then add the carrots, onion, and garlic. Saute until the vegetables have softened and browned slightly.
3. Stir in the ground cumin, ground ginger, salt, white pepper, ground cinnamon, ground coriander, cayenne, ground allspice, ground cloves and cook for 2 minutes to slightly toast and draw out the flavors of the spices.
4. Add in mandarin juice and chicken stock. Add short ribs back in the pot. Increase the heat and bring the liquid to a boil. Boil for one minute, turn off the heat. Cover the pot and carefully transfer it to the oven.
5. Cook for 3-1/2 hours, until the short ribs are tender and can be easily pierced by a fork. Remove pot from the oven, then remove short ribs and vegetables. Skim as much fat as possible from the top of the pot.
6. Over high heat on the stovetop, bring the remaining liquids to a boil and reduce by half, about 10 minutes.
Serve Short Ribs over couscous or faro with some fresh greens and a bit of the sauce.
Vegetarian Adobe Lime Fajitas
Try this Southwestern Spin on traditional fajitas. Here, we use fresh vegetables for a vegetarian meal. Adding citrus to the vegetables enhances their natural flavors.
Ingredients
- 3 multi-colored bell peppers
- 2 large zucchini
- 2 large yellow squash
- 2 cups white mushrooms
- 3 yellow or white, sweet onions
- 4-5 firm Roma tomatoes
Marinade Ingredients
- Six garlic cloves, peeled
- 2 jalapeños, seeded, chopped
- 1/2-cup olive oil
- 1/4-cup soy sauce
- 3/4-cup lime juice
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
- 1/2-tablespoon ground pepper
- 7 oz. chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chop peppers into thin slices
Directions
1. Wash and prepare all vegetables. Juliane the Bell peppers, zucchini, and squash. Thinly slice mushrooms and onions. Quarter Roma tomatoes. Dice the Jalapeños and garlic. Remove seeds according to taste.
2. Combine all chopped vegetables (except for the jalapeños and garlic) in a large bowl; place jalapeños and garlic in a medium-sized bowl to add to marinade.
Make marinade. Add olive oil, soy sauce, lime juice, oregano, pepper, and chipotle peppers and all the adobo sauce from the can to the chopped jalapeños and garlic. Whisk together and pour over chopped vegetables. Stir to coat all vegetables in the marinade. Allow the vegetables to marinade for about 30 minutes.
3. Remove a few tablespoons of marinade at the bottom of the bowl with a spoon and sauté vegetables using the marinade as cooking oil. Sauté vegetables for about 4-5 minutes, being careful to not over-cook. (You may have to sauté vegetables in a few batches depending on the size of your pan.)
4. Remove vegetables from sauté pan and transfer to clean bowl or plate when cooked.
5. Pour remainder of marinade into sauté pan and cook for 3-4 minutes over medium-high heat to reduce and thicken. Pour over cooked vegetables as the sauce.
Serve with your favorite fajita sides and tortillas.
Blood Orange Sangria
In Spain, sipping on Sangria is a wonderful way to pass an afternoon. Here is a juiced up version using blood oranges and ginger beer for that little something extra.
Ingredients
- 1 cup freshly squeezed blood orange juice
- 1/4 cup Grand Marnier
- 1/4 cup brandy
- 1 bottle of fruity red wine
- 1/4 cup simple syrup
- 1 (750 ml) bottle champagne, chilled
- 1 12.7 oz bottle of Ginger Beer
- 1/4 cup simple syrup
- 2 blood oranges, sliced
- ice for serving
Directions
In a large pitcher, add the blood orange juice, Grand Marnier, brandy, red wine, and simple syrup. Stir to combine. Add the ginger beer and champagne and stir to combine. Serve immediately over ice, garnished with blood orange slices!
Avocado Lime Rotisserie Chicken Soup
Enjoy this Mexican lime soup recipe (fast and easy weeknight meal) using a store-bought rotisserie chicken.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 medium jalapeño, finely diced (optional for spice)
- 64 ounces of boxed or canned chicken broth
- 1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
- 1 can of corn
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 3 cups shredded pre-cooked rotisserie chicken
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- 3 green onions/scallions, chopped
- salt to taste
- 3 ripe and ready to eat avocados
- 1 lime cut into wedges
Directions
1. In a large soup pan over medium heat, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until translucent. If adding jalapeños, do so after onions and garlic are almost ready and saute jalapeños for about 30 seconds.
2. Stir in chicken broth and lime juice and stir to incorporate. Add cumin, white pepper, corn, celery, and shredded chicken and cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes until warm.
3. Turn stove off and add cilantro and green onions. Add salt to taste.
Serve soup warm garnished with chopped avocado and lime wedges.
Mojo-Marinated Rotisserie Chicken
Inspired by the Island of Cuba, the flavors of sour orange in this Mojo Marinade is a must-try!
Ingredients
- 1 large roasting chicken
- 1-2 small to medium yellow onions, sliced
- Zest of 1 orange
- Zest of 1 lime
- 2 cups fresh juiced orange juice (6 large navel oranges)
- 1 cup fresh lime juice (8 limes) - OR - 3 cups Sour Orange Juice
- 10-12 garlic cloves (juiced in a juicer, or finely chopped)
- ½ cup olive oil
- 3 tbsp fresh oregano (chopped)
- 2 tsp cumin (roasted if you have it)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp fresh cracked pepper
Directions
1. Chop your onion. Zest one orange and one lime, then add to a bowl.
Top onion mixture with orange juice, lime juice, and garlic. Add olive oil, oregano, cumin, salt, and pepper then stir to mix. Remove a cup of the prepared marinade and set aside to serve as a finishing sauce for your chicken.
2. In a freezer bag, marinate chicken for at least one hour. For intense flavor, marinate the chicken overnight.
3. Remove chicken from marinade and place in roasting pan, preferably with a rack.
Place into preheated oven at 450ºF and cook for 10-15 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350ºF and roast for 20 minutes per pound or until the internal temperature reaches 165ºF. When cooked, let your chicken rest for 5-10 minutes before carving. Serve with your favorite Cuban sides such as black beans, yucca, rice & plantains.
Grapefruit Granita
This Italian inspired dessert is light and refreshing - a perfect end to any meal.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of water
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/4 cup rosemary leaves
- 2 cups freshly squeezed pink grapefruit juice
- 2 cups dry rose Champagne
- 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
Directions
1. Combine water, sugar, and rosemary leaves in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Simmer for 1 minute. Remove from heat and let syrup steep, about 30 minutes. Remove rosemary and allow syrup to cool.
Pour into a 9 x 13 x 2-inch rectangular (non-metal) baking dish. Stir in the grapefruit juice, Champagne, and sea salt
2. Carefully place the dish in the freezer, making sure the dish is on a level surface. Freeze for one hour, rake the granita with a large fork and return it to the freezer. Continue to rake, then re-freeze granita every 30 minutes until it's firm and granular and the texture that you want. Serve chilled in glasses.