Save money, make your own

There are a few Malaysian readers who wrote to me and asked where they could buy lemon pepper. I think it is very hard to find this item in the marekt.  I have seen them on the shelf, in the spice section, in Village Grocers many months ago. The price was so expensive (RM10.00 plus or USD3.30) that I decided against buying. The first time I tasted lemon pepper was when one of my girlfriends gave me a small jar of the spice. I fell in love with it. I think she brought it back from Australia. This spice combo is so versatile, and can be used as a rub for all kinds of meat, poultry or fish. You can also use it to spice up your soups and stews. A little will be good enough to enhance the flavor of almost any savory dish.   I recommend that you make your own which is so easy to do and I am sure it will be much better than store-bought. It is less expensive too.

When I met up with Small Kucing's "mamarazi" (If you want to know where to eat good food in Kuala Lumpur, you have to visit this blog) last month, I gave her a small bottle of my lemon pepper and she has used it to marinate chicken wings. In her post, she said the chicken wings tasted good. In fact Small Kucing’s "paparazzi" said they should have put more lemon pepper.  In return, I got this “Keropok Sotong” (Sotong crackers) that was brought back all the way from Trengganu (an Eastern state in Peninsular Malaysia).  Thank you very much "Small Kucing a.k.a. mamarazzi"! 

I have yet to fry them because I want to share it with my step brother.  I am waiting for his next visit. He loves anything with sotong (cuttlefish) in it.  Small Kucing’s mamarazi was so generous. She shared some of the lemon pepper I gave her with another of our blogger friends, Suituapui of Still Crazy All These Years. (On days where you feel bored or depressed, go visit his blog and I guarantee you that after reading a few of his posts, you will feel better, no need to pay RM200.00 an hour to a psychologist lah. It is free laughter therapy). Suituapua said he is waiting for his daughter to return home from abroad and let her use the tangy pepper to cook some Western cuisine and we will soon know the verdict.  For those who have asked me where to buy lemon pepper, don't buy it, save money, and make your own. So here is the recipe if you too want to test-taste it. Since Christmas is around the corner, you can make this spice, put them in some small recycled glass jars that you have sterilized in boiling water, tie a ribbon to it and use it as gifts to family and friends. Gifts made with love are more meaningful, don't you think?

Homemade Lemon Pepper Seasoning

Adapted from Simply Scratch with modification

Ingredients:
6 large lemons

1/3 cup of crushed pepper corns (black and/or medley)

1 1/2 tsp chilli flakes (optional)

1/4 cup kosher salt

Method:
Zest all the lemons. Mix the zest with roughly crushed peppercorns (using a mortar & pestle). Spread out on parchment lined baking sheet and bake on lowest setting until the zest is completely dried (approximately 80 C). Add the lemon-pepper to a spice grinder and grind until desired texture. Mix with the kosher salt and store in an airtight container for up to a few months.
A note on reusing containers:
Be sure that any jars you use have been properly sterilized. Following a thorough hot water & soapy wash & rinse jars should be boiled while completely immersed in water, for at least 10 minutes.  Metallic lids should also be boiled. Jars with plastic lids generally should not be reused unless a thorough, hot water wash  and rinse followed by a second soak in an anti bacterial solution (such as a 10% bleach 90% sterile water solution for 8 minutes) followed by a second hot water rinse.
Best candidate for reuse for spices or chlli sauces, jams, chutneys, & other preserves are baby food jars that have been sterilized per above. More on this topic at http://bit.ly/vAgGw4. I would love to have a source for baby food jars with metallic lids (hint - hint). My baby days are over.