Everything You Need To Know About Lemonade ( and Tips for Using It in Cooking)

A Short History of Lemonade

Lemonade is certainly one of the oldest drinks. Indeed, this trade was created in the late seventeenth century with the success of the lemonade sellers, who distillated flower essences and brandy.

The job separated distiller (for alcohol) and lemonade. In 1776, they were finally attached to vinegar, perhaps because the manufacture of lemonade required white vinegar (but that’s another story).

But in fact, lemonade is drunk all over the world… where there are lemons, water and sugar: so many variations on the same ingredients. Only the quantities of sugar and lemon tastes vary!

Before you begin to prepare your homemade lemonade

– Choose untreated or organic lemons, whether green or yellow, if you want to peel them (some recipes use only the juice, but they are not fragrant enough for my taste)

– Vary the variety of sugar, white sugar being preferred (to avoid once the blond or brown sugar that will give a funny color), one can also use ready-made sugar syrup, the one you usually book for punch and cocktail. Honey, because it will taste a little more if you choose it lightly scented (all flowers, acacia, lemon flower….). If you are not using natural fermentation, you can also use sweeteners like agave syrup or stevia.

– Use pure enough water as it is the main ingredient in the lemonade: filter tap water to eliminate any chlorine taste , or use simple spring water. Avoid water too much rich in mineral trace elements that give a metallic taste to your lemonade. This would be a shame!

Production by fermentation

For gasification, what a story! Originally lemonade, same as cider or beer, or sparkling bubbles, like champagne, were obtained by fermentation. But the fermentation is stopped just before lemonade sugar turns into alcohol.

If historically the fermentation used only sugar and took at least eight days, the fermentation process may be assisted by:

• Baker’s yeast
• Raisins
• Dried figs
• Rice
• Type of dried leaves or lime elder

Fermentation happens next as kefir fruit. By adding a little vinegar, trtar cream or citric acid (purchased in pharmacies) after fermentation effective, it moderates the explosive activity … and it is possible to put in bottle (clean and sterilized, it is crucial ).

Attention, although citric acid is commonly used in soft drinks trade, dose it very sparingly! Ultimate care: be careful not fill the bottles up to two-thirds… under threat of bottle explosion.

Placed in a coolplace, lemonade is then preserved for a short week. Be careful of the “geyser” opening if the bottle is roughly manipulated.

Production by adding gas

A simpler technique involves injecting gas directly to your drink:

– By using a Soda Siphon, equipped with Co2 cartridges.
– Or by using a soda machine type gasifier (Sodastream Fountain, rated 4 stars on Amazon);
– Either by preparing a flavored base, powerful enough to simply be diluted with sparkling water, not salty if possible.

In all cases: lemon (in the form of juice, juice and zest, mixed or whole), sugar, and roll my lemonade! These soft drinks are easier to flavor: basil or lemon verbena for lovers of herbaceous flavors. Fresh lemongrass stalk to bring a refreshing note, cardamom pods for a taste of India, it’s time to play!

Some make it with maple syrup and cayenne pepper, some with grapes or mint: all tastes are in the lemonade!

The easiest way for long days of summer: prepare the flavored base of your choice for 2 or 3 days to have to lengthen with sparkling iced water.

Beside drinking it alone, what to do with lemonade

Now that you have your lemonade in the fridge, you can of course drink as it is… or as accompaniment for a little twister cocktails or tonic.

Some ideas for alcoholic cocktails using lemonade:
– Sangria
– Melon punch
– Tinto de verano (mixture of wine and lemonade)
– Marquisette (white wine, rum, lemon, orange, vanilla, lemonade)
– White coconut sangria

Or mocktails:
– All pink cocktail for girls
– Ginger Express drink
– 3×6 pink
– Fruit Cocktail

In the kitchen, the lemonade is perfect in a crepe or pancake batter to replace water or beer: it sweeten while adding lightness, thanks to the finesse of the bubbles, not forgetting to bring its little lemony taste.

Try it for light waffles and an express batter. Why not also use it to enhance the taste of a lemon cake: it is a very good syrup base.

Lemonade is perfect for sweet marinade. Try a caramelized pork with it. It’s magic: make sauteed meat (pork or chicken), cover with lemonade, a little Nuoc Mam sauce, add garlic and ginger… and caramelize on the fire.

Added to a marinade, it will tenderize the meat and allow it to brown quickly on the barbecue, such as pork skewers or caribbean chicken.