If you’re wondering why the knife is upside down, don’t feel bad. This is something I saw one morning while pouring someone’s coffee.  I’m sure I accidentally poured hot water onto the counter looking over. Matt is beating some lemongrass with the dull edge of his chef’s knife. Apparently, this is how you treat lemongrass.

I’d never even seen lemongrass until we ran our coconut shiitake soup a few weeks ago. We put whole (beaten) lemongrass into the soup while we cook it, along with some minced ginger. When you hit it, like Matt is in the picture, it breaks cell walls in the lemongrass which makes it easier for the flavor to come out.

I made the soup the next time. It’s a lot more delicate than I thought. Coconut milk burns easily. I put the heat on high, added way too little broth. Matt helped me out though and I think it turned out well. If you tried it that day, let me know if mine measured up.