Steve Hester, Chick-fil-A’s director of purchasing, receives weekly price sheets for lemons because the price of the fruit may sour quickly depending on forces of nature. He procures more than half a million cases of lemons a year for the Atlanta-based company’s popular lemonade, which operators make by squeezing lemons at each of the more than 1,400 locations.
“Lately prices are not as high as they were compared to late spring, early summer,” Hester says. “Right now it is pretty cyclical based on past history. Demand is high in spring and summer,” so he’s used to seeing the price rise at that time.
That price also reflects a recent report from a major supplier that indicates lemon harvests in California are back up to where they were prior to last year’s harsh freeze.
But regardless of prices, fresh citrus remains a critical ingredient in recipes. For example, if Hester nixed the fresh lemons added to Chick-fil-A’s lemonade, which is sold in a regular and diet form, he says guests would “come across the counter and hurt us.”
In fact the recipe for the lemonade—using the typical ingredients of water, sugar and lemon juice—hasn’t changed in some 40 years, said the chain’s brand development chief, Shona Jonson. However, the exact formula is such a well-guarded secret, Jonson isn’t allowed to make it anywhere outside of the company, even at her own home.
Pricing doesn’t deter chefs “Even last year, when there was bad weather in California that resulted in a shortage of the fruit and an increase in price, I still used [lemons],” says Philippe Bertineau, executive chef of Payard Pâtisserie & Bistro in New York. “Many citrus fruits, such as oranges and grapefruit, are available year-round. But in my kitchen, I just use lemon and lime no matter the season because I use a few drops of lemon to finish fish sauces and enhance the flavor. “I use it as a balancing contrast in rich preparations, such as farm-raised pork chop with lemon crust, crispy polenta, baby bok choy and chanterelles with dried fig-pork jus, as well as in braised lamb shank.” The lamb shank sells for $29. CITRUS TIPS For the juiciest limes use fully ripe, yellow limes, says chef Rick Bayless of Chicago restaurants Frontera Grill and Topolobampo. Completely green limes are unripe. Citrus tree grower Joan Halvajian, based in Thermal, Calif., says squeeze room-temperature lemons for the best yield. Chef-owner Frank Bonanno of Denver’s Luca D’Italia restaurant also favors the tart ingredients. “I love using seasonal citrus with seafood because it offers a light, refreshing and crisp balance to the richness of proteins.” Currently he offers grilled octopus with shrimp-scented fregola, grapefruit and celery-fennel salad for $12. Keeping Italian traditions “We’re cooking food from Campania and the Amalfi Coast where there are a lot of lemon groves,” says Nate Appleman, chef of A16 in San Francisco. “They use tons and tons of lemon there, so I use lemon a lot here.” Currently he roasts potatoes with sliced lemon and rosemary in a wood-fired oven. When the blanched and diced potatoes turn crispy and brown, he adds paper-thin lemon slices with rosemary and pops it back in the same oven for about 30 additional seconds. The dish sells for $6 as a side or it accompanies certain main dishes. A16’s menu also features a scaloppine of pork shoulder with wild arugula and a wedge of lemon for $22.50. Such a preparation of meat with fresh lemon on the side “is typical of Southern Italy,” he says. For the dish the chef pounds a six-ounce slice of shoulder meat from a whole pig that he purchases. He coats the scaloppine with just breadcrumbs—no flour, eggs or milk. “I like a real light crust,” he says. It’s fried in olive oil and placed over wild arugula that he says is cultivated from a variety of a wild arugula from Italy. Appleman also makes a braised halibut with pistachios, preserved Meyer lemon and capers that’s sometimes served as a special for $24. To preserve lemons he cuts them in quarters, which he says speeds up the aging process to about two months. He places about three gallons worth of skins in a plastic gray bus tub and heavily coats them with kosher salt to preserve them. “Meyer lemons are intoxicating,” he adds. “There is the floral aspect.” Appleman uses the remaining Meyer lemon juice elsewhere. Citrus adds a twist to desserts “We use lemons all over the menu,” Appleman says, “but my favorite dessert is pistachio-almond cake.” That lemon-scented cake, $8, comes with yogurt and citrus salad including blood oranges, navels, orange marmalade and a bit of lemon juice. Chef Eric Ripert says his Le Bernardin restaurant in New York goes through about 30 cases of lemon a week. The pastry department at the seafood-centric restaurant serves a dessert simply called “Lemon.” Many of the restaurant’s dishes are named after their main ingredient. This dish features lemon sorbet, a lemon biscuit and crispy meringue as a twist on the classic French vacherin. The seasonal dessert occasionally finishes a price-fixed $109, four-course menu. “Citrus cuts richness with a dash of sourness,” Ripert says. “I think if you cook seafood, it is essential.”
