How to use Lemongrass

Although, purists may disagree...I think adding some lemongrass to your Thai style stir-fry or anything really remotely Thai will almost always elevate your dish to the next level. 

So, if you haven't used them before...now it's time for you to start experimenting! There's first time for everything ;P

0. Shopping for lemongrass: I personally think your lemongrass is gonna be in better/fresher condition if you get them at a local International/Asian grocery store. Due to higher demand (compared to your normal everyday supermarket e.g., Schnucks) at these supermarkets, you'll probably get fresher lemongrass there.

However, if you absolutely can't make a quick visit to a local International/Asian grocery store, Whole Foods seems to have them now. ** this information may vary depending on where your store is located. So I recommend that you call that particular store before making your visit! I have called Whole Foods many times before looking for some more "exotic" ingredient such as  baking powder without aluminum & squid ink for my risotto.

Your lemongrass will probably look similar to this. 
The long greenish tips are chopped off for this
particular photo shoot!

1. Peel the outer stalks. Your goal here is to peel away woodsy and fibrous stalks 

as much as possible. I like to do this also to get rid of anything "dirty" on the stalks too. 

2. Wash newly peeled lemongrass stalks. Similar to leeks, you may find some extra sand + dirt on them in between leaves. 

3. Chop off some of the greenish tips and woodsy parts at the bottom of the stalks. If you have experience working with leeks, this step is very similar to how you prep leeks. Again, your goal is to get rid of anything that is too woodsy for your teeth.

Lemongrass after peeled + washed

Happy chopping

4.Start chopping! Depending on what you are planning on cooking, you may chop them differently in size.

Mince them this finely! Unless you are making
soup or curry.

For Laab-like Meat Salad or Stir-Fried Food: mince your lemongrass into very small pieces. I do this so that I can minimize the chance of encountering woodsy texture of lemongrass. 

For laab sauces, you will be using mortar & pestle
to ground everything together...preventing
you from eating anything too woodsy.

For Soup or Curry: I like to just dump in lemongrass chunks that are rather long/big (approximately 4 inches in length) directly into my soup/curry mixture. I do this since I use lemongrass as a flavoring tool (sort of similar to how people put whole garlic heads and halved lemons directly into their stocks). Of course, you'll have to fish out the stalks after you are almost done cooking.