How to Make Decorative Lime Wedges

Lime wedges are easy and decorative.

Professional cooks are trained to arrange food in an attractive way and provide complementary garnishes that add flavor and a pleasing appearance. While some garnishes are unnecessarily fussy and difficult to make, the best are simple and easily duplicated at home. For example, a small sprig of herbs is often all that's required. Think in terms of a few fronds of dill, rather than a fistful of rosemary stems. One easy example is lime wedges, which are useful both for food and drink.

Things You'll Need

• Limes
• Cutting board
• Paring knife

Instructions

1. Place a lime on your cutting board and slice it in half from top to bottom with a sharp paring knife.

2. Turn the halves onto to their flat cut sides. Slice each half lengthwise to make quarters, and again to make eighths.

3. Trim the narrow end of the wedges if they have a strip of white pith from the middle of the lime.

4. Neaten the ends of the wedges if the lime was not regular in shape. Cut them square as near to the end as possible.

5. Serve the limes on or beside food as a garnish, or drop them into cocktails.

Tips & Warnings

• For decorative effect, limes can be scored with a zesting tool or channel knife, which are available online or at good kitchenware stores.

• Choose dark, firm limes that feel heavy for their size and contain no visible blemishes. A small lime may only yield six good wedges, while larger sizes may provide 10 or 12. Eight is a safe assumption in most cases.

References

• "Professional Cooking"; Wayne Gisslen; 2003
• "On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals"; Sarah R. Labensky et al.; 2003
• Cocktails of the World: Lime Garnish