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Xec

A tiny little side condiment served with grilled chicken or fish that can make any meal sing. It’s fine without any chile at all, but I like a touch. This is a very fragile dish; make it at the last minute and serve it all at once. It will go fast, believe me.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    makes about 2 cups

Ingredients

1 orange
1 small grapefruit
1 lemon
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 habanero or other hot fresh chile, seeded and minced, or to taste, optional
Salt to taste

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Cut the orange in half horizontally and section it as you would a grapefruit; do this over a bowl to capture all its juice. Remove the seeds and combine the flesh and juice in the bowl. Repeat with the grapefruit and lemon.

    Step 2

    Stir in the remaining ingredients, taste and adjust the seasoning, and serve.

The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved. MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.
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