Lemons: The ‘secrete’ ingredient of summer
A rather great proverb says that if life gives you too many lemons make lemonade out of it. Bengalis just improvised it by making cha.
“Lemon tree, very pretty, and the lemon flower is sweet; But the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat.” Thanks to its price, we know; although the songwriter had his own reasons.
Lemons were an add-on on salads. They are behaving like the main course of food. While buying vegetables, lemons came last, along with ginger, green chilies, and dhania.
In summer, onions and cucumbers are also sought after. The lemons were loved, but their buyers in Delhi haggled over their prices. There could be a good bargain for a kilo or half. But never, the lemons meant Rs 300 a kilo for fresh ones, and Rs 220 a kilo for the spoilt looks.
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One can get decent apples at Rs 130 a kilo, in comparison. Vegetable vendors today keep a small stock of lemons hidden under a wet cloth.
They are mostly looking dried up, but the vendor will vouch for their juice. It is now up to you to decide. Buy or no buy. In Delhi’s 40 degrees Centigrade temperature, one has little choice.
One is also tempted to forget the lemons. After all, they are an add-on only. A lemon for Rs 10 or Rs 15 each sounds like a mythical tale. Why it has happened so, that one can discuss if there is an opportunity. But the vegetable vendor tells you the lemons could be Rs 80 per 250 grams the next day.
Did one hear this clearly? The mind does a quick recapitulation of the role played by lemons in ordinary citizens’ lives. The shopkeepers use them to hang them in a thread, along with green chilies, to save their shops from evil eyes. The temple priests are asking people to ensure their safety by driving their new cars, each of the four wheels crushing a fresh yellow lemon under them while moving forward.
Lemons make nice lemonade which means an intake of vitamin C for immunity. They are food, they are medicine. They can spice up fruit chaat. Delhi’ites are wondering when this summer of pricey lemons will end.
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