Citrus season has now arrived, a jewel-toned gift to those of us who live somewhere that’s currently gray. Like many people, I gravitate toward stews and braises this time of year, the genre of home cooking that can best be described as “something in warm sauce.”
But I love to cut through that richness with the magnificent citrus you can find right now: lemons, limes, grapefruit, mandarins, tangerines, blood oranges and so on. The list is long, and the flavors are bracing.
While some dishes showcase peak-season fruit — I’m thinking of citrus salad — most can be made with any fruit you find at the store. The weeknight recipes below will certainly work well. If you, like me, have a taste for citrus desserts, I recommend this orange marmalade cake, these lemon bars and the divine entity that is Key lime pie.
1. Pan-Seared Fish With Citrus Pesto
I love Sicilian food, like the pesto in this recipe from Ali Slagle, a light, punchy cover of a song you thought you knew. It’s made without cheese, which also means it’s vegan, and you could pair it with pasta, rather than fish, if you prefer.
4. Spicy Citrus Skirt Steak
Maybe you grill outdoors year-round. Maybe, because of weather or other factors, you don’t. It doesn’t matter, because you have a grill in your oven — the broiler! Use it to make this supremely simple and enticing recipe from Ali Slagle. (Set the oven rack close to the broiler, and cook the steak directly on the sheet pan, using the same timing to start.) The steak bathes in that tangerine sauce, which would taste good on chicken, too.
