Lemon grass is a fibrous, stalky,
grass-like plant that has a distinctly lemony aroma. It grows both
wild and
cultivated in
Southeast Asia and is starting to be grown in the
USA. Lemon grass is widely used in Southeast Asian
food, is an ingredient in most
Thai curry pastes, is indispensable in
tom yum (Thai
hot and sour soup), and makes a pretty nice
tea as well.
Lemon grass is available both fresh and dried. When you buy fresh lemon grass, you should look for stalks with the widest base, and only use the bottom few inches in your food. Slice it up thinly, crosswise. The only way to make it edible is by pulverizing it -- no amount of cooking will ever make it actually tender, so don't try.
ToasterLeavings says he's got lemon grass growing wild in his yard in
Australia.