PRESERVED LEMONS
A tiny bit of effort and some patience will reward you with a long lasting pantry staple which is extremely versatile and will completely elevate your cooking!
Equipment
- 1 Pint sized glass jar
Ingredients
- 6 Meyer or regular lemons
- Kosher salt
- 2 Bay leaves (optional)
- ½ tsp Black peppercorns (optional)
- Juice of 2 lemons, or as needed
Instructions
- Remove the wax by scrubbing your lemons. Do enough so they will fit snugly in your jar and wipe dry.
- Cut each lemon lengthwise into quarters stopping about a ½ inch from the bottom so that they stay intact.
- Spread lemons open and generously rub salt on the cut surfaces. Best to error on more salt than to little. Close to reshape each lemon.
- Cover the bottom of your jar with about a ½ inch of salt. Fit each lemon in your jar snugly alternating between peppercorns and bay leaves until its full.
- Press the lemons down to release their juices. Then squeeze enough lemon juice over the top to cover.
- Close the jar and put in a cool dark spot and let stand for at least a month or up to 3. Every few days, or when you remember give the jar a good shake to redistribute everything.
- To use remove a piece and give good rinse to remove some salt. Make sure the remaining lemons are covered with juice and store in the fridge. They should keep just about indefinitely but best to use them within a year.
Notes
- This recipe is easily scalable for however many preserved lemons you would like to have on hand.
- I find the wide mouth clasp style jars work better, as the acidity of the lemons tends to erode the lids of normal canning jars.