How to Make Preserved Lemons – Learn to make simple salt-preserved lemons for use in braises, sauces, tagines and recipes. All you need are lemons, a quart jar and salt!
Salt preserved lemons are a technique that stretches back centuries. Ancient techniques of food preservation were greatly important before the days of modern refrigeration, particularly in countries with extended periods of hot weather and limited access to fresh produce. Preserving lemons with salt is one of the simplest and most ancient preservation methods. Salt-preserved lemons originated in the Middle East, though they are now used in cooking all over the world. The process of storing the lemons with salt draws out their juices and causes them to soften over time, removing bitterness from the peel and giving the lemons a wider variety of culinary purposes.
I love cooking with preserved lemons; they have a unique flavor that is distinctly citrusy, while their pucker-inducing tartness is greatly reduced. I add them to braises, fish dishes, sauces and tagines. They brighten the flavor of many dishes. My husband, who adores lemons, eats them straight out of the jar! They pair really well with olives. I also sometimes use the salty, lemony liquid from the jar in salad dressings and sauces (the liquid is quite salty and can veer towards bitter– taste first and add with care!).
Preserved lemons are super easy to make. I always have a jar on hand, just in case I want to add a special flavor to a new dish. You can preserve the lemons sliced whole (the peel still attached in one place) or quarter them; it really doesn’t make a difference how they are sliced. I prefer quartering them because it makes handling them easier, allowing me to stuff the jar with more slices. Generally only the peels are used in cooking, as the lemon flesh soaks up a lot of salt from the preserving liquid, rendering it mushy and very salty.
For a delicious recipe using preserved lemons, try my Moroccan Lemon Chicken with Olives.
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Preserved Lemons
Ingredients
- 6-8 whole lemons
- 4-5 tablespoons salt
NOTES
Instructions
- Start by cleaning your quart jar in hot soapy water. Dry with a clean towel. Clean the outsides of the lemons, rinse and pat dry. Slice the ends from the lemons to create a flat top and bottom.
- Stand the lemon on one of the flat ends. To preserve the lemons whole, cut an "x" in the lemon and stop when you are about 1/2 inch from cutting all the way through.
- The quarters of the lemon remain attached at the base.
- Open the lemon and pour in 1/2 tbsp of salt. Don't worry if some of the salt spills out.
- Once you salt the lemons, pack them into the jar as tightly as possible. You can use a pestle or a wooden spoon to push them in.Once all of the lemons are in the jar, add an additional 1 tbsp of salt. Press on the lemons one more time to extract as much juice as possible.If the lemons are submerged in juice you can secure the lid, if not you may need to add additional fresh lemon juice to top them off.
- Alternatively, after slicing off the ends from the lemons, you can simply quarter them into four separate pieces; the quarters do not need to remain attached at the base. If you use this method, pour 1/2 tbsp salt into the bottom of the jar, place four lemon quarters in the jar, and sprinkle 1/2 tbsp salt evenly on top of the for slices. Repeat with each quartered lemon, alternating layers of 4 slices and 1/2 salt, till the jar is tightly packed with lemon slices. Sprinkle 1 tbsp on top of the final layer of slices.
- Use a pestle to press on the lemons and extract as much juice as possible. Top off the jar with fresh lemon juice if needed.Seal the jar and store the lemons in a cool dry place for at least 1 week. Give them a shake every once in a while to disperse the juice and salt.
- After 1 week, move your lemons to refrigerator. When the peels become translucent, you will know they are soft and ready for use.
- When you are ready to use a lemon, remove it from the jar and rinse to remove excess salt.
- Cut all of the remaining lemon flesh and pith away from the rind and discard.
- Chop the preserved lemon peel according to your recipe, or whichever way you prefer.
- You can store the lemons in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.
Lisa says
I am really excited about trying these. I thought sunnylittle jars of these might be nice for gifts. But if making a number of these I wouldn’t have room to store them all in the refrigerator. Can they be pressure canned to make sure they are safe for gifting later?
Tori Avey says
You would need to preserve them first… unfortunately I cannot advise on if they will survive the canning process, I have never tried it with these.
Shelly Griffiths says
Hi Tori
Thanks for preserved lemon recipe. How old can the lemons be and can the skins be hard to the touch?
Tori Avey says
As long as the lemons are not spoiled they should work fine.
Richard Saladino says
Tori,
Mother and child always come first! Besides your recipes and techniques are well worth the wait!
Take care of Mother and Child!
Tori Avey says
Thank you Richard, you are right! 🙂
Genevieve Schneider says
Thanks for the preserved lemon recipe.
How is your baby girl?
Tori Avey says
She is so great Genevieve, thanks for asking! She has started rolling over a month ahead of schedule. She’s a champ! 🙂
Kylie says
Hi Tori,
I didn’t rinse my lemons prior to putting in a jar. Do you think they’ll be ok?
Thanks
Ashley at ToriAvey.com says
Hi Kylie, Tori’s assistant Ashley here. We always advise cleaning or rinsing fruits and vegetables before consuming or cooking with to eliminate any bacteria on the surface.
Lesley says
Hi Ashley – thanks for the quick response, most appreciated!
I made a bottle of the preserved lemons today, freshly picked Eureka lemons, processed immediately. 🙂
I have no problem with the ‘tartness’ so I will give feedback shortly (about bitterness) as it may help someone else with the same curiosity as me!
The lemon curd is a staple and very popular so I’ll be making that tomorrow as well!
Again, thank you!
Lesley says
I have an abundance of lemons both rough and smooth skinned. I gave some to an Indian friend who made ‘Lemon Masala preserve’. This preserve has the bitter underlying taste of the pith.
Whether this will change over the next week or not I don’t know. (I’ve been told to wait a week before using)
What I’d like to know is, if this bitter ‘pith’ taste also influences the preserved lemons?
First time I’m making them so I would appreciate the input.
If so, I’m better off making lemon curd for which I have a killer recipe.
Thanks for sharing a very simple method of preserving nature’s bounty! 🙂
Ashley at ToriAvey.com says
Hi Lesley, Tori’s assistant Ashley here. Preserved lemons are quite tart and salty. In my experience I don’t recall any bitterness, however it’s always possible with citrus fruits. If you are looking for something sweet I would go with the lemon curd! 🙂
Jenny Kirk says
I have used preserved lemons like this in salads. Absolutely delicious. And after a while, I stopped rinsing off the salt and taking out the pulp – even more delicious just like that !
Rich says
This looks like a great way to use lemons. I have a Meyer lemon tree. The skin of a Meyer is a bit softer than a Lisbon or Eureka lemon.
Is it okay to preserve the Meyer lemons?
Ashley at ToriAvey.com says
Hi Rich, Tori’s assistant Ashley here. Yes, you can preserve Meyer lemons.
Bee says
I’ve never had a use for preserved lemons, however I can only imagine how delicious preserved lemons are! Will definitely be trying this out once my lemons are ripe on my trees.
Graham Lyons says
Tori, I squeeze the juice of half a lemon everyday into my first-thing-in-the-morning glass of water. So I accumulate lots of lemon halves with little lemon juice left in them.
If I crammed, many of these ‘spent’ lemons tightly into a jar, added your recommended amount of salt, and filled the jar with water, would they end up as preserved and palatable as if the jar was filled with lemons with their flesh intact?
Tori Avey says
It would work if you use lemon juice (not water) to “top off” the jar.
Darren says
Hey there. First time reviewing. So. I made these yesterday. But I ended up sealing them and jarring them (as you would a tomatoes or sauce). Will this stop the fermentation process or, should I unseal them and just keep in the jar …. thoughts?
Tori Avey says
If you use a canning process the fermentation stops.
Ellen says
My jar is only half full with lemons and juice. Is that ok? Can I top the other half off with boiled water that has been cooled?
Tori Avey says
Thee lemons must be fully covered with lemon juice to properly preserve. If your jar is half full but the lemons are covered with juice, you’re fine. If the lemons aren’t fully submerged, you can try waiting an hour or two and mashing the lemons down, the salt will extract more juice from the lemons and may give you enough to cover them.
Sue says
Thank you for such an easy recipe. I will be making this tomorrow and look forward to my own preserved lemons in the future!
Pam says
Are those nutritional amounts for the whole jar?
Tori Avey says
Yes.
Geribelle Senter says
I am so very pleased to have found this recipe. It is easy and simple and will make some of my new recipes I want to try fun since I will actually have the correct ingredients without having to shop online to find them. Thanks so much.
Sandy says
this recipe worked great! However, I’m curious how you store the rinds that you have extra – do you put them back into the brine? Wash them off and dry them and put them into something else? I am using them for a dish but I still have a bunch left so I’m curious?
Lorraine says
Hello, the jar I had wasn’t 100% sealed. When I turned it over a week later to disperse the salt it leaked. Is it still ok?
Tori Avey says
Hi Lorraine, it should be fine if the lemons were mostly submerged in juice. If it’s been one week, move the jar to the refrigerator.
Farmer says
The jar does not need to be “sealed”; in fact, as the lemons ferment in the salt solution, they produce CO2 and this needs to be vented.
jan p says
Actually, this isnt a true ferment. Its preserving them but they do not ferment
Christina Keller says
Hi,
I was wondering about a lower sodium version to the recipe. Would it work? I have family members with high blood pressure.
Thank you,
Christina
Tori Avey says
Hi Christina- you can use a combination of sugar and salt, but the flavor won’t be exactly the same. A certain amount is salt is needed for preserved lemons, they are meant to be quite salty. However, you don’t generally eat them– you use them for cooking and flavoring dishes, so only some of the salt makes it into the final dish. You can even rinse them prior to adding to recipes to remove some of the excess salt.
Sue says
I bought a package of 7 lemons and prepared 2 pint jars, only to realize half way through that all the quartered lemons would fit into one pint (2-cup) jar. It was difficult to tell from the pics what size the lemons you used were. I wonder if you could include the weight of them in your recipe. The 7 lemons weighed 454 g – 1 lb. I was unsure how much salt to add, once I started and realized there was a problem, so tried to remove some and now don’t know how much there is in them. Will more salt then necessary do them any harm?
Tori Avey says
Hi Sue, more salt will not harm the process. Next time I make a batch I will weigh them. That is why the recipe says 6-8– it’s not an exact science. 🙂