Best Preserved Lemons Recipe EVER!

Last year, a good friend of mind introduced me to her wonderful preserved lemons recipe and I have to be honest…I am now addicted to it! I have added it to a number of my go-to recipes and it has added a whole new dimension to each!

Preserved lemons, also known as pickled lemons, are whole lemons that are packed tightly in a tall jar with salt and lemon juice where they cure for a few weeks.  They are often used in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes but can add a salty-tangy flavor to any dish!

Ingredients:

• 8-10 ripe lemons (Meyer work best if you can find them.)
• 1/2 cup to 1 cup of kosher salt
• Extra fresh squeezed lemon juice, if needed
• Quart size canning jar

Instructions:

Put 2 tablespoons of kosher salt at the bottom of the jar.

Thoroughly clean the lemons and cut off nubs.

Slice each lemon lengthwise in half, but do not cut all the way through. Slice a little more than 3/4 of the way down. Slice again in the other direction, as if you were cutting the lemons into quarters, but leaving them attached at the base.

Pull apart the lemons just enough so that you can sprinkle well with kosher salt, inside and out.

Push the prepared lemons into the jar open side down and press them so that their juices are released and rise to the top. Pack the jar with lemons and make sure that they are covered with juice. Sprinkle additional kosher salt on top.

Put the lid on the jar and let it sit at room temperature on the counter for a few days. Turn the jar upside down every so often. After a few days put the jar of lemons in the refrigerator for 3 weeks, or until the rinds of the lemons soften. Turn the jar upside down occasionally while storing in the refrigerator.

When ready to use the lemons in a recipe, simply remove one from the jar, rinse it to remove the salt, and discard any seeds. Thinly slice or chop the preserved lemon rind and finely chop the pulp or process in a food processor.  Add to your recipe.

Preserved lemons can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.

Susan Hartman

Susan is a lawyer, Pilates instructor and passionate advocate of natural wellness. In 2006 she began exploring various nutritional and movement therapies, meditation and other alternative means of healing in an attempt to naturally relieve hormonal imbalances, eczema and back and joint pain. After much research and trial and error, she found a personal regimen that not only alleviated her symptoms, but that also left her with a new found sense of overall health and wellness. During this period of exploration, she was introduced to Pilates and was surprised by how quickly she began to feel and see positive results in her body. She loves how Pilates emphasizes body awareness and the connection of breath to movement, and she believes it can bring about lifelong health benefits including stress relief and improved strength, flexibility, balance and coordination.

Today Susan strives to promote the importance of regular exercise, a clean whole foods diet, compassion for self and others, and a curious attitude, all as a means to maintaining vitality and living a balanced and centered life. When she is not practicing law or teaching Pilates, she can be found hiking or biking in the woods, soaking up the sun atop her paddleboard, engaged in a yoga or group fitness class, or immersed in a book or classic movie.