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Preserved Lemons
Delicious lemon pieces preserved in salt make a wonderful addition to all sorts of Mediterranean dishes.
Ingredients
- lemons - unwaxed
- salt
Optional spices
- peppercorns
- coriander seeds
- cinnamon sticks
Instructions
- First, gather your ingredients and suitable jars. Wash the jars and then sterilise them by heating in the oven. When you are ready, wash the lemons and top and tail them.
- Cut the lemons into quarters. Spread them out in a dish and cover in salt. Then leave them for three or four hours.
- After resting, the salt will have dissolved. Press each quarter on the side of the dish to squeeze out some juice, or use a lemon juicer. Reserve the juice.
- Insert the lemons into a jar, stacking them up in layers and packing them in tightly.To each layer, add a few teaspoons of salt. You can also add some peppercorns and coriander seeds. Poke half a cinnamon stick into each jar if you like.
- To use, scrape out the flesh of the lemon and rinse off any excess salt from the skins. Add the preserved lemon skin to tagines, stews and salads.
- Top the jars with the reserved lemon juice, adding more fresh lemon juice if necessary to get the lemon pieces fully submerged.
- Gently shake the jars every day for 4 weeks. The lemons will fizz as they ferment and you should open the jars a couple of times a week to release the pressure.
- After one month, the lemons are ready to use. To use your preserved salted lemons, scrape out the flesh and discard it. Wash the peel, chop it and add it to your dish.
• Please note that the nutrition information provided below is approximate and meant as a guideline only.
• Unless stated otherwise cup conversions have been made with an online tool. For accuracy please check with your favoured conversion tool. We recommend buying inexpensive digital kitchen scales.