Making Preserved Lemons

Posted on by Julia

December 28, 2023

On December 22 (Friday), I decided to make preserved lemons.

First, I sterilized a quart canning jar. (Put the jar and lid in a large pot and covered the jar with water. Bring the water to a boil and let the water boil for 10 to 15 minutes. Leave the jar in the hot water until the water is warm. Remove jar and lid from water and let drain on a clean towel.)

Wash 8 to 10 lemons and put in a heat proof bowl. Pour boiling water over the lemons and let sit for 5 minutes. Remove the lemons and drain the water from the bowl.

Cut the about 1/4 inch off the top and bottom of the lemons. Cut the lemons into quarters part way down from the top, so the quarters remain connected to the bottom of the lemon. Put the lemons back in the bowl after quartering them. Pour any juice the came out of the lemons into the bowl.

Pour 1/2 to 3/4 cups of salt over the tops of the lemons and inside the lemons. Let the lemons sit for an hour.

Place the lemons into the sterile quart jar, pressing them down with a clean spoon. The juice will release. After all the lemons have been squeezed into the jar, add any salt and juice that remains in the bowl to the jar.

Add boiling water to top up the jar and close the jar with the sterilized lid.

Let sit in the fridge for 4 weeks before using.

Lemons Just Added to Quart Canning Jar

20 thoughts on “Making Preserved Lemons”

    1. I recently watched A Great Course on Meditation cooking and the chef made preserved lemons. It looked easy, so I wanted to try making them. The preserved lemons are supposed to last up to a year if kept in the fridge.

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      2. I think so? Iā€™ve never actually had them since a jar costs so much. I decided to make some to see how they are. People who use them swear they are delicious and really ramp up the lemon flavor.

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  3. Interesting. What do you use the preserved lemons for? I do not use very many lemons. Assume you can do that with oranges too? The RV resort where we stay in Arizona has orange and grapefruit trees. There are so many ripe all at once, it would be a good way to not waste them.

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Published by Julia

I am a retired software solutions architect. I have been married to my husband, Bruce, for over forty years. We have a 12-pound dog, Nox, who we love dearly. She has been with us since 2009. We went full-time RVing for 3.5 years and saw much of the United States. We bought a ranch house on a hill in the middle of five acres. We are working on creating our homestead. I love cooking and enjoy sharing recipes. I am also an artist and Iā€™ll share my current projects. Reading is my favorite hobby.