RECIPES

Pickled Lemons

At Producers we have fresh lemons most of the year, we grow a mixture of Lisbon, Eureka and Meyer lemons.  We preserve in Spring when crops are at their heaviest making lemon curd, butter, marmalade, lemon juice and pickled lemons - a favourite ingredient in Producers' menus for tagines, couscous and salads.  The pickling process takes away the sharpness leaving a distinctive deep lemon flavour commonly used in Moroccan cooking.

Pickled Lemons Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 kg Lemons
• 100g Sea Salt
• 2 large Bay Leaves
• 1 Cinnamon Stick
• Juice of 10 Lemons

Wash lemons, rinse and dry.  Cut lemons into quarters lengthways.  Place around 1 table spoon of salt into a sterilised jar.  Rub lemon quarters in the remaining salt and pack in the jar tightly.  Add bay leaves and cinnamon. Pour in enough lemon juice to cover the lemons, top with remaining salt and seal.

Use:

Normally you would use the peel alone and discard the flesh but I sometimes use the flesh in salads.  I chop the peel into dips, stuffings or use as a garnish for fish, brilliant for stews and tagines.

Storage:

Keep in a cool cupboard. Leave for at least 4 weeks before using, or even longer as the flavour increases.  The lemons will last up to one year, I have some batches that have lasted several years and it really depends on the condition of the fruit you started with.  The lovely yellow colour of freshly pickled lemons will naturally fade over time but the flavour remains. You know when to discard the lemons if the structure has diminished- you don't want mushy peel. Sometimes you will see a white mould if the peel wasn't completely covered with juice, this is harmless so just cut off or discard that piece.

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