Preserved Salty Lemons

This jar of preserved salty lemons will add strong flavour - to salad dressing, fish, and chicken.

This post is all about making preserved salty lemon recipe. A popular Cantonese seasoning agent for seafood.

These preserved lemons with salt are the best seasoning agent for seafood. It's strong in flavour and adds complex robustness to your cooking. 

We like to use these preserved lemons for salad dressings, fish and other seafood. It's versatile and you only need a little that will yield lots of joy. The quick smell of it, when you open the jar, is intoxicating. You can smell the citrus notes of the lemon, and salty-tarty goodness in the jar as well. 

Once these lemons are preserved, it takes on a different taste and texture. It's bolder, and pungent (in a good way), and it has a bright saltiness to it. I think this flavouring agent has not been played with enough, and there are still tons of possibilities that have not yet been explored!

Embark on this new journey and try it! Try these preserved lemons and start to create your own recipes with this basic jar of salty lemons. The world is your playground here!

What are Preserved Lemons?

In a nutshell, preserved lemons are lemons persevered in salt in a jar over time. It changes the fresh characteristics of the lemon to a pleasantly tart, salty floral taste. 

This long and slow fermentation process helps break down the rind of the lemon and slowly ferments the inside of the lemon flesh and juice. After one month, you get an extraordinary bright flavouring agent to add to steam fish, roast chicken, and seafood salads.

And you know if anything is preserved and fermented it has good bacteria that is beneficial to your gut!

Types of Lemons for Preservation 

A lemon that is strong in acid and sugar is the best type. I recommend either eureka or Meyer lemons are best for this recipe.

If you can find organic with no pesticides are the best since we are eating the preserved rinds as well. If you have a lemon tree in the backyard and there's an excess of it, this recipe is best for those backyard lemons. 

How should I store it?

Best to use a glass jar for this. The first two weeks of preserving it, there's a possibility it still start to bubble and the liquid and salt will come out. This is why a glass jar is best to avoid the jar being corroded since we are using a large base of salt to preserve these lemons for later use. 

How long should I Wait to Eat It?

You will need to wait a minimum of 1 month before digging into it. After 1 month the lemons will still be lemon and ready to use. These lemons can be preserved forever as long as there's good clean hygiene in taking care of them. 

My mother has a jar of preserved lemons and it is dated back 10 years ago! 

After 6 months to a year, the lemons inside the jar will eventually turn brown. Do not be discouraged or worried! The lemons turning brown is a good sign of age. I love using brown lemons. It's tastier than when it is yellow.

How to use the Preserved lemons

First, when you take the lemon pieces out, remember to use a clean spoon. Scoop out a small piece and chop it up. Depending on the aging time it could be still ripped and hard to squish between the fingers. If it is aged more, squishing it between the fingers is easy. Whatever it is, you need to chop it finely because it is very salty. You also have the option to wash off the salt from the lemon.

Try our Cantonese Steamed Soy Sauce Fish with Preserved Lemon. This recipe is perfect to use these lemons and it's the perfect recipe to showcase the deep citrusy flavour of these preserved lemons.

Mentioned Post {Cantonese Steamed Soy Sauce Fish with Preserved Lemon}

What salt should you use?

I always use sea salt to preserve the lemons. More specifically, I like to use a courser type of sea salt. I never recommend table salt with iodine because it is too salty and incredibly unhealthy. Sea salt has natural minerals that I find it beneficial during the aging time of the lemons.

Since these lemons are preserved and fermented, it is highly beneficial to your gut which is why I use (and recommend) sea salt to take the full benefits of both the salt, lemons and the natural process of fermentation. 

If sea salt is too expensive in your area, kosher salt is also a great option. Here are some of my favourite sea salt:

• Celtic Sea Salt
• Himalayan Sea Salt
• Kosher Salt

How to make the recipe

You only need two ingredients: lemon and salt. 

Clean

Find a clean jar. If you're reusing a glass jar, make sure it is washed with soapy warm water. Air dry or towel dry the jar and lid. 

Then wash the lemons with hot soapy water. Rinse the soap and towel dry the lemons. 

Add Lemon and Salt in the Jar

We are using whole lemons to preserve the lemons. We are not cutting them into smaller sizes because we want to preserve the inside of the lemon. When you cut the lemons, the juice of the lemon leaks out, but we want the juice to be preserved and fermented inside the lemons for more flavour.

Trust me, this is the best process. Cutting the lemons will give you more space and preserve more lemons in a jar, but the results won't be as good as a whole lemon. We want the yellow gold liquid to ooze out the lemons, not turn them into salt brine water when it is all cut up. 

Squish and Squeeze the Lemons

Now, try to squish, squeeze, and mould as many lemons as you can in a single jar. Once you manage to add as many whole lemons as you can to the jar, start to pour salt into the jar.

It is very important to not leave any gap of air in the jar. the trapped air or areas left untouched by salt might create an environment for mold or bad bacteria to inhabit. To prevent that from happening, we need to make sure there's no gap of air inside the jar. Peer through the glass jar and make sure all gaps are covered and closed by salt.

Finally, at the top of the jar cover the top lemons with salt. You shouldn't be able to see any yellow skins. 

Ferment

Cover the lid with some plastic wrap and preserve it for at least 1 month before breaking into it. If your lid is metal, you need to cover it with plastic or else the salty water will erode the lid, and transfer a metallic taste to the lemons. And after that, it will be a sad case of throwing away everything. 

Store it in a dark and cool area.

Note: within 2 weeks of fermenting the lemons, there is a possibility the water and salt might bubble out. It's okay and very normal. Just a sign that the fermentation process is working. Just clean the jar and tabletop. Open the lid and make sure the salt is still covering the lemons. If the lemons are soft you can use a clean spoon and try to push them further down and add more salt to the top if needed.

Salad Dressing Recipe with Preserved Lemon

Try this delicious Preserved Lemon Allioli 

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp preserved lemon (and its salt), finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely grated
• 2 tbsp finely chopped mint
• 1 cup olive oil

Combine all the ingredients together in a food processor or in a blender. Serve over salad. And enjoy!

Steamed Fish Recipe Using Preserved Lemons

Try our Cantonese Steamed Fish with Preserved Lemon recipe. It's so delicious and my kids love this recipe a lot. This recipe is a great introduction to them loving seafood and especially fish. The preserved salty lemon helps cut down the fishy taste of fish making it more enjoyable and palatable for children. 

Sore Throat Recipe Using Preserved Lemons

This drink is something my mom makes for me when a cold or the flu is starting, and the back of my throat is itchy and irritable. 

Mix 2 tbsp of lemon salt (not the lemon just the salt) with 1 cup of warm water. Stir the salt in the warm water until fully dissolved. Gargle the drink in the back of your throat and spit it out. Repeat 3 times. If necessary, repeat after 3 hours.