Preserved Lemons

When life gives you lemons, make aioli right?

Wrong.

Preserve them instead—not only will they last longer, they’ll spruce up plenty of dishes in the most surprising yet addictive ways too. I’ve taken to adding wedges to cocktails, veggie sides, soups, salads, and the occasional roast chicken. Even if you don’t have anything in mind at the moment, don’t be shy, preserve and persevere.

lemon bomb, photo: Dan Stachurski

Preserved Lemons

You’ll need about 12 lemons* (2 pounds maybe a little more) for this recipe, but read carefully for they will get split up. Place about 8 of them in a large pot and fill with enough water to cover by about an inch. Bring the pot over to the stove and set on high. Once the water comes to a boil, drain and once cool enough to handle, cut each lemon into 8 wedges and place in a large bowl. Scatter about 1 cup of kosher salt over the wedges, and with a rubber spatula, mix well. Once the wedges are evenly coated pour into a sealable container (glass is best), making sure to scrape all the salty-lemony goodness out of the bowl.

Juice the remaining 4 lemons, discarding seeds but keeping the pulp, and pour over the salty wedges. Liquid should be covering all the pieces, so if they aren’t and you have more lemons, hooray, juice them. If you’re all out, add a little water, and the next time life gives you lemons, add the juice to your preserves.

Experts say that refrigerated, these will last about a year, but I’m confident they’d be just as safe long after those 365 days since they’ll be, you know, preserved.

*Meyer lemons are the most popular choice, but regular ol’ pale yellow ones work too, mandarin oranges are quite delicious as well.

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