Preserved Lemons

Used in many Moroccan dishes.

• 1 clean jar with lid, I like ½ pint sized jars

• Lemons, preferably small, washed, cut from the stemmed end into quarters almost to the base. Do not separate slices.

• Sea salt

Insert 4 teaspoons of sea salt into each lemon and close lemon around the salt. Make sure there is some salt in between all the slices. Press lemon together around salt.

Place lemons tightly into the jar until the jar is full. I place 2 lemons into one ½ pint jar. Squeeze additional lemon juice into the jar until the lemons are covered. Remove as many bubbles as you can before sealing the jar. The juice will overflow so it’s best to do this part near a sink. Place the jar lid on tightly and set in a refrigerator. Gently shake the jar turning it upside down and then upright daily for the first couple of days to help dissolve the salt. Keep Refrigerated. They will be ready to use in one month. Preserved lemons will keep for 10 to 12 months.

If the top lemon grows mold, discard that lemon, but the rest of the lemons will
be fine. If they are very slimy or smell bad they are ready to be tossed. If you use a part of a jar, add more lemon juice as needed so the remaining lemons are always covered. Rinse lemons before using.

Quick Preserved Lemons:

Slice one lemon in half pole to pole, then thinly slice into half rounds. Sauté in 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp salt until soft. Chop and add to recipe in place of preserved lemons.