Making your own preserved lemons yields huge flavor payoff
For dinner last night, I whipped up a simple little shrimp dish. And then I made it a simple little exceptional shrimp dish.
The basics were shrimp, white wine, onion, garlic, mushrooms and lemon juice, all cooked in a mixture of olive oil and butter.
The exception was preserved lemon.
Suddenly, an ordinary weeknight meal (OK, maybe not an ordinary weeknight meal) was elevated to Olympian heights. Each little piece of preserved lemon was like a mini hand grenade of bright flavor giving a special pop to the more subdued shrimp.
I could only make it because I had a fresh jar of preserved lemons in the fridge.
They were easy to make, and it didn’t take much time at all. It cost me less than 5 bucks, all told — it’s just lemons and salt — and now I have a game-changing condiment to add to seafood, chicken, vegetarian dishes and even red meat (in the right recipes) for the next six months to a year.
What I’m talking about here is what economists call ROI: Return on Investment. A small culinary investment yields big culinary returns.
Preserved Lemons INGREDIENTS
Lemons (see note)
Salt, preferably coarse
1 bay leaf, optional
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds, optional
1 dried chili, optional 1 cinnamon stick, optional Note: Smaller lemons are best for this recipe, and Meyer lemons, in season, are ideal. I fit 10 Meyer lemons into a 38-ounce jar.
DIRECTIONS
Wash lemons. Cut off the stem, if attached. Slice lengthwise from the other end of the lemon, stopping about 1-inch from the bottom; then make another downward slice, so you’ve incised the lemon with an X shape.
Pack coarse salt into the lemon where you made the incisions. Don’t be skimpy with the salt: Use about 1 tablespoon per lemon. Put the salt-filled lemons in a clean, large glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Add a few coriander seeds, a bay leaf, a dried chili and a cinnamon stick if you want, or a combination of any of them. Press the lemons very firmly in the jar to get the juices flowing. Cover and let stand overnight. The next day do the same, pressing the lemons down, encouraging them to release more juice as they start to soften. Repeat for 2 to 3 days until the lemons are completely covered with liquid. If necessary, add freshly squeezed lemon juice to cover them completely.
Store for 1 month, until the preserved lemons are soft. At this point they are ready to be used. Use or keep preserved lemons in the refrigerator for at least 6 months. Rinse before using to remove excess salt.
To use, remove lemons from the liquid and rinse. Split in half and scrape out the pulp. Slice the lemon peels into thin strips or cut into small dices. You may wish to press the pulp through a sieve to obtain the juice, which can be used for flavoring as well. Discard the pulp.
(Recipe from David Lebovitz.)