Preserving Lemons

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bean_pod, Jan 6, 12:41am
Hi everyone. I'm hoping to discuss preserving lemons. I've read a few links, looked at some u-tube demos and scoured the library. It lookssimple enough for a beginner. Does anyone have any sage advice or even a recipe that they have used with success in the past.

I have plenty of lemons that I want to use before they lose all their juice in this heat.

vmax2, Jan 6, 12:55am
Here is some information I got from a low carb forum from a poster who has been making preserved lemons for a long time.

One of the best benefits I have found is that the juice, when drunk in small quantities, knocks cramp on the head.

I would suggest that anyone who has a lemon tree (usually Meyer is what most use but preserved Lisbon lemons are a real treat) would do well to start haunting car boot sales, ops shops and Church fairs looking for AGEE jars now. Half a dozen of the regular sized jars should be enough to allow you to put down a decent supply for the year.

To make them all you need to have is:

1. Sterilise your jars and lids and have bands at the ready
2. A pkt of sea salt or non-iodised salt
3. A bucket of lemons - scrubbed clean
METHOD
1. Slice into quarters
2. Salt each slice heavily and place into a jar
3. Keep doing this, pressing the lemons in gently as you go - juice will come out
4. When your jar is full (just to the level where the top of the jar curves in to form the part where the lid screws on) and there is no more room for lemons, fill up the remaining air spaces with lemon juice and ensure that the top lemons are completely submerged. Watch that you leave a small gap between the lid and the liquid as lemon juice is acidic.
5. Put the lid on tightly and leave in a plastic bowl in the bath or somewhere cool for 3 days till fermentation begins. You'll know because the liquid will probably squeeze out past the lid.
6. After 3 days wash your jars in cold water and store at the back of the fridge for a few more weeks.
7. They are now ready to use in casseroles, stews, on top of roast lamb, rubbed between the skin and flesh of chicken before cooking, added to pesto, raw in salads, salsa, tomato sauces, curries - anything really.

When you lemons in the jar start to get low in the jar you can drink the juice. It is not sour or bitter but more reminiscent of a salty lemonade. Just delicious.

Don't be surprised that the lemons seem slightly slimy. That is the mark of a properly fermented lemon.

Sometimes you will get a white 'bloom' on the surface of your lemons as the jar empties and air is sealed in every time you open the jar. This is not unhealthy but it is still a good idea to spoon it out if this happens. I haven't had it happen to me for ages, but it used to happen when I first started making them.

Hope you have some success with this.I'm contemplating making beet kvass nextI love kombucha and water kefir but beet kvass is even better for you.

davidt4, Jan 6, 1:24am
I have been making preserved lemons for years and I have never sterilised the jars;I have never had any mould even on jars that are years old.I don't refrigerate them either.The salt and acid are more than enough to keep them safe.

What is more important is to have plastic lids, as metal lids will corrode quickly.

vmax2, Jan 6, 1:29am
Yes davidt4, I find that with sauerkraut too.The jars, that is.The general rule with fermentation is on the bench for 2-3 days and then into cold storage.

vmax2, Jan 6, 1:29am
Yes davidt4, I find that with sauerkraut too.

uli, Jan 6, 3:01am
My preserved lemons are now 3 years old as I made 5 huge jars full at the time. There are 2 jars left and they are still great going.

bean_pod, Jan 6, 5:02am
Thank you vmax, davidt4 and uli for your helpful comments. Particularly thanks to vmax for her recipe.

Vmax told me in an earlier thread to get hold of plastic lids so I wrote to my sister who lives in a bigger place, who found some for me in a shop that sold all sorts of plastic stuff. I am very happy. I scored a lot of Agee jars from a neighbour who inherited them from her mother when she passed. She was not interested in using them. Her loss.

That comment at the end about beet kvass. Was that yours vmax or was that part of the original recipe's comments. It sounds interesting.

Surely you ladies must have kitchens that look like mad scientists live there, with all your different ferments.

vmax2, Jan 6, 6:47am
Yes my kitchen can look rather interesting at times.Currently I have water kefir, milk kefir and cultured cream on the bench.In my hot water cupboard I have kombucha.I've bought some cabbages to make some sauerkraut which will sit on the bench for a few days.And then I'll experiment with beet kvass some time soon.Having all these things on the bench is a great conversation starter when people come and visit.

mctavi, Jan 6, 8:47am
What do you use preserved lemons for!

davidt4, Jan 6, 9:34am
Preserved lemons have a strong, complex taste that adds depth and complexity to salads, tagines and vegetables.I use it most often in salads of silverbeet/spinach, with yoghurt, mint and garlic.About half of a preserved lemon per 500g meat or vege.

bean_pod, Jan 6, 9:24pm
From the second post:

"They are now ready to use in casseroles, stews, on top of roast lamb, rubbed between the skin and flesh of chicken before cooking, added to pesto, raw in salads, salsa, tomato sauces, curries - anything really."

"One of the best benefits I have found is that the juice, when drunk in small quantities, knocks cramp on the head."

daleaway, Jan 6, 10:36pm
My tip is to make sure the juice covers the lemons completely; don't skimp.

Our favourite way of using them is with olives to make Greek roast chicken (served with oregano roast potatoes).

bean_pod, Jan 6, 11:57pm
Thanks daleaway.

bean_pod, Jan 7, 12:00am
I was thinking about this when shopping this morning and beetroot just jumped into my shopping. Now I need to know how to make it. Is it hard! Can you post a recipe or link please!

vmax2, Jan 7, 12:41am
BEETROOT KVASS
Chop a large beetroot or two small ones into 1cm cubes
Cover with untreated or filtered water to mostly fill the jar
Add a pinch of salt and whey or other starters if you like
Ferment for a few days
(Ferementation time depends on temperature and other factors)
When it starts to develop a deep dark colour and a pleasing strength, strain out the beetroot

You can drink it just like that
Use it as a base for borscht
Lightly carbonate by decanting into a sealed bottle and ferment for another day on the bench

Nourishing Traditions recipe:

BEETROOT KVASS
3 medium or 2 large organic beetroot - Peel and coarsely chop
¼ Cup Whey
1 T Sea Salt
Filtered Water

Place all ingredients into a large jar and stir well
Cover securely
Ferment for 2 days at room temperature then refrigerate

When most of the liquid has been drunk you may fill up the container with water and keep at room temperature for another 2 days. The resulting brew will be slightly less strong than the first.
After the second brew discard the beetroot and start again
You can save some of the juice to innoculate the next batch instead of using whey

Note: Do notgrate the beetroot as they exude too much juice and will ferment too fast producing alcohol rather than lactic acid.

The above are 2 recipes for you bean_pod.
I'm sure I made the Nourishing Traditions recipe in the early days of my fermenting food and I didn't like it.I suspect that was because my taste buds hadn't gotten used to the fermented taste of food and still craved sweetness.I've been doing lots of reading about beet kvass lately.Some don't like the strong salty taste of NT recipe so reduce it.It's a good drink to have to help with cleansing the liver and your blood and recommended that you have a glass of it in the morning and at night.Some like it more effervescent so just leave it on the bench to ferment for a little longer.Some people also find that a little bit of ginger is also very pleasant in with the beetroot.I will experiment with it later.

uli, Jan 7, 1:00am
Good luck with the beet kwass - I made some lemon kwass once and the lid of the champagne bottle hit the ceiling (even after having the bottle in the freezer for 2 hours!) - I can just imagine the mess with beetroot into that mix! :)

vmax2, Jan 7, 1:12am
What was your recipe for lemon kvass uli!As I understand it the beetroot kvass isn't very fizzy and only 1% alcohol if that.

bean_pod, Jan 7, 8:40am
Thanks for the recipes. I now have a jar fermenting on my bench much to everyone's curiosity and amusement. Lol I'll show them. Tomorrow I do the lemons.

uli, Jan 7, 8:47am
I would have to dig deep vmax2 - that was more than 30 years ago :)

vmax2, Jan 7, 9:34pm
Was that back when you were a toddler uli! lol

davidt4, Jan 7, 10:03pm
Many years ago I was involved in making sparkling wine at home.We had about 4 dozen wired Champagne bottles stored in the basement and every night one bottle would explode.After a couple of weeks we discovered the reason - our cat would lie on a bottle, it would explode from his body heat, he'd run away, then he would have forgotten by the next night and repeat the process.

pickles7, Jan 7, 10:57pm
I made up three jars at first, ended up dividing one jar between the other two to, adding more lemon juice and a Tbsp more sea salt to ensure they were full. They have turned out, simply sublime.
I cut mine 3/4 way then cut 3/4 way the other end, I then put 1 teaspoon on sea salt into each end.

vmax2, Jan 8, 7:34am
Lovely.Fermented food gives you such energy and health.It's exciting to make.I made 2 cabbages into sauerkraut today and added in some garlic from my garden.It smelled so lovely as I was pounding it.My bench is getting rather full of jars.Might have to go shopping for some more jars.

vmax2, Jan 9, 10:46pm
How's the beet kvass bean_pod!Have you tried it yet or are you leaving it to ferment for a bit longer!

uli, Jan 10, 3:24am
You like to live dangerously bean_pod!