Preserved lemons recipe

As you may have noticed, I have been on a bit of pickle and preserving craze, making loads of pickles and chutneys. One of my favourite things that I have made is these preserved lemons! They are used often in North African & Middle Eastern cuisine - and then impart an amazing flavour (think lemons on steroids!)

If you don't know what preserved lemons are, they are lemons which are pickled with salt and their own juices. Leave for a month in a cool dark place for a month and over time, the lemon skins become super soft and they add a delicious tangy flavour without any of the bitterness. They keep for a very long time if stored properly. I most recently used them in my South Indian lemon rice recipe! I recently also used them in a lemon rasam (Indian lentil soup) - recipe for that coming soon!

Ingredients
5 lemons
Salt
Water which has been boiled and then cooled
Large sterilised glass jar (see this recipe for how to sterilise glass jars)

Method

• Trim the stalk off 4 of the lemons (leaving a flat surface on which it can stand upright). 
  
  
• Cut the 4 lemons into quarters leaving the ends attached (so just cut down 3/4 of the way).
  
  
• In the jar, add a 1/2 cm layer of salt in the bottom.
  
  
• Next, inside 1 of the 4 quartered lemons, add 1-2 tsp salt.
  
  
• Put the lemon into the jar, open end facing down. Push hard in order to squish it and to release its juices. Depending on the size of your jar, you may be able to fit two side by side.
  
  
• Over the squished lemon (s), add another 1-2 tsp of salt. 
  
  
• Add salt inside the remaining quartered lemons, add them to jar - ensuring that the lemons are compact and layered with the salt. 
  
  
• With the remaining 5th lemon, cut in half and squeeze out the juice. Pour this juice over the compacted lemons in the jar. Don't waste the rind of this lemon, also add it to the jar. 
  
  
• Add a final 1-2 tsp of salt over the top. The lemons should be completely covered in liquid - so add enough water which has been boiled and cooled to top up.
  
  
• Seal the jar. Leave for a few weeks in a cool dry place to soften! The liquid will also thicken up and become almost a syrupy consistency. Before using one, rinse of any excess salt!