The market · Seasonings and ferments · North Africa
Preserved lemons
Lemons packed in salt and their own juice for a month or more, until the rind turns soft, salty and floral.
citrusy · floral · salty
What to do with it
Ibu Sari's Beef rendangPreserved lemon would cut through its richnessAna Etxarri's ChawanmushiPreserved lemon would season itRosa Ibarra's Clarified milk punch, mezcal and pineapplePreserved lemon would season itTolu Adeyemi's Jollof, party stylePreserved lemon would season it
MoroccanChicken with preserved lemon and olivesChicken braised with onion, ginger, saffron and turmeric until the sauce is thick, finished with preserved lemon and green olives.No one here has made it yetMoroccanTanjiaBeef or lamb packed into a tall clay urn with preserved lemon, garlic, cumin, saffron and smen, and cooked for hours in the embers.No one here has made it yetMoroccanFish tagine with charmoulaFish marinated in charmoula, laid over potatoes, tomatoes and peppers with preserved lemon and olives, and cooked slowly in the tagine.No one here has made it yetIf you can't find it
Middle Eastern grocers and delis, in jars.
- Quick version: chop a lemon, salt it hard, leave overnightYou lose the soft, fermented roundness of the real thing.
Goes with
Knowing it
- Where to buy
- North African and Middle Eastern grocers, or make them — it takes lemons, salt and time.
- Worth knowing
- Rinse, scrape out the pulp, and use the rind finely chopped. It's salt as well as lemon — season after.