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I have been using lemon confit with salt in Moroccan recipes for years without ever having prepared them myself. I recently returned to Morocco and it is a friend, Myriem with our traditional Touria, who gave me her method. It is imperative to use organic lemons and have a little patience, as it takes a minimum of two weeks (or even longer) for them to be ready to be eaten in a delicious dish. But what a pleasure to make them yourself, especially if you are lucky enough to grow them at home!
- a dozen organic lemons
- 1kg of coarse salt
These are the only ingredients to make the salt preserved lemons, so dear to our Moroccan friends. It is essential to use untreated organic lemons after harvest. Place them in a large container or pot.
Pour boiling water over it and now let it cool to room temperature. They must be completely covered. This will soften them and make it easier to pack them into the container.
A few hours later, the lemons cooled and became softer. Cut them in 4 without going all the way through.
We can see better here!
Open the lemon (not easy with the camera in the other hand!!).
Garnish with coarse salt.
It must be well filled.
Place it in the jar and proceed in the same way for all the lemons. Put them as you go in the chosen container. The juice will start coming out very quickly.
Now you need patience! It takes a minimum of two weeks (or even more like a month) before you can use the lemon confit with salt in a recipe. The juice from the lemons will normally cover them. If not, you can add water. But wait 3-4 days and stir the jar once a day to see if the juice is not enough.
You can keep them for a long time. Put them in a closet away from light. If they oxidize and turn slightly brown, don’t panic, they will be very good in the Tanjia (see below).
I have been using it for years in the following Moroccan recipes (click on the name to access it):
