Preserved Lemons

The cliché is April showers, but in Los Angeles, springtime brings sunshine as our reward for making it through the rainy season of late winter and the moody transitions of early spring. Golden sunshine is as famous a part of Los Angeles living as the movies and the beach. April is gorgeous but as short-lived as a California micro-climate. Come May, days will start off gray, usually burning off my mid-afternoon but sometimes not at all, in a phenomenon known as May Gray that makes Los Angeles as gloomy as it ever gets.

During both Golden April and May Gray we welcome sunny citrus into the kitchen. Any Angeleno will tell you that lemon blossoms are the official fragrance of springtime in Los Angeles, and from our wallpaper to our fruit bowl, tart lemons are the official fruit. Ovens churn out lemon cookies and lemon pound cake while on the stovetop, patience brings creamy avgolemono. At the bar, lemon vodka infuses with fresh lemon juice, alongside lemonade for the teetotalers. Bright lime enlivens a bowl of chicken soup, an ice pop, and a Citron and tonic. Tiny, intense tangerines brighten a springtime dinner of seared beef and bitter greens, with blood oranges taking over for beef salad with gorgonzola. Fresh orange juice is synonymous with Southern California living, from the pitcher on the breakfast table to a retro Harvey Wallbanger, a swank Blood and Sand, a beachy Tequila Sunrise. Hefty, sweet-sour grapefruit wait with deadly aim for the first piercing from a breakfast spoon, while that emblematic California weirdness grapefruit marmalade bubbles in the hot water bath of spring canning.

Spring canning preserves first fruits just as fall canning preserves abundance. The first yield from the short season of cherries is ready for brandy and superfine sugar. Hot habañeros meld with apricots in jars of golden jam, while jalapeños mellow just a bit in brine. Strawberries from the Central Coast are plentiful enough for both jam and strawberry-rhubarb pie. Even olives, another California crop, are ready in fresh abundance, for marinating in oil and herbs. To this list, sunny kitchens from California to the Mediterranean add one of the most basic preserves of all: preserved lemons. These savory lemons are a pleasure to find on the canning shelf when dreary afternoons yet to come call for the memory of springtime sun. Bake bone-in chicken breasts with them to serve with rice pilaf, or serve them as a meze for a Greek dinner. Preserved lemons will brighten any meal with a bit of California sunshine on the plate.

Preserved Lemons
This is a simple technique to preserve lemons in small batches that will keep, refrigerated, for up to 6 months. This is a fresh preserve, not suitable for hot water bath- or pressure-canning. 

10 medium lemons
Kosher salt
Extra virgin olive oil
Several sprigs of fresh thyme, optional

Clean the lemons

1. Place a bit of food-safe vegetable cleaner into a bowl large enough to contain the lemons. Fill the bowl halfway with water and swirl the water and the cleaner together.
2. Place the lemons in the bowl a few at a time. Rub the lemons under the water line until they feel squeaky clean.
3. Rinse each lemon under cool water and set aside to dry on a wire rack placed over a kitchen towel.
4. Repeat steps 2 - 4 above until you have cleaned, rinsed, and set aside to dry all of the lemons.

Prepare the lemons

1. Pick through the lemons and choose the six nicest ones for preserving. 
2. Place the 6 lemons into a large nonreactive pot. Cover the lemons with water by 1 inch.
3. Bring the water to a boil. Cover the pot and boil the lemons for 5 minutes.
4. After 5 minutes, turn off the heat but leave the pot covered. Let the lemons sit in the hot water for 5 minutes.
5. After 5 minutes (step 4 above), use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked lemons from the hot water to the wire rack.

Juice the lemons

• While the cooked lemons are cooling on the wire rack, use a citrus press to juice the remaining 4 lemons into a large measuring cup with a spout. Work over a sieve to catch any pith or seeds.

Preserve the lemons

1. Place a sprig of fresh thyme if using into each of 3 sterilized pint canning jars.
2. Place 1 tablespoon kosher salt into each jar.
3. Once the cooked lemons are cool enough to handle, safely use a citrus knife to cut each lemon lengthwise into halves. Cut each half lengthwise into halves to create quarters.
4. The flesh of the lemons should gently split open as you cut each lemon into quarters. Place 1 teaspoon kosher salt into each split.
5. Gently transfer the salted lemon quarters into the jars. It is okay to pack the jars tightly.
6. Once the jars are packed, sprinkle 1 teaspoon kosher salt into each jar. Drizzle each jar of lemons with a 5-count of extra virgin olive oil.
7. Divide the fresh lemon juice among the jars. If there is not enough juice to go to the top of each jar, make up the difference with water from the cooking bath
8. Close each jar with a sterile ring and lid.
9. Give each jar a gentle shake to distribute the contents.
10. Store the jars in a cool, dark place for 2 weeks, shaking each jar every couple of days to distribute the contents.
11. After 2 weeks, transfer the jars of preserved lemons to refrigeration, where they should keep for up to 6 months.

Resources
Habanero Gold
Citrus Salsa
Urban Home Blog Guide to Canning and Preserving Supplies