This Lemon Curd Recipe is silky smooth and sinfully delicious! Perfectly lemony with a buttery finish, you’ll likely want to put it on everything, not just your desserts!
I’ll admit, whenever I make this lemon curd I challenge myself to find as many things to put it on as possible–yogurt bowls, toast, should I try it in a smoothie or is that too far?
If you are interested in a recipe that uses this lemon curd, try my Lemon Shortbread Sandwich Cookies!
Lemon Curd is made from 5 simple ingredients—
Egg yolks
Sugar
Lemon Zest
Lemon Juice
Unsalted Butter
It’s likely that you already have the eggs, sugar and butter at home, so all that’s left is to go buy 2-3 lemons and you’ll be ready to make this super easy lemon curd recipe!
How to make this easy Lemon Curd Recipe
A lot of lemon curd recipes require that the curd be made in a bain-marie (double boiler). However I find that as long as you pay close attention to the curd, making it over direct heat is perfectly fine.
Start by adding ½ cup of granulated sugar to a small saucepan.
Next, zest your lemons until you have 1 Tbsp of lemon zest. I find that 1 medium lemon works perfectly for both the zest and the juice, but it could be smart to buy two lemons just in case. Add the lemon zest to the sugar in the saucepan.
Using a whisk, vigorously whisk the sugar and lemon zest together in the saucepan. This step helps bring out the oils in the lemon zest, ultimately adding more flavor.
Next, add three egg yolks straight into the saucepan with the sugar and zest and whisk vigorously until the mixture lightens in color.
Pour in ¼ cup of fresh lemon juice and whisk until combined.
Place the saucepan over low/medium heat making sure to whisk constantly. Pay special attention to the edges of the saucepan, the curd would most likely burn here if anywhere. Whisk constantly until the mix thickens. You’ll know it’s done when it reaches a hollandaise sauce consistency. It will thicken even more in the refrigerator.
Pull the lemon curd off of the heat and mix in 1/4 cup of cold butter that has been cut into tablespoon sized pieces. Mix until butter has melted.
Optionally you may pass the curd through a kitchen sieve to get rid of any lemon zest if you prefer a perfectly smooth curd.
Place the lemon curd in an airtight container and let it cool/thicken in the refrigerator for 1 hour. It will last in the fridge for up to 5 days.
If you try this recipe, be sure to snap a photo of how you use it and tag me on instagram @karisscorner!
Happy Baking!
Lemon Curd
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp (5g) fresh lemon zest
- 1/4 cup (60ml) fresh lemon juice 1 lemon should suffice for juice and zest
- 3 (45-50g) large egg yolks
- 1/4 cup (56g) unsalted butter cold
Instructions
- Add 1/2 c granulated sugar and 1 Tbsp lemon zest to a small/medium saucepan that is off the heat. Give the mixture a vigorous whisk.
- Add 3 large egg yolks to the saucepan and give the mixture another vigorous whisk until the mix has lightened in color.
- Pour in 1/4 c fresh lemon juice and whisk until combined.
- Place the saucepan over low/medium heat making sure to whisk constantly. Pay special attention to the edges of the saucepan, the curd would most likely burn here if anywhere. Whisk constantly until the mix thickens. You’ll know it’s done when it reaches a hollandaise sauce consistency. It will thicken even more in the refrigerator.
- Pull lemon curd off of the heat and mix in 1/4 c cold butter that has been cut into small pieces. Mix until butter has melted.
- (Optional) Pass the lemon curd through a kitchen sieve to get rid of any lemon zest.
- Place in an airtight container and let cool/thicken in the refrigerator for 1 hour. It will last in the fridge for up to 5 days.