Easy Lemon Curd Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How to make curd from milk and lemon? ›

Here is how you can do it. Take lukewarm milk in a bowl and squeeze out juice of half a lemon into the milk. Give a gentle stir and cover the bowl with a lid. Wrap it with a cotton cloth and set it aside for 12 hours.

Why is my lemon curd not thickening? Make sure to cook the curd until thickened and bubbling. Stir it frequently with a rubber spatula or whisk to make sure it doesn't get lumpy. Once it's cooked, add cold butter and stir until it melts and becomes smooth.

Overcooking will cause proteins to bond too tightly, squeezing water out from between them and giving them a rubbery, lumpy texture. If you over-heat the lemon curd, the egg proteins can coagulate and you will see little bits of cooked egg.

Lemon curds with egg yolks have a richer taste, darker yellow color, and thicker consistency. For a lighter color and flavor and a softer consistency, you can swap the 6 yolks for 3 whole eggs! Option C would be to do a mix and have 1 whole egg and 4 yolks, or 2 whole eggs and 2 yolks.

I cook mine for about 2 minutes because I like thick lemon curd. Test the thickness by dipping the back of a spoon into your lemon curd and drag your finger across it. If it holds the shape without dripping off too quickly, it's done!

📋 Recipe FAQs

If it is then it means the curd is overcooked and this could be caused by the bottom of the bowl touching the surface of the water and the water being at a rolling boil rather than simmering. Why is my curd runny? The curd hasn't been cooked for long enough to reach the correct temperature to thicken.

Lemon curd always thickens as it cools so you may find that you end up with a lemon curd that's thicker than you hoped for. If this happens, the easiest way to thin it is to whisk in a little extra lemon juice (about ½ a teaspoon at a time as you don't want to add too much) until it is your desired consistency.

Remember that curd will thicken more once cooled. If your cooled curd is not thick enough, you can reheat it to thicken. Put it over a low heat, stirring constantly. Ensure it coats the back of a spoon before taking it off the heat.

Add a cornstarch slurry: First, ensure your curd is cooked to 170 degrees F and if it still hasn't thickened, whisk 1 teaspoon cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water until the cornstarch is completely dissolved.

When this acid comes into contact with certain metals, notably copper or aluminum, a chemical reaction occurs. This reaction causes the metal to oxidize and release ions, and when these ions mix with the lemon curd, it results in a greenish tint to the mixture.

Why did my lemon curd scramble? ›

But WHY did the Lemon Curd scramble? I learned that day, based on the scientific fact that eggs do not curdle when cooked in the presence of starch, and because Lemon Curd has no starch (such as flour or cornstarch), it will curdle when the eggs get too hot.

Shelf Life: Prepared lemon curd can be frozen for up to 1 year without quality changes when thawed. To thaw, place container in a refrigerator at 40°F or lower for 24 hours before intended use. After thawing, consume within 4 weeks.

In a covered, airtight container for up to one week. It doesn't really freeze well. Lemon curd does contain eggs and dairy (butter), so I'd be ok leaving it out for the day if I plan on serving it, but anything overnight definitely would need to be refrigerated.

For curdling, I added 1/4 tsp lemon juice to 2 oz boiled milk in the sauce pan and continued stirring on heat until curdled. Use methods 3 and 4 to make small quantity yogurt which can then be used as starter yogurt for the next batch.

How to Make Lemon Curd. In a medium saucepan – vigorously whisk together eggs, sugar, salt, and lemon zest until frothy. Add lemon juice while whisking and stir until combined. Add butter pieces and whisk constantly over low heat until mixture is thickened (8-9 minutes).