Name: Lemon Curd Recipe | Only 6 Ingredients!
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 2 h 35 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Side Dish
Ingredients: ¾ cup White Granulated Sugar; 2 tablespoon Lemon Zest; 4 large Eggs; ½ cup Fresh Lemon Juice (5 lemons); ½ cup Unsalted Butter, cold and sliced; ¼ teaspoon Salt

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This gorgeous homemade lemon curd recipe is absolutely delicious. It is truly sunshine in a jar. This from-scratch lemon curd is deliciously sweet-tart and very creamy. Only six common ingredients are used to make this lemon curd and it comes together on the stove in about 20 minutes.

Lemon curd clinging to a spoon held above a jar of homemade lemon curd. There is a second jar in the upper right, a basket of lemons in the upper left.

Wonderfully tart with notes of sweetness, this is a classic lemon curd recipe that is perfect with scones and tea.

Lemon Curd Recipe

This easy recipe is for the best lemon curd you will ever taste! This luscious lemon curd is perfect in place of jelly or jam on top of biscuits, scones, or toast. Truly a lemon lover recipe. If you have a bunch of lemons, you will want to make this great recipe.

Learn how to make your own lemon curd using the easy lemon curd recipe below. A simple recipe that has the tart lemon flavor you adore.

How to Make Lemon Curd

STEP 1. Combine sugar and zest in a saucepan or double boiler, add eggs, and whisk.
STEP 2. Place on low heat, and whisk until sugar melts.
STEP 3. Add lemon juice, and whisk until the lemon curd begins to thicken. Add slices of butter, and whisk until melted.
STEP 4. Whisk until thick, then strain and cool.

Uses for Lemon Curd

So you’ve made this delicious lemon curd, now what do you do with it?

● Make a lemon meringue cake or lemon meringue pie.
● Make a lemon fudge recipe!
● Use it as a topping for fresh fruit scones.
● A favorite way to use lemon curd is on top of vanilla ice cream, fresh fruit, or a piece of angel food or white cake.

Overhead view of two open jars of lemon curd. Freshly sliced lemons are to the right and left of the bottom jar.

Tips and variations for making lemon curd:

● You will need 5 fresh lemons or other citrus fruit to make this curd recipe. In other words, this would also work to make orange curd, grapefruit curd, Meyer lemons curd, lime curd; basically most citrus should work to make this recipe.
● In the United States, ½ cup butter = 1 stick, 1 cup butter = 2 sticks.
● Make certain your butter is cold and sliced.
● This recipe uses large whole eggs, not just egg yolks or egg whites.
● When zesting the lemon, use only the top part of the lemon rind, do not zest the pith which is bitter.
● No lemon zest? Try powdered lemon peel.
● Cooked egg in your lemon curd could be a sign that your heat was too high and you were not stirring enough. I suggest cooking over a double boiler on low heat if this happens to you. Make certain you are stirring constantly.
● Another solution is if you have a problem with the eggs cooking mix the butter and sugar together and cream them just as you would like you were making a cake. Then add the eggs one at a time, and mix in each one very well. Then add the lemon juice, zest, and salt. Then heat in a pan. The way this recipe is set up, tempering is not necessary since the eggs are not added directly to heat or a hot liquid. However, you do have to make sure that the eggs do not cook on the stove.
● Keep the heat low and stir constantly!
● The operative words in making this lemon curd are slowly and constantly. It should take your curd about 15-20 minutes to slowly heat and thicken. Stir constantly as the lemon curd thickens to prevent burning. While I know stirring over heat isn’t fun, it is necessary for this lemon curd recipe to turn out well.
● Don’t rush it! If you choose to use a double boiler realize the recipe will take much longer. However, you may be better pleased with the results.
● If you are using your lemon curd for a pie filling you may want to experiment with adding corn starch as a thickening agent to make the homemade curd a bit thicker. A thicker curd is desirable for a pie filling.
● If your lemon curd has a metallic aftertaste it is probably because you used a reactive pot (or top of a double boiler). Aluminum, cast iron, and copper are all reactive. Stainless steel, ceramic, glass, and metal cookware with enamel coating are all nonreactive. Use a porcelain or enamel pot instead, or use a double boiler and substitute a heatproof glass bowl (or another heatproof bowl that is not metal) for the metal insert.
● You can make curd up to one week ahead of use. Cover surface with plastic wrap, and store in the refrigerator.
● This lemon curd is made with simple ingredients commonly found at your local grocery store.

Lemon Curd Recipe. This gorgeous homemade lemon curd recipe is absolutely delicious. It is truly sunshine in a jar. This from-scratch lemon curd is deliciously sweet-tart and very creamy. Only six common ingredients are used to make this lemon curd and it comes together on the stove in about 20 minutes.

Lemon Curd Recipe Ingredients

● ¾ cup White Granulated Sugar
● 2 tablespoon Lemon Zest
● 4 large Eggs
● ½ cup Fresh Lemon Juice (4 to 5 lemons)
● ½ cup Unsalted Butter, cold and sliced
● ¼ teaspoon Salt

Lemon Curd Recipe Mise en Place:

● Grater/Zester
● Citrus Juicer
● Measuring Cup
● Measuring Spoons
● Spatula/ Wooden Spoon
● Non-reactive Pot or Double Boiler (use a glass bowl for the insert in your insert is metal)
● Silicone Whisk (try not to use a wire whisk)
● Jar(s)
● Plastic Wrap
● Fine Mesh Strainer

Lemon Curd Recipe Directions:

1. In a saucepan, combine sugar and lemon zest.

2. Rub the lemon zest into the sugar with clean fingers. This releases the natural oils in the lemon zest and brings out a more pronounced flavor in the lemon curd.

3. One at a time, add the eggs and whisk well after adding each egg.

4. Place the saucepan on the lowest heat on your stove top and whisk continuously until the sugar has melted.

5. Add the lemon juice and keep whisking the mix on low heat until the curd just starts to thicken.

6. Start adding the cold slices of butter, while whisking continuously as the butter melts.

7. Once all the butter has been incorporated and the lemon curd is thick and looks shiny and velvety, take it off the heat. The curd should be thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon.

8. Strain the lemon curd through a fine-mesh strainer to get rid of the zest particles.

9. Cover the surface of the lemon curd with plastic wrap to prevent the formation of the ‘skin’ on the top of the curd and let it cool to room temperature.

10. Allow the lemon curd to chill for at least 2 hours in the fridge.

11. Once completely chilled, transfer into a clean glass jar or other airtight container and keep in the fridge for up to 7 days.

Side view of a jar of homemade lemon curd. There is a second jar in the upper right, a basket of lemons in the upper left.

Yield: 2 cups

Lemon Curd Recipe | Only 6 Ingredients!

Lemon Curd Recipe. This gorgeous homemade lemon curd recipe is absolutely delicious. It is truly sunshine in a jar. This from-scratch lemon curd is deliciously sweet-tart and very creamy. Only six common ingredients are used to make this lemon curd and it comes together on the stove in about 20 minutes.

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Additional Time 2 hours

Total Time 2 hours 35 minutes

Ingredients

¾ cup White Granulated Sugar
2 tablespoon Lemon Zest
4 large Eggs
½ cup Fresh Lemon Juice (5 lemons)
½ cup Unsalted Butter, cold and sliced
¼ teaspoon Salt

Instructions

In a saucepan, combine sugar and lemon zest.
Rub the lemon zest into the sugar with clean fingers. This releases the natural oils in the lemon zest and brings out a more pronounced flavor in the lemon curd.
One at a time, add the eggs and whisk well after adding each egg.
Place the saucepan on the lowest heat on your stove top and whisk continuously until the sugar has melted.
Add the lemon juice and keep whisking the mix on low heat until the curd just starts to thicken.
Start adding the cold slices of butter, while whisking continuously as the butter melts.
Once all the butter has been incorporated and the lemon curd is thick and looks shiny and velvety, take it off the heat. The curd should be thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon.
Strain the lemon curd through a fine-mesh strainer to get rid of the zest particles.
Cover the surface of the lemon curd with plastic wrap to prevent the formation of the 'skin' on the top of the curd and let it cool to room temperature.
Allow the lemon curd to chill for at least 2 hours in the fridge.
Once completely chilled, transfer into a clean glass jar or other airtight container and keep in the fridge for up to 7 days.

Notes

● Cooked egg in your lemon curd could be a sign that your heat was too high and you were not stirring enough. I suggest cooking over a double boiler on low heat if this happens to you. Make certain you are stirring constantly.
● Another solution is if you have a problem with the eggs cooking mix the butter and sugar together and cream them just as you would like you were making a cake. Then add the eggs one at a time, and mix in each one very well. Then add the lemon juice, zest, and salt. Then heat in a pan. The way this recipe is set up, tempering is not necessary since the eggs are not added directly to heat or a hot liquid. However, you do have to make sure that the eggs do not cook on the stove.
● Keep the heat low and stir constantly!
● The operative word to making this lemon curd is "slowly." It should take your curd about 15-20 minutes to slowly heat and thicken. Stir constantly as the lemon curd thicken to prevent burning. While I know stirring over heat isn't fun, it is necessary for this lemon curd recipe to turn out well.
● Don't rush it! If you choose to use a double boiler realize the recipe will take much longer. However, you may be better pleased with the results.
● If you are using your lemon curd for a pie filling you may want to experiment with adding corn starch as a thickening agent to make the homemade curd a bit thicker. A thicker curd is desirable for a pie filling.
● If your lemon curd has a metallic aftertaste it is probably because you used a reactive pot (or top of a double boiler). Aluminum, cast iron, and copper are all reactive. Stainless steel, ceramic, glass, and metal cookware with enamel coating are all nonreactive. Use a porcelain or enamel pot instead, or use a double boiler and substitute a heatproof glass bowl (or another heatproof bowl that is not metal) for the metal insert.

Lemon Curd Recipe | Only 6 Ingredients!