Preserved Lemons

Makes 1-2 pints

This is an easy, great recipe inspired by my friend Alex Lewin, author of Real Food Fermentation.

Ingredients

1½ pounds organic lemons and/or limes, at room temperature
¼ cup sea salt
Assorted spices of choice: a cinnamon stick, a bay leaf, a few cloves, a few peppercorns, a handful of coriander seeds, or a shake of pickling spice
1 pint-sized mason jar with tight-fitting lid

Directions

Wash the lemons or limes. Cut each piece of fruit in half, then score deeply with an X across the inside of each half. Discard the seeds. Put some salt in the bottom of the jar, then add some spices and a fruit’s worth of wedges (cut-side down). Repeat layer by layer until the jar is full, leaving 1 inch at top. Press down firmly to make sure all of the fruit is covered by juices. If you need to top off the jar, use the juice from one more fruit. Close the jar, and store at room temperature out of direct sunlight. Leave on the counter for a week, opening daily to pack down the fruit. Leave out, as flavor will deepen throughout the year – or you can place the jar in the refrigerator at any time to slow down the fermentation.

These recipes are from The Heal Your Gut Cookbook: Nutrient-Dense Recipes for Intestinal Health Using the GAPS Diet (Chelsea Green Publishing, 2014), and are used with permission of the publisher. For more information, visit www.chelseagreen.com.

Check out other recipes from Hilary Boynton and Mary G. Brackett:

Cauliflower “Couscous”

Coconut Butter Bread

Moroccan Chicken