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My easy Lemon Curd recipe is the perfect easy curd! Just a few ingredients and you can make it from scratch. It tastes so much better than from the store. I’ve been making this recipe for years and it’s always silky smooth and perfectly tart and sweet.
Why you’ll LOVE this recipe
If you’ve never made homemade lemon curd, you should. It’s so much tastier than the store bought from the jar. Plus, store-bought is sometimes hard to find and it’s expensive. This recipe is easy to make, silky smooth and has a huge burst of lemon flavor!
All lemon curd recipes are basically similar, with similar ingredients. However, my lemon curd recipe has one big difference: I use whole eggs.
Just 5 Ingredients
- Fresh lemon juice: it’s important to juice it yourself
- Lemon zest: learn how to zest lemons
- Granulated Sugar: for sweet
- Whole Eggs
- Unsalted Butter
How to make lemon curd
1. It’s really important that you whisk all the ingredients together first, before turning it onto the heat. You don’t want the eggs to scramble! Stir lemon juice and zest with eggs and sugar.
2. Then, like when you’re making pudding or a cream sauce, you cook and stir constantly until the mixture thickens. It’ll bubble and coat the back of a spoon and that’s how you know it’s done.
3. Now, because we are using whole eggs, we have to make sure that none of the egg whites cooked. This is why I always strain my curd using a fine mesh strainer. It takes out any lumps or chunks and gives a nice silky lemon curd. At this point, the curd is a bit thin but don’t worry: it will thicken as it cools.
It’s like making a custard, but instead you’re making curd. I like to think of this as a cross between jam and lemon custard. It’s got a consistency that’s between the two and a flavor that’s unparalleled.
Expert Tips
- Always strain your curd with a fine mesh sieve after cooking to ensure it’s silky smooth.
- Always use fresh lemon juice and lemon curd to get the best lemon flavor.
- Lemon Curd is a simple recipe made with just a few ingredients and it goes great on toast, in fillings for desserts, or on a spoon. You can use this curd to make things like lemon tarts or fillings for lemon cupcakes or lemon pastry.
FAQ
Did you cook it long enough? It should boil and coat the back of a spoon and be very thick. Let it cool. Once it cools and chills it will thicken. Make sure to use fresh lemon juice so the pectin can work its magic.
First, make sure it’s been cooked long enough. It should be thick and coat the back of the spoon (thicker than heavy whipping cream) so if it’s still runny, make sure to cook it longer. If you’ve let it cool and it’s still thin, warm it back up over low heat and add a bit of cornstarch slurry (cornstarch mixed with cold water) and cook until it thickens.
Make sure it doesn’t bubble or it could break. Cook it at a low temperature!
I’ve kept this up to a week in the refrigerator as long as it’s in an airtight container.
No – lemon curd is more tart while pudding is sweeter and creamier.
I don’t recommend it. As it cools the mixture thickens and you don’t want it to cool too fast.
Easy Lemon Curd Recipe
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 3 large large eggs
- ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar
- Pinch of salt
- ½ cup (119ml) fresh lemon juice
- Zest of 1 large lemon
- 4 tablespoons (57g) unsalted butter diced
Instructions
- Place eggs, sugar, salt, juice, and zest in a medium saucepan. Do not put it over the heat yet. Whisk the ingredients together until smooth.
- Place over low heat. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens, about 4-5 minutes. Turn all the way to low and add the butter. Stir until smooth.
- Remove from heat and strain into jar(s). Makes just shy of 2 cups.
Recipe Notes
- Store in a covered container in the refrigerator, about 1 week. You can also store in the freezer.
- Always use fresh lemons for lemon curd!! They taste the best.
Recipe Nutrition
How to use Lemon Curd
There are so many ways to use this recipe! Enjoy it over ice cream, as a topping on angel food cake or pound cake. Serve it with croissants, scones, or waffles, add a dollop on crepes or over yogurt. You can even flavor whipped cream with it! Or make these recipes:
- Lemon Tarts
- Lemon no bake dessert
- No Bake Lemon Cheesecake
- Lemon Cake Roll
- Lemon Cupcakes
- Lemon Mini Cheesecakes
- Fill my lemon cake with it!
Despite following your measurements and method to the letter it didn’t thicken even after 20 mins of stirring!
It didn’t thicken at all? Or did it get thicker? Because it’s not as thick as it ends up once it cools – it’s still pourable when thickened (coats the back of a spoon) but thickens more as it cools.
Lorna,
I thought the same thing at first but once I poured it into the jar and let it cool (I also refrigerated after)…it has a beautiful consistency.
Rather than strain wouldn’t it be better to temper the eggs?
You can, but I still find that with whites you can get a bit of egg in the curd, so I don’t chance it.
In “how to make lemon curd” you say you strain the mixture, but it doesn’t mention that in the actual recipe. Do you strain, and if so, at what point do you strain?
I either strain before or after adding the butter – it doesn’t matter which goes first. I’ll udpate the recipe, thanks for catching that.
Fast and easy. Taste great.
This was an excellent recipe just prefect in lemon and sweetness. For sure making it over and over for my desserts!
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