Why is this Amazingly Delicious Dessert Sauce Called "Lemon Curd?"
It could be worse; it was also called "lemon cheese." This intensely flavored lemon sauce is made with eggs, sugar, lemon, and finished with whole butter. Older versions called for the egg mixture to be cooked fairly well done, and almost to the point of curdling (which I'm sure many did, and were still eaten), and this is where the "curd" word probably came into the picture.
More modern recipes like this one are not nearly as dense, and are wonderful served on a variety of deserts. It's incredible on a warm slice of gingerbread (sorry, that video is still not live yet), drizzled over a bowl of fresh berries, or as a dip with some crispy cookies. There are many versions of this old British sauce. Most call for whole eggs, which makes for a thicker product. This version only uses the egg yolks, and while it's not as thick, I think it has a better taste and texture.
This old-world sauce came to America with the early English settlers, but really grew in popularity when it became one of the darlings of the California Cuisine movement in the 1970's and 80's. Alice Waters, and other chefs at the time, fell in love with this intense and delicious sauce, and it was often made using local Meyer lemons. The Meyer lemon, which had come to California from China, is a cross between a standard lemon and the fragrant mandarin orange. Meyer Lemon Curd is very common on dessert menus all over the Northern California area. This video recipe made for About.com shows just how easy it is to make. So, grab a box of gingersnaps and get busy! Bye the way, real butter is a must! If you try to make this with some kind of margarine, I can no longer consider you a friend. Enjoy.
Click here for the transcript and ingredients.
Lemon Curd in Jars Photo Credit (c) kochtopf
26 comments:
ooh tasty! i've noticed you sound more confident and comfortable in your intros. keep it up chef john!
Thanks! I've been doing shots of tequila before filming them. It really helps.
Hello Chef John,
I wonder how long such a glass can be kept e.g. in the fridge?
It will keep for about a week to a week and a half.
Yolks vs whole eggs:
I don't know if it is just me but I find the taste of undercooked egg-whites rather unpleasant and so I avoid the commercial mayo in US - which tends to be mostly from the whole-egg category (and often little on the rancid side too).
The other thing is that there is often a great difference in taste, color and texture of the yolks, depending on the chicken feed. The quality of eggs can have a big impact on the outcome of home-made eggnog.
What is the difference between this 'curd' and pudding?
it's not as thick as a pudding and a pudding usually is thicken with starch and lemon curd doesnt have any starch in the recipe.
also, pudding is meant to be eaten as is with a spoon. This is too rich and intense for that - its used as a sauce.
Thank you, Chef John.
This afternoon, I propped the laptop by the stove top and followed your video to a tee. The kiddos got involved and we had fun bringing this recipe together.
After dinner tonight, we dipped ginger snap cookies in this lemony delight....WOW! and YUM!!! Everyone was an instant fan.
(Now I really understand the difference.)
Thanks for the fun. (((Big Hug)))
Is is okay to post your video into my blog post, when I talk about making your recipe?
Sorry, Chef John, I'm one of the unfortunates who are lactose-intolerant. Aside from how inferior margarine is in cooking (a given), will using margarine affect the texture of this recipe?
Thanks! I so glad you liked it. I would be honored to have you post my clip. You are welcome to post any clips you want. Happy NY!
I've never tried with margarine. I really don't know how it would work. You'll have to try and let us know!
there is only trace amount of lactose in butter, especially when one uses butter made from sour creem (kerrygold for example) but one should not worry about it unless eating several butter sticks (in which case you get unwell for other reasons)
Clearing the butter by melting it in a microwave or a pan and using the cleared butter oil removes all traces of lactose, if you want to be extra sure
great info... but, melting the butter to remove the milk solids will not work for the recipe unfortunately. The cold chunks of whole butter stirred in slowly at the end is what give it it's texture and thickness. Clarified butter would give you a greasy texture probably.
But, I agree only trace amounts of milk. Unless its a severe allergy it may be OK to use the real thing.
I love lemon curd. Thanks so much for posting this . . . I think I might be able to make some rather than buy it all of the time. Now if only I could find some Meyer lemons in Canada!
this wont be as thick as the jarred ones which use whole eggs and sometimes starch, but you'll love the flavor. enjoy!
Hi chef John,
Really love the recipe!!
i was wondering something,
the yolk part is actually not entirely cooked, why people don't get stomachache after eating sauce like this?
getting sick from this would be extremely rare. even raw eggs are not likely to cause problems...
As far as samonella goes, Alton Brown (who I'm a big fan of) puts the odds of contamination at 10,000 to 1.
Hey Chef John!
I loved your recipe, it's very delicious I couldn't wait to taste it cold~
I have one question though, when I refrigerated the curd, the white foamy stuff and the dense yellow stuff seperated, did I do something wrong?
usually from slightly under cooking the yolks. Just stir it before use and it will be fine. Maybe cook a little thicker next time.
hey chef john! I luv the curd! tasted great! I was wondering though, could i use this is a glaze for my cakes?? the thick texture go really well with my banana cake! So will the tangy flavor with the sweet banana!
yes! what a brilliant idea. I've promoted you to sous chef.
Hey Chef Jeff!
Lover your recipes and your website (if I wasn't in a 12x12 college dorm w/o a kitchen I would cook them :P).
Anyway, I was curious how you got your lemon curd into the bag without spilling it. I'm the kind of guy that would submit to nervous pressure and end up spilling it all over the floor. Thanks a lot and continue cooking!
just roll the bag down a ways, pour it in and roll it back up. then you are set. thanks!
Oops! Sorry Chef John! I watched a lot of the Chef Jeff Project on the food network recently and the name stuck, probably cause of that little rhyme it has. I await further posts eagerly!
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