A Little About Lemon Confit
Lemon confit is a fancy term for preserved lemons. You can preserve lemons a number of ways. In our recipe below, we preserve lemon peel in a mixture of lemon juice and oil. Other recipes call for preserving the lemon in salt and even sugar. You can use lemon confit a number of ways. In the recipe below, we toss some with olives, olive oil and red chili flakes, but that is definitely not the only way to use it. Try adding some to salad dressings, dips, soups, pasta, risotto or meats and vegetables. I’m currently on an avocado toast / lemon confit kick right now and highly recommend it. When it comes to the olives, choose what you love. We especially enjoy green, buttery olives — think Cerignola or Castelvetrano — but most olives will work. Recipe updated, originally posted February 2011. Since posting this in 2011, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear. – Adam and Joanne 1/2 cup olive oil 1/4 cup neutral flavored oil such as canola, safflower or grape seed 1 garlic clove, peeled 1 bay leaf, optional Sea salt Extra-virgin olive oil Crushed red chili flakes Sea salt and fresh ground black pepper 2Bring a small saucepan with water to a boil, add the lemon peel and leave in the boiling water for 10 seconds. Remove the peel and drain the water. Fill the saucepan with water for a second time. Bring to a boil then add the lemon peel and leave in the boiling water for 10 more seconds. Drain and wipe the pan dry. 3Add the lemon juice, olive oil, canola oil, garlic and about 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the saucepan. Bring to a simmer then add the lemon peel and cook at a low simmer until the peel is soft and pliable, about 1 hour. Cool then store in an airtight container completely covered in oil.
