Homemade Lemon Curd – I Heart Eating - xn--gteaudlicieux-ieb4i.art

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Updated on January 7, 2025 | By Kate | Leave a comment

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Homemade lemon curd is a simple, 5-ingredient recipe. This easy lemon curd recipe can be whipped up in about 30 minutes.

A glass jar of lemon curd next to a spoon of lemon curd.

Lemon curd in its little glass jars feels so luxurious. However, homemade lemon curd is so simple to make!

It takes just 5 ingredients and less than 30 minutes to whip up a batch of lemon curd. And there are so many ways to use it!

You can slather lemon curd on top of toast, scones, pancakes, or waffles. It also makes a great filling for cakes or can be swirled into the frosting, and it can be swirled into cheesecake or dolloped on ice cream.

Ingredient notes and substitutions

Lemon juice: Please don’t use bottled lemon juice in this recipe. Bottled lemon juice can have an off taste to it.
Sugar: Feel free to adjust the amount of sugar to your liking. I like the lemon curd to be on the tarter side, but you can adjust the sugar if you like it sweeter.
Lemon zest: The lemon zest helps to add more lemon flavor to the lemon curd.
Butter: If you prefer to use unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon of salt along with the sugar.

How to make homemade lemon curd

Here you’ll find step-by-step photos showing how to make this recipe. The full recipe, including instructions, is given below.

Lemon juice, egg yolks, lemon zest and sugar whisked in a saucepan.

Step 1: Add the lemon juice, egg yolks, granulated sugar, and lemon zest to a medium saucepan.

Step 2: Whisk together well.

Step 3: Cook over medium-low heat for about 15-20 minutes, whisking frequently, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Step 4: Remove it from the heat.

Cooked lemon curd with a whisk in it in a saucepan.

Step 5: Whisk in the cubed butter a few cubes at a time until well-combined.

Step 6: Carefully pour the lemon curd into a heat-safe bowl.

Step 7: Press a piece of plastic wrap to the surface of the lemon curd.

Step 8: Place the lemon curd in the refrigerator and chill until completely cooled.

Recipe Tips!

Coat the back of a spoon: This means that if you dip a spoon into the lemon curd and then drag your finger along the back of the spoon that the line will remain. If the line fills back in with lemon curd, it needs to thicken more.
Plastic wrap: The plastic wrap helps to keep the lemon curd from forming a skin as it cools.

A silver spoon scooping up lemon curd from a glass jar.

Storage

Store any leftover lemon curd in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to 1 week when properly stored in the refrigerator.

More frosting and filling recipes!

If you’ve tried this homemade lemon curd recipe, don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below. I love to hear from people who’ve made my recipes!

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Instructions

Add the lemon juice, egg yolks, granulated sugar, and lemon zest to a medium saucepan.
Whisk together well.
Cook over medium-low heat for about 15-20 minutes, whisking frequently, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Remove it from the heat.
Whisk in the cubed butter a few cubes at a time until well-combined.
Carefully pour the lemon curd into a heat-safe bowl.
Press a piece of plastic wrap to the surface of the lemon curd.
Place the lemon curd in the refrigerator and chill until completely cooled.

Notes

Lemon juice: Please don’t use bottled lemon juice in this recipe. Bottled lemon juice can have an off taste to it.

Sugar: Feel free to adjust the amount of sugar to your liking. I like the lemon curd to be on the tarter side, but you can adjust the sugar if you like it sweeter.

Lemon zest: The lemon zest helps to add more lemon flavor to the lemon curd.

Butter: If you prefer to use unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon of salt along with the sugar.
Nutritional values are estimates.

Nutrition

Created by Kate

Kate got her first cookbook when she was five years old, and she hasn't stopped cooking since then! Her delicious recipes have been featured on Food Network, MSN, Better Homes & Gardens, Buzzfeed, The Huffington Post, and more. When she's not cooking or baking, she can be found on her mini farm with her husband and her five kids.