Sous Vide Lemon Curd Recipe | Savoring The Good® (2024)

FAQs

What happens if you overcook lemon curd? ›

What happens if I over-cook lemon curd? Overcooking will cause proteins to bond too tightly, squeezing water out from between them and giving them a rubbery, lumpy texture. If you over-heat the lemon curd, the egg proteins can coagulate and you will see little bits of cooked egg.

If your lemon curd hasn't thickened, it may not have been heated enough. It can take up to 30 minutes of constant stirring to cook lemon curd, especially if it's a large batch. Remember that curd will thicken more once cooled. If your cooled curd is not thick enough, you can reheat it to thicken.

Lemon curd thickens around 160-170˚F. Once you see it start bubbling, let it gently simmer for a few seconds then remove it from the heat at 175-180˚F on a thermometer. It should coat the back of a spoon without running when you pull your finger across the spoon.

Lemon Curd should thick enough to coat the back of a spoon when it's hot and should thicken up to pudding-like consistency when it's chilled. The curd can take up to 10 minutes to thicken to the consistency of pourable pudding, so be patient (remember it will thicken more once it cools).

A metallic aftertaste is usually the consequence of the lemon curd coming into contact with a metal (especially while it's hot). This could be a metal whisk, a metal bowl, a metal (or metal-coated) saucepan, or a metal sieve.

EDIT: I managed to fix it by reheating it, letting it get somewhat smooth, straining it, adding lemon juice, and then stirring more. I did it with one orange so I couldn't just start over again. I'm thankful for the advice though! The curd is now a beautiful orange, a bit thick and sweet, but really good!!

Although lemon curd uses egg yolks and/or egg whites, the final product shouldn't taste eggy. If it does, it may mean that you've overcooked your eggs. In saying that, traditional lemon curd does have a distinct after taste which doesn't sit well with some.

But WHY did the Lemon Curd scramble? I learned that day, based on the scientific fact that eggs do not curdle when cooked in the presence of starch, and because Lemon Curd has no starch (such as flour or cornstarch), it will curdle when the eggs get too hot.

Wilkin & Sons Tiptree Lemon Curd

The Wilkin & Sons curd was the clear winner for its smooth and creamy texture and "real lemon flavor," but the price tag raised eyebrows. The Wilkin & Sons curd was the clear winner for its smooth and creamy texture and "real lemon flavor," but the price tag raised eyebrows.

Why did my lemon curd turn green? ›

Let's peel back the layers of this zesty enigma. It all comes down to chemistry. Lemon juice, a primary ingredient in lemon curd, is rich in citric acid. When this acid comes into contact with certain metals, notably copper or aluminum, a chemical reaction occurs.

Fresh lemon curd will keep for one to two weeks when stored in the refrigerator in a sealed container.

In a covered, airtight container for up to one week. It doesn't really freeze well. Lemon curd does contain eggs and dairy (butter), so I'd be ok leaving it out for the day if I plan on serving it, but anything overnight definitely would need to be refrigerated.

Between the heat and whisking, lemon curd gets foamy while it's cooking. As the curd begins to thicken, the foam will start to settle down, and then the addition of the butter at the end of cooking eliminates the foam. So don't panic when you see foam, just keep whisking and cooking.

Burr explains that custard, especially ones that are heavy on fruit, have a tendency to split as a result of the moisture content and too-high oven temperatures. This is the chief issue you'll encounter when baking a lemon tart.

If you have your heat too high you will curdle your eggs and have white bits in your curd. If you do, don't worry too much about it, you can still eat it as is, and you won't really notice a difference in the flavor, you just won't have that perfectly smooth texture.

Yes, overcooking will make the curd lumpy instead of smooth. If your lemon curd turns out slightly lumpy, first try to put it through a blender, then strain it through a fine mesh strainer. Unfortunately, if this doesn't fix the texture, you may need to discard the curd and start over.

The most common reason why your homemade lemon curd split is cooking the curd on too high temperature. Because lemon curd is an egg yolk based "sauce," it requires gently cooking so that the egg doesn't become scrambled.

My lemon curd is too sour.

If you measured correctly according to the instructions and still feel it is too sour, you can add about ¼ cup more sugar next time you make it.