Carrageenan Free Eggless Lemon Curd
Bright, tangy, and impossibly silky, this lemon curd delivers everything you want from the classic spread — without a single egg in sight. Instead of yolks, cornstarch does the thickening work, cooking down with fresh lemon juice and sugar until the mixture turns glossy and translucent right before your eyes. Cold butter whisked in off the heat gives it that rich, velvety finish that makes lemon curd so irresistible on scones, tarts, or straight from the spoon. Many store-bought curds and specialty spreads rely on stabilizers and additives that can be hard to track down on labels, so making your own means you know exactly what's in the jar. The ingredient list here is refreshingly short — fresh citrus, sugar, cornstarch, butter, and salt — so there's nothing hidden and nothing to second-guess. Straining the finished curd through a fine-mesh sieve gives it that smooth, professional texture, and a quick chill in the fridge sets it up perfectly. Once you taste how bright and clean this version is, it's hard to go back to anything else.
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Learn more →Ingredients
8 servings
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice (from about 3–4 lemons)
- 1 tbsp lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- ½ cup water
- ¼ tsp fine salt
- 4 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- ½ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a small saucepan until evenly combined. Add the water and lemon juice and whisk until the cornstarch is fully dissolved with no lumps remaining.
- 2
Set the saucepan over medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and turns from cloudy to translucent, about 6–8 minutes. Once it begins to bubble, continue whisking for 1 full minute — the curd should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and hold a clear line when a finger is drawn through.
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