Cardamom and Tea

Skip the double boiler. Don’t bother separating your yolks and whites. This is the easiest lemon curd you’ll ever make. After trying this recipe, that whole “never use egg whites!” thing will start to feel like a bit of an urban legend. And I’m not saying this lemon curd is so good, you’ll feel inspired to throw your double boiler away—but you will definitely relocate it to a higher shelf. If you’re skeptical, read on, or jump to the recipe if you’re with me.

I’m sure you have questions about this lemon curd! Like…

How do you get away with no double boiler?

Use a blender or food processor instead of a whisk to initially mix everything together. This does a great job of dissolving the sugar and fully emulsifying the eggs. With a completely smooth mixture, you won’t have to worry about eggy streaks.
Gradually lower the heat as you go. We’re all good on eggy streaks, but we still need to watch out for curdling. By starting at medium-low and gradually reducing to low, we won’t accidentally coast right past done into scrambled eggs. Once the mixture starts to steam slightly, we need to be very cautious about heat. (Note for electric stove users: I’ve tested this method with both gas and induction, but an electric coil stove is not as good at gradually reducing. You may want to use a double-boiler if you have one, but you can still skip the egg separation)
Whisk constantly while heating. Sounds like a lot of effort, but it comes together in about 10 minutes, and whisking constantly further prevents curdling. (And if you use a double boiler, you’ve got to whisk constantly anyway, so we’re breaking even here.)

Lemon curd in a jar with a spoon, from overhead

and…

How do you get away with adding whole eggs?

Flavor ✔️: Honestly, I’m not sure why so many recipes insist on yolks only. Some claim that egg whites have more sulfuric odors, but the yolks actually contain 50-60% more sulfur than the whites! (and we’ve apparently known this for a long time). The fact is, lemon curd is delicious made with whole eggs.
Texture ✔️: Lemon curds range from super-set to a bit drippy. In my experience, this has little to do with yolks vs. whites and has more to do with how much egg you use overall. My recipe yields a curd somewhere in the middle: After chilling, a spoon drawn through will leave a trail that doesn’t fill back in. Stir it and it takes on a more pudding-like consistency. It’s not so set that you can slice it, but it still works great in a fruit tart.
Color ✔️: I mean, it’s not fluorescent day-glo, but I’d say this lemon curd is pretty dang yellow. After all, it’s not like there are no yolks in there. And the lemon zest adds a bit more color (especially as it liquidizes with the rest of the ingredients in the blender. Using high-quality eggs with very orange yolks also helps a ton in the color department. (And that’s true whether you’re using whole eggs or 100% yolks. I’ve made a yolk-based curd with very pale egg yolks that turned out way less yellow than this one.)

The bottom line: yolks vs. whites makes very little difference to texture, flavor, and color. But it helps you waste less time (and waste less food, depending on whether you find a purpose for those egg whites!). You make the call!

A quick note on thermometers (and whether you need one)

I made a video for this recipe, which is essential if you don’t have a thermometer. It’s simply not possible to make a fail-proof lemon curd recipe without using a thermometer. But if you pay close attention to visual cues, you can usually get away with eyeballing it, thermometer-free. Watch the video a couple times, and rely more on your eyeballs than a ten-minute timer.

If you are using a thermometer, make sure it’s not touching the bottom of the pan, and make sure the curd is deep enough that it can get an accurate read. If it’s on the shallow side, periodically tilt the pan so you can take the temperature from a deeper well of curd. If your’e not measuring the temperature accurately, you’re better off paying attention to visual cues instead.

More Curds:

Check out my passion fruit curd recipe for another good one!
I’ve got all my favorite curds collected here + ideas of how to use them.
And you can learn how to make a curd with any citrus here.

Easiest Ever Lemon Curd

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Reminder: make sure you zest your lemons before juicing them!

If you’re using an electric stove, you may need a double boiler (see note below the recipe)

Ingredients

2 large eggs
3/4 cup [150g] granulated sugar
1 to 2 Tbsp lemon zest
1/3 cup [80g] lemon juice
4 Tbsp [55g] unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

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Instructions

Add the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice to a blender or large food processor. Run for about 20 seconds to mix thoroughly. It should have no visible streaks of egg white.
Once the eggs have blended in completely, transfer to a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk constantly until it thickens significantly, being careful not to let it overheat and lower the heat gradually* as it progresses. It will thicken at about 167 to 170°F [75 to 77°C], which takes about 10 minutes to reach. Do not let it exceed 180°F [82°C].
As soon as the curd thickens, remove from heat and immediately add the butter and whisk constantly until the butter melts completely.
Chill completely.**

Storage: Store it in the fridge for 5 to 10 days, or in the freezer for much longer. In my freezer, it stays soft enough to scoop and lasts for months.

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Notes

* Note for electric stove users: I’ve tested this method with both gas and induction, but an electric coil stove is not as good at gradually reducing. You may want to use a double-boiler if you have one, but you can still skip the egg separation

** If you’re using this in a fruit tart (or something where you want it to set up in the baked good rather than in the jar), pour it directly into the baked shell while the curd is still hot and then chill the whole thing.

The easiest way to ruin a cake (or quick bread, muffins, pancakes, etc.) isn’t over-baking or over-measuring. It’s over-mixing! Once flour meets moisture, every additional swipe of the spatula develops the gluten a bit more. And what should be tender and airy turns dense and rubbery.

But here’s the catch: under-mixing is just as bad. Leaving giant streaks of wet or dry ingredients results in an uneven texture and pockets of disappointment. So how do you find that sweet spot? Follow these 3 tips for success:

Start by mixing the wet and dry ingredients thoroughly on their own.
When you combine the wet and dry ingredients, make sure you do so efficiently with the right stirring technique.
And finally, know when to stop stirring.

In this post, I break each of these 3 tips down so you’ll know exactly what to do and what to look for. Keep in mind, what I am saying here applies most directly to things like banana bread, pancakes, muffins, and other recipes using a method where you simply mix together the wet, sift together the dry, and then bring them together. But over-mixing should still be avoided when making things like cakes, cookies, and any other tender baked goods.

blueberry zucchini bread, sliced with cream cheese frosting

Let’s get into it!

1. Mix the wet and dry separately and thoroughly

Most recipes are clear about separating the wet from the dry before combining, but what they don’t always spell out is just how thoroughly each should be mixed on its own.

If you’re making something like a cookie or a cake, you’ll need to cream the butter and sugar together just like the recipe says. But if you’re making something like a muffin, pancake, or quick bread (e.g., banana bread), be sure to mix the wet ingredients very well, while sifting the dry ingredients separately.

What does that thorough mixing look like? Don’t just crack a few eggs, pour in some oil, give it a little stir, and call it a day. Whisk your wet ingredients together until they’re fully homogenous—eggs beaten smooth, sugar fully dissolved, and oil emulsified. On the dry side, a quick sift (or even just a really good whisking) makes flour lighter, clump-free, and evenly distributes any baking powder, soda, cocoa, etc. Clump-free dry ingredients will incorporate into wet ingredients with much less mixing.

With two evenly-mixed components, you’ll only need a gentle hand when they finally come together.

2. Bring wet and dry together efficiently

a gif of mixing chocolate banana bread batter

What is the right way to bring together the wet and dry ingredients?

For quick breads and the like, avoid using a stand mixer. You can use a stand mixer to bring together the wet ingredients on their own, although it’s certainly not necessary. But for bringing together the wet and dry, a stand mixer will turn against you. A stand mixer churns too aggressively, stirs only in the center of the bowl, and makes it far too easy to overdo things if you let it run in the background.

Instead, use a whisk, and use the following technique:

Work in wide, sweeping motions that reach the sides and bottom of the bowl. Pay attention to where any dry pockets are and try to focus the path of your whisk so it passes through them. Make a few passes down the center of the bowl as you go, trying to cover every square inch of the bowl as efficiently as possible.

3. Know when to stop mixing

You don’t want to stop when there are still giant pockets of flour or runny pools of liquid. But once the batter comes together, it’s time to call it quits. There might still be a few specks of dry flour, and that’s okay. As long as they’re not giant pockets, those little bits of flour will incorporate as you spoon the batter into the pan. Your batter might even look a little lumpy and not perfectly smooth—for something like a quick bread, pancakes, or muffins, that’s perfectly fine and doesn’t mean the final product will be lumpy.

However, that’s all assuming you followed steps 1 and 2. If your flour is clumpy and not well-sifted, there may be pockets of flour in the final product and it might turn out lumpy. But as long as you start with well-mixed components and bring them together efficiently, the last step should be super easy. Mix just until it comes together, then put that whisk down.