Lemon is at once pervasive and underappreciated. It appears as a garnish on countless plates, its juice flavors countless dishes. Always a bridesmaid, lemon seems destined to play a supporting role, albeit an important one. But we think it’s time for lemon to take its place at the altar and prove that its bright, tart flavor can star in a dish. From complex Moroccan tagines to zesty potato salad to creamy lemon curd, we’ve rounded up our favorite lemon recipes.
Lemon’s bright acidity makes it great for cutting through rich, creamy foods. Lemon curd is an eggy, sweet-tart spread that is delicious on toast or as an ingredient in other desserts. It serves as the filling for lemon bars and as a frosting for our lemon layer cake, which also uses lemon zest in the batter and lemon syrup between the layers.
Like with desserts, lemon can cut through creamy savory dishes with ease. Our lemon mayonnaise smashed potato salad is rich without being heavy. Try cooking up a creamy batch of orzo and flavoring it with sweet Meyer lemons and earthy mushrooms.
Preserved lemons are a staple of North African cuisine. You can make them at home with lemon juice, salt, bay leaves, and seasonings like coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and black peppercorns. One of our favorite uses for preserved lemons is Moroccan tagine, where we combine them with chicken, green olives, and spices.
Find all of these dishes and more in our collection of lemon recipes.
At New York’s Milk Bar, Christina Tosi makes this towering cake every spring, when sweet and tiny tristar strawberries are in season. This is by no means an everyday cake, but it’s worth the work that you’ll put in, and worthy of a special occasion. Get the recipe for Strawberry Lemon Cake »
Avgolemono, a simple Mediterranean soup of eggs, lemons, and chicken broth, is the Mediterranean equivalent of chicken noodle soup. Get the recipe for Avgolemono »
This is a pasta dish of strong flavors: Dark, earthy kale is offset by bright lemon cream and a warm, aromatic heat from crushed red chiles and garlic.
In this take on a traditional Sephardic Jewish dish, culupidia frita con limón, cauliflower are coated in a flour and egg batter, fried, and then bathed in lemon juice. As a side or a snack, it’s crunchy, tender, and brimming with fresh, tangy flavor. Get the recipe for Lemony Fried Cauliflower »
Simple roasted baby potatoes with whole garlic cloves are the perfect foil for a zesty lemon and olive oil emulsion.
This recipe for whole fried fish with garlic, fiery chiles, lemons, and earthy spice originated in Yaffa and came courtesy of The Gaza Kitchen.
There is something about a souffle—a magical blending of eggs, air, and acid—that turns any meal into an unforgettable event. Get the recipe for Lemon Soufflé »
A salt and spice cure transforms fresh citrus into tart, briny pickles that perk up many Indian meals. Smita Chandra uses them as a condiment to punch up soft naan flatbreads and steamed white rice.
Sweetened with ripe persimmons and dates, and coated with a tart, toothsome, lemon-sugar glaze, these bars are a wonderful celebration of late-fall fruits. Get the recipe for Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars »
Roast chicken is a classic dish all over the world. In this beautiful version from Spain, the bird is rubbed with musky, floral saffron and stuffed with bright lemons and fresh rosemary before being popped in the oven. Get the recipe for Roast Chicken with Saffron and Lemon »
Lemon infuses this layered masterpiece in three ways: zested into the batter, in a tart syrup that get drizzled over the cakes, and in a thick lemon curd frosting.
Tagine, the Moroccan stew, shares its name with the terra-cotta pot it’s traditionally cooked in, whose neat conical lid promotes convection and even cooking. There are many versions; maybe the most classic is braised chicken, green olives, and lemons in a sauce fragrant with ginger and coriander.
