Make Limoncello

Limoncello is an Italian lemon liqueur that’s both sweet and tart. It’s often served chilled as a digestif after a meal, but it can also be added to cocktails and other drinks to add a citrus zest. Limoncello is quite easy to make at home, and it only requires a few ingredients. There are two ways to make this tasty liqueur, and whereas the traditional method has lemon zest soaking directly in alcohol, the other uses alcohol vapor to break down the zest.

Ingredients

Traditional Limoncello

• 10 lemons
• 25 ounces (750 ml) vodka
• 3½ cups (830 ml) water
• 2½ cups (563 g) sugar

Sicilian Limoncello

• 25 ounces (750 ml) vodka
• 4 lemons
• 1 cup (237 ml) water
• 1 cup (225 g) sugar

Steps

Making Traditional Limoncello

1. Select the right lemons. Lemons are the main source of flavor in limoncello, so it’s important to pick ripe and flavorful ones. Also, because the zest will be soaking in the alcohol, it’s best to choose lemons that have been grown without pesticides and haven't been waxed.
   • To determine if a lemon is ripe, gently press it with your thumb. If the lemon gives a little, that’s a sign that it’s juicy and ready to eat.
   • Choose lemons with smooth rind, because this will make them easier to peel.
   • Most lemon lovers opt for Meyer lemons whenever possible, because they're sweeter, less acidic, and have a more complex flavor than other lemons.
2. Gather your supplies. To make limoncello, you'll need a vegetable peeler, large jar with a tight-fitting lid, fine-mesh strainer, coffee filter, large bowl, small saucepan, funnel, and three to four sterile bottles for storing.
   • To accommodate the lemon zest and the alcohol, use at least a 1-quart (946 ml) jar.
   • If you don’t have a vegetable peeler, you can also use a microplane grater, zester, or a knife.
   • Instead of a coffee filter, you can also use cheesecloth.
   • For storage, you need a bottle or bottles that can hold about 60 ounces (1.8 L) of liquid. Clean wine bottles work well, but make sure you have a clean lid or cork to seal the bottle.
3. Clean the lemons. Remove any fruit stickers that are on the lemons, and peel off any sticker residue. Hold the lemons under clean running water and scrub the rinds with a vegetable brush or clean toothbrush. Pat the lemons dry with a clean towel.
   • The lemon zests will be soaking in alcohol, so you need the lemons as clean as possible. Otherwise, any dirt, residue, or pesticides left on the lemon rind will infuse into the alcohol.
4. Peel the lemons. Remove all the zest from the lemons by peeling off long strips of the yellow zest with the vegetable peeler. Don’t peel too deeply, or you'll end up with pith (the white part) on the zest, and this will make the limoncello bitter.
   • If you do get some pith with the zest, cut it off with a knife.
   • To use a microplane grater or zester, remove a thin layer of zest from around the entire lemon.
   • You only need the zest to make limoncello, but you can reserve the remaining portion of the lemons for juicing, baking, or lemonade.
5. Pour the alcohol over the zest. Transfer the lemon zest to the clean jar. Pour the vodka over the zest and swirl the jar to stir up the alcohol and lemon. Screw the lid onto the jar and close it tightly.
   • The best alcohol for limoncello is high-proof (at least 80) grain alcohol or vodka.
6. Let the lemons infuse into the alcohol. Place the lemon and vodka mixture somewhere dark and out of direct sunlight. Let the mixture infuse undisturbed for a minimum of four days, and up to a month.
   • The longer you let the alcohol infuse, the bolder and stronger the lemon flavor will be. Also, the longer you leave in the lemons, the more yellow and golden the vodka will become.
7. Filter the limoncello. When the lemons have had time to infuse into the vodka, remove the jar from its dark place. Line a fine-mesh strainer with either a coffee filter or cheesecloth, and position the strainer over a large bowl. Pour the contents of the jar into the strainer and let the vodka drain through into the bowl.
   • If the strainer gets blocked and the liquid stops flowing, stir the mixture in the strainer to move the lemons around.
8. Make the simple syrup. Heat the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Dissolve the sugar, then increase the heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a boil. When it boils, reduce the heat to medium and let it simmer for three minutes.
   • After three minutes, remove the pan from the heat and let the syrup cool completely, about an hour.
   • Simple syrup traditionally combines equal parts water and sugar, but this limoncello recipe uses more water.
9. Add the simple syrup and bottle the limoncello. When the simple syrup has cooled completely, add it into the limoncello mixture and stir to combine. Place a funnel into the neck of your storage bottle, and carefully pour the limoncello out of the bowl to fill the bottle. Fill a second sterile bottle if necessary.
   • When all the bottles are filled, replace the lids or cork the bottles.
10. Chill before serving. Limoncello is best served cold. Transfer the bottle to the fridge or freezer and let it chill for at least four hours before serving or adding to other cocktails.
    • Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to a month, or in the freezer for as long as one year.

Making Sicilian-Inspired Limoncello

1. Select and clean the lemons. Choose fresh, ripe lemons that have been grown without pesticides and aren't waxed. Meyer lemons are among the most popular, because they're flavorful and sweet.
   • Hold the lemons under running water and scrub them clean with a vegetable brush or clean toothbrush.
   • Pat the lemons dry with a clean towel.
2. Gather your supplies. The major difference between traditional limoncello and the Sicilian-inspired version is that the lemons don’t get soaked in the alcohol with the Sicilian-style. Instead, the lemons are suspended in the same jar as the alcohol, and the vapor from the vodka breaks down the zest and absorbs the flavors. To make this style of limoncello, you'll need:
   • Quart (946 ml) jar with a lid
   • Cheesecloth
   • Twine
   • Small saucepan
   • Vegetable peeler or zester
   • Fine-mesh strainer
   • Funnel
   • Two sterilized bottles (enough to hold about 40 ounces (1.2 L) of liquid)
3. Suspend the lemons above the vodka. Transfer the vodka to the large quart jar. Wrap two lemons in the cheesecloth. Tie the cheesecloth up with a 20-inch (51-cm) piece of twine, leaving long tails on both ends of the twine. Place the lemons inside the jar, suspended above the alcohol.
   • Take the extra twine that’s tied around the cheesecloth and wrap it around the outside of the jar. Tie a knot in the end of the twine to secure the lemons in place above the vodka.
   • Place the lid on the jar and seal it tightly.
4. Let the mixture rest. Place the jar somewhere cool and dark, and let it rest for one month. Do not disturb the mixture while the alcohol vapors are breaking down the lemon zest.
   • The nice thing about this recipe is that you don’t have to worry about zesting so many lemons, because the alcohol vapour will actually macerate the lemon peel for you.
5. Make the simple syrup. When the month is over, retrieve the jar. Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan. This quantity of sugar and water will yield 1½ cups of simple syrup. Dissolve the sugar and bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for three minutes.
   • Remove the mixture from the heat and allow it to cool for about an hour.
6. Remove the lemons and add the syrup. Remove the lid from the jar and untie the twine. Remove the lemons from the cheesecloth and discard them. Pour in the cooled simple syrup and stir to combine. Use the vegetable peeler or zester to remove the yellow zest from two fresh lemons.
   • Add the fresh lemon zest to the limoncello and stir to combine.
   • Let the mixture rest about 15 minutes.
7. Strain and chill before serving. Place the funnel into one of the storage bottles, and hold a strainer over the funnel. Pour the limoncello mixture through the strainer and fill the bottles.
   • Close the bottles with the lids and chill the limoncello in the fridge or freezer for four hours before serving.
   • Limoncello will last for about a month in the fridge, and a year in the freezer.

Tips

• For a twist, substitute some of the lemon with zest from oranges, blood oranges, limes, grapefruits, or a mixture of your favorite citrus fruits.

Related Articles

• Make a Mad Cow
• Make Jello Shots
• Make Hot Buttered Rum Batter
• Make a Vodka and Tonic

Sources and Citations

See also

• Make a Corretto (Espresso Corretto)
• Make Hot Buttered Rum Batter
• Make Whiskey
• Make a Vodka Watermelon
• Drink Absinthe
• Make Rum
• Make Moonshine
• Make a Michelada
• Make Vodka
• Make a Baby Guinness

Read more ...

What links here

• Make a Baby Guinness
• Make a Gin Bucket