Everyone knows lemon curd but when you add something as wonderful as passion fruit to the mix you just make something good even better. This easy homemade passion fruit and lemon curd ticks all the boxes and more.
Passion Fruit and Lemon Curd
It’s time to get back to the larder and this Passion fruit and lemon curd takes your usual lemon curd into a whole new dimension. It is so tasty and is super simple to make. Once you’ve tried this one you will be adding it to your curd recipe list and making it again and again.
What are fruit curds?
If you are unfamiliar with fruit curds (lemon curd is the most famous) then you are in for a treat. Fruit curds originated in England and date back to the 1800’s. Back then they really were curds.
Lemon juice was added to cream which separated it into curds and whey. Hence the name lemon curd. Nowadays lemon curd and all others are made without cream but there is butter in there instead.
Ingredients for passion fruit and lemon curd
There are only a few ingredients for this homemade curd. Lemon, passion fruit, butter, sugar and a pinch of salt.
Selecting passion fruit
When you are selecting your passion fruits the wrinkled ones are best as they have more flavour (just like people really!).
Waxed lemons vs unwaxed lemons
You can buy unwaxed lemons in the supermarket. These are lemons that have not been treated with the wax preservative that is sprayed on all our store bought fruit. If you don’t have the unwaxed type of lemons don’t panic.
How to remove wax from lemons
To remove the wax from a normal lemon simply wash it in soapy warm water, rinse thoroughly and pat it dry.
Voila! You now have an unwaxed lemon and the zest will be so much nicer to use for making your homemade passion fruit and lemon curd.
Use a Bain Marie/double boiler
What the hell is that? Well quite simply it’s a glass or ceramic bowl (don’t use metal as it can leave a slightly metallic taste in your curd) which just sits on top of a pan of simmering water.
The water mustn’t touch the base of the bowl. It’s exactly the same way you melt chocolate.
Why use a bain marie? Because this is a gentler way of cooking instead of using direct heat. If you use a pan directly on the stove you could very well end up with lemon scrambled eggs which is not what we are looking for.
Uses for homemade passion fruit and lemon curd
On toast for breakfast or with croissants too
Stirred into Greek yogurt or swirled through ice-cream
As a filling for sponge cakes or tarts
Slathered on a scone with cream on top
Stirred into cream cheese with sugar as a cake frosting
Can you make lemon curd in a microwave?
Yes you can. Melt the butter in microwave for 30 seconds. Whisk the other ingredients together then add to the butter and stir well. Heat at 1 minute blasts and stir between times till it thickens. Strain through a sieve.
How long will homemade curd keep?
This passion fruit and lemon curd should be stored in the fridge in a sealed jar where it will last for up to 2 months. However, once the jar has been opened it must be used up within 2 weeks.
Can you freeze homemade curd? Yes you can. Simply make sure there is room for expansion if you have it in a jar and pop it into the freezer for up to 1 year. Defrost thoroughly before use.
Looking for more creative curd recipes? Then check these out;
Need more help?
Then check out my How to make fruit curds article for more information.
Finally, if you do try this recipe don’t forget to leave a comment/star rating below as I just love to hear from readers. Want more Larder Love? Then follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter and sign up for my newsletter too of course.
Passion Fruit and Lemon Curd
Ingredients
- 3 passion fruits
- 3 lemons zest and juice
- 3 eggs
- 100 g unsalted butter cut into small pieces
- 200 g sugar
- pinch salt
Instructions
- Open and scoop out the flesh of the passion fruits
- melt the butter in a Bain Marie/bowl over pan of simmering water
- Beat the eggs then press them through a sieve (optional but avoids any stringy bits of egg)
- whisk together the eggs with the passion fruit flesh, lemon zest, juice and sugar and pinch of salt
- Add the mixture to the melted butter and continue to stir. The sugar will dissolve and everything will come together like a custard. This can take up to 15 minutes.
- The passion fruit and lemon curd is ready when it coats the back of your spoon without all sliding off. Remember it will become firmer as it cools in the jars
- Ladle into sterilised jars
Perfect for summer. and they look so so delicious!
Cool kitchen gadgets
Thanks
G’day from Oz! I have just made a batch of your wonderful recipe. I was able to fill two small jam jars. I will give mum one, which she’ll scoff it down fast lol. I have made Lemon Curd before but this is so much better. I will be having some on my toast later and I can’t wait! Licking up the bowl after ladling in jars is a must! Thank you for this recipe and I certainly will be making this on a regular occasion! – Shell.
Hi Shell,
So glad you like the recipe. I agree, adding the passion fruit lifts this curd to new levels of amazingness! Why not try some of my other curds too.
K x
Best lemon curd recipe ever thank you so much.
Hi Ruth
Thanks so much, glad you liked the recipe.
K x
Brilliant passion fruit and lemon curd recipe. Made a huge jar today, looking forward to toast, butter and curd for breakfast tomorrow. Tastes superb, just nicely tart.
Hi Gill
So glad you made it. Enjoy the fruits of your labours!
Karon
Texture is smooth and the taste is tart and delicious. I am definitely making this again and also going to check out other recipes on this site. Thanks
Hi Kristine
So glad you liked the passion fruit and lemon curd. It’s one of my favourites
K
Hello, and thanks for the recipe! What do you think about preserving/canning this passion fruit curd in a water bath, in order to leave it out at room temp longer, to sell or give as gifts?
Hi Megan
We don’t tend to do water bath canning in the UK so I’m afraid I can’t really help you on that one, sorry.
K
Karon,
What a wonderful recipe. I never made a curd before but I sure will again. It’s 01:30 AM. I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to make your recipe. Thanks to Pres. Trump here in the U.S. we don’t go out very much. That is if we have half a brain. He doesn’t even have a quarter of a brain. So we don’t expect much from him. (It’s four years later and I still can believe he was elected.) By the way I got the idea to look for a lemon passion fruit curd recipe from watching the Great British Baking Show. This was also the first time I ever had passion fruit. Thank you ever so much for sharing this marvelous recipe. God bless you all across the pond.
Mary
Hi Mary
Glad to hear my recipe gave you something interesting and tasty to do/make in the middle of the night. You have brightrned my day with your funny Trump comments. Stay safe and keep smiling and having fun in the kitchen no matter what time it is.
K
Karon, I will be making this curd recipe to celebrate Joe Biden winning the election. Apparently Mr. Trump’s quarter brain hasn’t got the message yet. One question, I had a very slight graininess in my curd. What can I do to eliminate it?
Praying for you all across the pond. Stay safe and healthy. Blessings, Mary
Hi Mary
Glad you’ve made the curd. Press it through a plastic/nylon sieve to remove any grainy bits. Great way to celebrate Mr Biden winning! Stay safe over there
K
Hiya,
I think my curds curdled because it has a grainy texture.
I’m not sure if it’s because my butter separated when I heated it, maybe I didn’t stir quite enough when it was all in the double boiler, or if it was because I tried to get it up to 160 degrees, which took a whole half of an hour…
Basically I learn by doing everything wrong first.
I don’t want to strain it because I’d probably lose the lemon zest bits & crunchy seeds,
I don’t want to just put it into a blender because then I’ll lose the fun crunchy seeds too,
Have any experience needing to ‘save’ it by adding either a certain amount of lemon juice, egg yolk or even water or cream? I know I wouldn’t want to do all of the above, one solution may conflict with another…
Hi cedric
You could try adding some butter and reheating. Sometimes curd can get grainy when it is overheated rather than not having ever got to the correct temperature. The straining is the only other option really on this one I think.
Hope you can sort things out. Bet it tastes great anyway
K
Hi, I wanted to ask for step 5 when you add the mixture into the butter, does this need to be over heat.
Also do you know the nutritional value in the curd or fat content? Just curious
Hi Shelby,
I have to add nutritional content manually to each and every post and I have over 600 recipes to update. I’m doing this every day but it’s a slow process I’m afraid, I will get to this post and the info will appear, re the butter it is in the bowl of the Bain Marie as in step one over a heat and you add the ingredients into this bowl so it is still on the heat. Hope this helps
K
Love this one, can it be doubled without any problems. I need more than 2 jars. Thanks from Auckland N.Z.
Hi Maggie
Yes just double up on your ingredients to make more curd. Hope you enjoy it, it’s one of my favourites, just love the blend of passion fruit and lemon.
K
Hi Karon, what a lovely recipe! Can just eggs yolks be used instead of whole eggs, and if so how many?
Hi Andrea
This is just the way I make it, probably 3 egg yolks and 1 whole egg as I use in my orange curd recipe. Hope this helps.
K