In short. The raw limoncello — nothing is cooked. Peel, alcohol, sugar and water go into one jar together, get stirred twice a day, and after six days it is ready. The result is unusually clear.
Most limoncello recipes make a syrup and add it to an infusion. This one does not, and that is why it comes out limpid instead of cloudy.
Ingredients
- 12 untreated lemons, recently picked — ideally just turned yellow, with some green still on them
- half a litre of alcohol
- half a kilo of sugar
- half a litre of water
Method
1. The lemons. Wash them carefully, removing anything that is not yellow. Use a soft brush if you need to, gently — you do not want to break the little bumps on the rind, which is where the oil is.
2. The peel. With a sharp knife take only the yellow part of the rind. The white pith would make the liqueur genuinely bitter.
3. All together. Put the peel, alcohol, sugar and water into a large airtight jar of 2–3 litres. Stir with a wooden spoon and close it.
4. Waiting. Leave it in the kitchen, somewhere without much noise or movement. Stir several times — once in the morning and once in the evening — with a clean wooden spoon.
5. Ready. After six days the limoncello is done: filter and bottle.
Only the yellow. This is the whole difference between a good limoncello and a bitter one. If you can see white on the underside of your peel, take it off.
More on the liqueurs page.
