The Lazy Lemon Curd Method
Apr 24, 2026
Homemade lemon curd is one of the most versatile cake fillings you can have in your toolkit, and it’s far easier to make than most people think. This is my “lazy” method: just 4 ingredients, no constant stirring, and no scrambled eggs.
And the reason why I call it “lazy” is because we add all the ingredients to our bowl, leave it on a bain-marie to thicken whilst stirring it only 2-3 times throughout the whole process (ie you can go ahead and do something else whilst your curd is cooking), add the butter at the end, blitz it with a stick blender, and voilà! You’ve got a creamy, buttery, tangy, delicious lemon curd.
And the great news is that you can use the exact same recipe, and switch the lemon juice with orange juice, and you’ve just made an orange curd.
Use it as a cake layer filling, swirl it into Swiss Meringue Buttercream, or pipe it into cupcakes as a surprise centre. Once you’ve made it from scratch, you’ll never go back to shop-bought.
Filmed using the Kenwood Cooking Chef XL. Its induction heating element keeps everything at a precise temperature, making this the most hands-off lemon curd method out there. Thinking of getting one? Use my ambassador link and get 2 extra accessories with your machine. š Shop here.
INGREDIENTS
- Lemon juice - 90g
- Whole eggs - x2
- Caster sugar - 96g
- Cold salted butter - 125g
- (+ lemon zest if you'd like a little extra punch)
TWO METHODS - pick what works for you
1. The Modern Lazy Way (Kenwood Cooking Chef XL) Add everything in, set your temperature, and step away. Pour the curd inside a smaller (and narrower) container, add the butter in one go and blitz with a stick blender. That's it. Your curd is ready to be jarred or used straight after cooling down.
2. The “Classic” Lazy Way (Bain-Marie) No machine? No problem. Here's how:
- Prepare a bain-marie - bring a saucepan of water to a gentle simmer, not a rolling boil.
- In a heatproof bowl (Pyrex or stainless steel), whisk the sugar and eggs together, then add the lemon juice.
- Place the bowl over the bain-marie and give it a gentle stir every minute or so until the mixture has thickened. If this is the first time you use this method, feel free to stir it more often for reassurance. You’ll quickly see however that nothing bad will happen to your curd if you only stir it occasionally throughout the process.
- Cut the cold butter into small chunks and add to the lemon mixture. Blitz immediately with a stick blender.
- Your Lemon Curd is ready to be jarred, or left to cool if using in a cake late
Enjoy Watching
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