Name: Limoncello e Pepe
Prep time: 168 h
Cook time: 15 min
Yield: Makes about 4 1/2 cups
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 11 organic lemons, washed well; 1 tablespoon black peppercorns, slightly crushed; 1 (750ml) bottle vodka; 1 cup just-boiled water; 1 cup sugar

Photo by Julia Gartland

Test Kitchen-Approved

Author Notes

Limoncello is a strong, sunny, lemon-infused Italian liqueur, usually enjoyed as a digestif, or post-dinner drink. Recipes often differ on: what type of alcohol (high-proof grain alcohol or vodka) and how much sugar. This recipe opts for vodka and a modest amount of sugar. I know, I know—it seems like there's a lot, but some recipes use four times this amount! Adding black pepper is another way to cut the sweetness and incorporate some subtle spice, which I really love in a digestif. Note: The peppercorns will deepen the color of the limoncello. If you want, you can bundle them in a sachet, pull them after a couple days, then let the lemon peels keep doing their thing. And be sure to seek out organic lemons—and wash well—since the infusing process draws out everything from the peels. —Emma Laperruque

Test Kitchen Notes

Featured in: Make Limoncello ASAP, Sip All Summer Long —The Editors

Prep time 168 hours
Cook time 15 minutes
Makes about 4 1/2 cups

Ingredients

11 organic lemons, washed well
1 tablespoon black peppercorns, slightly crushed
1 (750ml) bottle vodka
1 cup just-boiled water
1 cup sugar

In This Recipe

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Directions

Peel the lemon zest with a vegetable peeler into thick strips, avoiding as much of the white pith as possible. Add those and the peppercorns to a big glass jar with a lid. Add the vodka and stir. Close the jar.
Infuse at room temperature—preferably a cool, shady spot like a cupboard—for at least 5 days or up to 1 month. The general rule is: The longer, the lemonier. We infused for 1 week and loved the flavor.
Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing on the lemon peels to get every last drop. In a separate bowl, combine the water and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Let cool. Add to the strained lemon vodka.
Store in the fridge or freezer (my preference). Drink straight-up or on the rocks.

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Joan - Downstairs
Susan Whiting
Emma Laperruque
Oscar Cadeau

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Emma is a writer and recipe developer at Food52. Before this, she worked a lot of odd jobs, all at the same time. Think: stir-frying noodles "on the fly," baking dozens of pastries at 3 a.m., reviewing restaurants, and writing articles about everything from how to use leftover mashed potatoes to the history of pies in North Carolina. Now she lives in Maplewood, New Jersey with her husband and their cat, Butter. Stay tuned every Tuesday for Emma's cooking column, Big Little Recipes, all about big flavor and little ingredient lists. And see what she's up to on Instagram and Twitter at @emmalaperruque.

Popular on Food52

26 Reviews

Laura W. December 12, 2018

Excited to try this for Christmas gifts! Any suggestions on where to purchase nice bottles?

Author Comment

Emma L. December 12, 2018

Hi Laura, yay! If you have a craft/art supply store nearby, that's usually a good place to start.

Roxy53 June 17, 2018

Love all your ideas and comments, gonna give it a try!

jmvs921 May 1, 2018

what sort of container do you use during infusion process, and
then in the freezer? glass or plastic or??

Author Comment

Emma L. May 1, 2018

I used glass for both the infusion and storing in the freezer.

micmitch April 30, 2018

I have had great results with a 190 proof neutral grain alcohol which I then cut down to around 50-60 proof with the simple syrup after several months of infusing. This results in a much richer flavor than what I have been able to achieve with vodka. As you cut down the infusion to a drinkable strength your limoncello will become cloudy however because the solubility of the lemon oils and compounds decrease with the alcohol percentage causing some of them to precipitate out of solution and form more of a suspension. I use a comparable number of lemons for a single bottle of 190 proof which yields ~3 L of limoncello so I suspect you could probably reduce the number of lemons substantially without noticing much of a difference. Something worth experimenting with. The addition of the peppercorns is intriguing. I'll have to give that a try in my next batch!

Carlo April 30, 2018

Could you use honey or maple syrup in place of the sugar?

Author Comment

Emma L. April 30, 2018

Hm! I haven't tried that myself, but here are some thoughts: You'll notice the flavor a lot more, as opposed to the sugar, which just offers sweetness. You might want to reduce the amount, so as not to overpower the lemon. Honey would be so lovely with the lemon, but maple might be too distracting. Both will also darken the color of the limoncello. If you opt for maple, I'd choose a lighter variety. Hope this helps!

Carlo April 30, 2018

So make a honey simple syrup ?

Author Comment

Emma L. April 30, 2018

Yes, and then add to taste!

Carlo April 30, 2018

Thank you! I’ll let you know how it turns out

Michelle May 21, 2018

Carlo, have you tried it yet? I'd like to use honey too and was wondering your thoughts!

Carlo May 21, 2018

Yes the honey worked perfect I cut the amount of honey in half as we don’t like things overly sweet. Hope this helps!

Carlo May 21, 2018

Yes the honey worked perfect I cut the amount in half as we don’t like things overly sweet. Hope this helps!

Deb April 28, 2018

Yes, let the strawberries sit until they lose color and then sweeten with the simple syrup. You also want inexpensive vodka; higher proof has less flavor. Hope this helps. Enjoy.

Joan -. April 27, 2018

I love a gin gimlet, not too sweet. I wonder if I infused vodka with lime and went easy on the simple syrup, would I get a good gimlet-like sipping experience?
Has anyone here used lime?

Oscar C. July 29, 2018

Oh yes, absolutely. The last time I infused vodka with lime (I just put in a sliced lime and then strained when it was ready) I also put coconut flakes in. Lovely. But just the lime would make for a good gimlet.

Susan W. April 27, 2018

Does quality of vodka matter? Cheap or higher grade?

Author Comment

Emma L. April 27, 2018

Bonnie Frumkin Morales has the perfect answer to this in her book, Kachka. Writing about vodka infusions, she says: "Cheap and neutral are your friends...Clean, bottom-shelf brands, like Taaka or Gordon's, work best."

Arugulady April 26, 2018

Love the peppercorn idea! Wonder if pequins might be nice? I used to make a delicious rhubarb cordial using this technique—just learned to make it with really red rhubarb stalks or the color is nasty! (Lots of jokes about urine samples!)

j9 April 22, 2018

How large are the lemons used in this recipe? A lot of the organic lemons I see in stores are huge (about the size of a baseball). I can't imagine using 11 at that size, but maybe that's correct.

Author Comment

Emma L. April 23, 2018

The lemons I used were pretty unremarkable—so, bigger than a golf ball, but smaller than a baseball. If you're using huge ones, I'd drop the amount to 8, maybe even less, then taste-test every so often until the infusion is lemony enough to you. Hope that helps!

Deb April 21, 2018

Try letting it sit for a few weeks after adding the simple syrup. It really smooths out the flavor. You can also do a strawberry version using the same basic recipe. Great summer sippers.

Di April 28, 2018

You infuse strawberries in vodka and then strain?

Molli B. April 20, 2018

During the “infusion” process where do you store the liquid—— counter top or in the refrigerator?

Author Comment

Emma L. April 21, 2018

Great Q! Will add this detail to the recipe. Room temperature—preferably a cool, shady spot like a cupboard.

Lemon

Limoncello e Pepe

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Recipe by: Emma Laperruque

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26 Reviews