Based on my popular vegan lemon curd, this tangy lime curd uses a high ratio of real fruit, making it a fresh mouth-puckering lime flavor that leans more towards sour than sweet.
This makes it perfect for cutting through sweet desserts like meringue and tart fillings, or layered between buttercream and sponge in your favorite layer cake.
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🧾 Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
Here's everything you need for this homemade lime curd recipe. Find the complete list of ingredients, quantities, and instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Fresh Lime Juice & Zest: Please avoid using bottled lime juice for this recipe - it won’t give the right results. Fresh lime juice is always best and unbeatable when making lime desserts.
- Granulated Sugar: This lime curd uses a bit less sugar than my lemon curd since limes have a less tart flavor. If you’re in the US, try to use organic sugar when possible, as many non-organic brands aren’t vegan.
- Cornstarch: This thickens the curd without eggs. You can substitute arrowroot starch using a 1:1 ratio.
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🔪 Instructions
Here's a visual overview showing how to make this luscious lime curd. Please refer to the detailed recipe card at the end of this page for full measurements and written instructions. You can also hit the jump to recipe button at the very top of this page to skip to the printable recipe card.
Add the fresh lime zest and sugar to a saucepan, then use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar. This helps release the natural oils from the zest, boosting the lime flavor in your curd.
Add the cornstarch to the pan and whisk it into the lime sugar mixture until evenly combined. Mixing it with the sugar first helps prevent the cornstarch from clumping later on.
Next, add the lime juice and plant milk, whisking well until the mixture is completely smooth with no lumps remaining.
Cook over medium heat (or low for gas), whisking for around 5-8 minutes until thick. Switch between a whisk and a spatula to prevent sticking.
Add the vegan butter to a mixing bowl, then strain lime curd through a fine mesh sieve into the bowl.
Whisk until the butter is fully incorporated. Cover the curd’s surface with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 1 hour. After chilling, transfer the curd to a mason jar or a sterilized jam jar for storage.
💭 Expert tips
Zest your limes before juicing them - it’s much easier that way. Be sure to only zest the bright green outer layer, avoiding the white pith underneath, as it’s very bitter.
Don’t skip sifting! It ensures your curd has a silky smooth finish and removes the lime zest, which can develop a bitter flavor during cooking. Don’t worry—the zest’s bright flavor will already be infused into the curd.
Boost the vibrance! Just like a pinch of turmeric enhances lemon curd’s color, a small touch of sifted matcha powder (about ¼ to ½ teaspoon) can brighten the green hue of lime curd.
The curd will thicken naturally in the fridge, just give it a good stir before serving. If you prefer a looser texture, gently warm it over a double boiler.
🍋🟩 Lime Curd Uses
Here are just some of the endless ways to enjoy your homemade fruit curd:
- Spread over toast, biscuits, crumpets, or fresh scones.
- A topping/filling for vegan lime cheesecake or key lime pie.
- Top or sandwich it with a couple of key lime cookies.
- For topping vegan meringue nests or pavlova.
- As a cake filling for cupcakes or a layer cake.
- You could also enjoy it over some vanilla ice cream, mango ice cream, or use it to make lime ice cream.
💬 FAQs
I use Persian limes for this recipe, which are widely available and also known as seedless or Tahiti limes. They have a bright green skin and a slightly more bitter flavor than key limes. If you want to make key lime curd, you can substitute regular limes equally, but keep in mind you'll need a lot more key limes since they’re much smaller to get the same amount of juice.
This fresh lime curd will keep for at least 1 week in an airtight container in the fridge.
You can also freeze it for several months in a covered container and thaw it in the refrigerator overnight.
Unfortunately, I don’t recommend leaving out the sugar. Besides balancing the tartness of the limes, sugar also helps give the curd its rich, creamy texture.
🍯 More Fruit Curd Recipes
📖 Recipe
Easy Lime Curd (Eggless, Dairy-Free)
Ingredients
- 300 ml (1 ¼ cups) lime juice freshly squeezed, *notes 1+2
- 2 tablespoons lime zest *note 2
- 110 ml (⅓ cup + 2 tablespoons) non-dairy milk *note 3
- 180 g (¾ cup + 2 tablespoons) granulated sugar *Organic if US based *note 4
- 40 g (4 tablespoons) cornstarch or ground arrowroot starch
- ¼ teaspoon matcha powder sifted, optional *note 5
- 50 g (1.75 oz) vegan butter stick butter, not margarine, *note 6
Instructions
- Prepare: Zest and then juice your limes. Set a large mixing bowl and a fine-mesh sieve aside for later.
- Flavor the sugar: Add the sugar and lime zest to a saucepan and use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar until the sugar crystals feel "wet
- Whisk in the ingredients: Add the cornstarch to the saucepan and whisk until evenly mixed with the sugar and zest. Then pour in the lime juice and milk and whisk until completely smooth and there are no visible lumps.
- Cook: On medium heat (low heat if you're using a gas cooker) and continue to whisk the mixture until it thickens - this will take around 5-7 minutes. Alternate between a rubber spatula and a whisk to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Once the curd has thickened enough to coat the back of the spatula without running off of it, remove it from the heat and whisk in the matcha if using.
- Sift: Place the cold vegan butter in the large mixing bowl and set the fine-mesh sieve on top of the bowl. Pass the curd through the sieve, using a spatula to squeeze it through if needed. Whisk it into the butter until smooth.
- Chill: Cover the surface of the curd with plastic wrap, and let it cool slightly for 10-15 minutes, then transfer it to the fridge to cool for an hour. It will thicken while it chills in the fridge. Once chilled, you can go ahead and use it in other recipes, or transfer it to an airtight jar and refrigerate it until ready to use.
- Storage: It will last for at least 2 weeks in an airtight jar in the fridge. If you plan on using it on the same day, you can keep it out at room temperature in a sealed jar. You can gently warm the curd over a double boiler whenever you want a looser consistency. It also freezes well - store it in a covered container for several months and thaw overnight in the fridge.
Notes
- Limes: I used 5-6 Persian limes, if you are using key limes you will need substantially more to yield the same amount of juice.
- Lime Zest: Zest your limes before slicing them open for ease. Also, don't zest all the way down to the white pith as this tastes extremely bitter. You only want the bright green zest from the outer part of the skin.
- Soy Milk: Swap for almond milk or oat milk.
- Sugar: This recipe leans towards sour and tart. If you prefer a sweeter curd, add up to 60g more sugar to taste.
- Bump up the vibrance. A touch of matcha powder to lime curd to help bring out the green color. Keep it to ¼-1/2 teaspoon.
- Vegan butter: You can swap this for coconut cream or thick full-fat canned coconut milk. Just note that the consistency may not be quite as set as with butter.
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