Lemon Pepper Seasoning is easy to make from scratch using just a few simple ingredients, for bright, bold flavor without the additives and artificial ingredients often found in store-bought seasonings!
Preheat the oven to 170°F (or the lowest temperature your oven will go).
Zest the lemons using a microplane, taking care not to get any pith (you should end up with about 6 tablespoons of zest). Spread into a thin, even layer on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan. Bake until completely dried out, shriveled, and slightly darkened, which will likely take between 30 minutes to 1 hour depending on the thickness/texture of the zest.
Start breaking down the peppercorns by pulsing in a spice grinder, high-powered food processor, or high-powered blender. (If your appliance is not high-powered enough to grind the peppercorns, you may place them in a freezer-thickness zip-top plastic baggie and bash with the flat side of a meat mallet instead.)
Along with the peppercorns, add the dehydrated/cooled lemon zest, dehydrated garlic flakes, dried minced onion, and desired amount of salt (if using) to your spice grinder/food processor/blender. Pulse until combined and broken down to your desired Lemon Pepper Seasoning consistency, whether that's with a bit of texture or completely fine and smooth.
Store in an airtight spice jar or container at room temperature for up to 1 year (use within 6 months for optimal flavor and freshness). Or store in an airtight, freezer-safe container for 1 to 2 years.
Notes
I bought 2 pounds of lemons, which contained 6 large lemons (weighing about 5 ounces each). This amount yielded about 6 tablespoons of dried zest, weighing 0.21 ounces.
Instead of zesting, you may peel the lemons with a vegetable peeler. Be careful to avoid the pith and be prepared to bake the peel longer in order to fully dehydrate it.
The lemon zest must be completely dried out in order to give the Lemon Pepper Seasoning its decent shelf life at room temperature.
I prefer my Lemon Pepper to have some texture, so five (1-second) pulses in my mini food processor was all it required.
You may tweak the amount of salt in this recipe to your liking. Or, for a sodium-free seasoning blend, you may leave out the salt completely.