It has been the week of lemons for us. Thanks to my in-laws’ prolific tree, we brought back a bounty of Meyer lemons from our California trip a couple of weeks ago. This led to a batch of Lemon Sugar Puff Pastry Twists, which disappeared faster than Donald Trump’s presidential bid. From there we moved onto Grilled Lemon & Rosemary Chicken, which has earned a place in our summer grilling line-up.
My mum, who was here for a visit, set to work juicing the rest of the lemons, producing six cups of fresh citrus juice. She rummaged around for extra ice cube trays in our pantry and, using a small ladle, filled them with the juice. We now have lemon juice to last for the summer, which will help me avoid those extra trips to the store when I discover the lemons I bought two weeks ago are now shriveled specimens.
Now, I know some of you are thinking, “Why doesn’t she just use the bottled lemon juice or the lime juice in those cute little plastic, squeezable limes?” This is where my “fresh is best” snobby side comes out. The side of me that can’t palate bottled lemon or lime juice (or bottled garlic, for that matter) is the same side that flips out at house guests when they try to use my “day off” mug for their coffee. Seriously, my husband and I have special mugs dedicated to our weekend coffee and tea breaks, to be used only on the weekend…only by us. Now you really want to come and stay with us, don’t you? Well, I may not let you use my mug, but I do promise to make you some great dishes fresh citrus juice.
How to do it:
To make the fruit easier to juice, roll firmly on the counter with the palm of your hand to loosen up the flesh. Cut the fruit in half crosswise and juice it using a handheld juicer, food processor attachment or whatever tool you happen to favor.
Using a small ladle or a small pitcher with a spout, pour the citrus juice into ice cube trays. Each standard-sized ice cube will contain about 2 tablespoons of liquid. However, I suggest measuring the capacity of your ice cube tray to be sure.
Freeze until solid. Juice will freeze to a stage that is slightly softer than regular ice cubes. Remove cubes from the tray and place in a freezer resealable bag.
When you are ready to use the juice, remove the number of ice cubes from the freezer that you desire and defrost them.
Recipes that use fresh lemon or lime juice:
Cookin’ Canuck’s Fish Tacos with Creamy Green Chile & Cilantro Sauce
Cookin’ Canuck’s Lime Squares with Gingersnap Crust
Cookin’ Canuck’s Avocado, Tomato & Cotija Cheese Salad
Kalyn’s Kitchen’s Pan-Fried Asparagus Tips with Lemon Juice & Lemon Zest
Herbivoracious’ Lemon-Mustard Vinaigrette
101 Cookbooks’ Lime, Grapefruit & Ginger Juice
How to: Store (Freeze) Lemon and Lime Juice
Ingredients
- Whole lemons
Instructions
- To make the fruit easier to juice, roll firmly on the counter with the palm of your hand to loosen up the flesh.
- Cut the fruit in half crosswise and juice it using a handheld juicer, food processor attachment or whatever tool you happen to favor.
- Using a small ladle or a small pitcher with a spout, pour the citrus juice into ice cube trays. Each standard-sized ice cube will contain about 2 tablespoons of liquid. However, I suggest measuring the capacity of your ice cube tray to be sure.
- Freeze until solid. Juice will freeze to a stage that is slightly softer than regular ice cubes. Remove cubes from the tray and place in a freezer resealable bag.
- When you are ready to use the juice, remove the number of ice cubes from the freezer that you desire and defrost them.
John
I simply cut the citrus in half and place into a zippy bag then freeze. At the moment I have about 4 shopping bags full with last years lime crop. Just thaw and squeeze for lime juice for fish etc. Too easy.
Cheers,
John.
Kristina Vanni
Great tips! Whenever I have a leftover half of lemon or lime I squeeze it and save the juice in a small container in the fridge….now when that starts to overflow I can just freeze it!
Elle
You know, I always freeze zest, so why not the juice? Great tip!
Marly
I love this idea! I agree with you – fresh is best! We can be fresh fruities (you know, like foodies?)!
Kevin (Closet Cooking)
Great idea to freeze lemon and lime juice! Now I just need to clear some more space in my fridge.
Anna
so smart! thanks for sharing!!
megan @ whatmegansmaking
what a great idea! Seriously, how did i not think of this?
Sylvie @ Gourmande in the Kitchen
I’ve been doing this with pesto and sauces but never thought to do it for lemon juice, so simple and so easy!
Shaina
This is a fantastic idea. I’m with Marla on letting them go to waste all too often.
marla
Dara, this is a very smart idea. I find that we often let lemons & lime go to waste – now there is no need to do that since we can preserve their precious juices. Great how-to post!
Laurie
Thanks for the tip. We get lemons and limes in big batches, and I spent a week cooking with lemons and still have more left.
DessertForTwo
We’re overwhelmed with citrus juice from our trees. Must get to juicin’ and freezin’! Thanks 🙂
Alison @ Ingredients, Inc.
great teaching here!! Are you going to EVO btw. Were your ears burning this weekend? I was talking about how I love your site and you!
Rachel @ Baked by Rachel
The perfect use for ice cube trays!
thepickyeater
what a great idea ! i drink loads of lemon juice during summer….its the best drink
Nancy@acommunaltable
Brilliant!! I agree with you – the bottled stuff just doesn’t cut it!!! So much better to have fresh juice and this is the perfect way to make sure you always have some when you need it!!
Katrina
Such a great idea because I hate when I run out of fresh lemons and limes and I hate it even more when I didn’t use them fast enough and they are starting to go bad!
Chef Louise
love this idea… hate wasting fruit when i don’t get to it…
Jeanette
What a great idea, freezing fresh lemon/lime juice – I usually just keep them in my refrigerator but sometimes they go bad and end up getting thrown out, what a shame.
Maris (In Good Taste)
Great tip! Thanks so much!