You should think about freezing your lemons if you want to increase their shelf life. Lemons have a longer shelf life and don’t attach when frozen. Make sure to give lemons a good cleaning before freezing. They can also be kept in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
To keep lemons fresh, it is crucial to store them properly. Lemons spoil just like any other fruit, despite their acidity. A lemon that has started to lose flavor and juice will show shriveling, soft or firm patches, and a drab tint. Learn the proper way to store lemons to avoid this from happening.
How to Store Lemons?
Lemons add flavor to desserts, drinks, sauces, salad dressings, marinades, and baked goods. They are a great source of vitamin C and flavonoids, which act as antioxidants and aid in the body’s removal of free radicals that can harm cells. These nutrients can improve health and wellbeing while preventing disease.
Here are some ways for how to properly store lemons, so they stay fresh for a longer time:
Storing Lemons in the Refrigerator
Lemons should be kept in the refrigerator. Fresh lemons keep fresh for a week or longer when stored on a shelf in the refrigerator. If you keep whole lemons in the refrigerator’s crisper drawer in an airtight container or a sealed plastic bag, hey will keep them for a month.
Storing Lemons at Room Temperature
If you keep whole lemons on the countertop at room temperature, they can survive up to a week. Removing the juice and zest from lemons can be kept for a long time. Thanks to this easy preparation, the shelf life will be extended by up to a week. Lemons can also be kept for three to four days in the refrigerator. It will take five to fifteen minutes to complete this process, depending on the type of lemons you have. But keep in mind that lemons should be kept separate from other fruits to stop ethylene gas leakage.
Storing Lemons in an Airtight Container
Lemons stored in water do not experience the same deterioration as those kept at room temperature, resulting in the fruit’s loss of juice and hardening. Many recipes call for lemons, which should be kept in an airtight container for optimum storage.
Lemons should be kept in the refrigerator or an airtight container for storage. It is simple to preserve half of a lemon in a tiny bowl, and one will do just fine. Another choice is to keep the lemon juice and zest in a plastic bag or airtight container. If lemons are kept in an airtight container, they can stay fresh for up to six weeks.
Wrap Up-Cut Lemons
Lemon halves and lemon slices kept in an airtight container or zip-top bag can be stored in the refrigerator for five to seven days. You can also cover the lemon wedges in plastic wrap to prevent drying.
Storing Lemons in a Zip-Top Bag
Lemons should be placed in a plastic zip-top bag or a plastic container with a tight seal if you want to store them. If properly refrigerated, lemons will remain fresh for three to four days. Lemons should be kept in the refrigerator if you need to utilize them for longer. If kept in the fridge, whole lemons can stay fresh for up to a week. Lemons can be wrapped in plastic and kept fresher longer by being set on a shelf in the refrigerator.
Freeze Lemon Juice
Lemon juice is also freezer-friendly. Lemons are juiced, and the juice is then placed in separate ice cube trays. Place the frozen juice blocks in a freezer bag. Any recipe that asks for fresh lemon juice, including marinades or lemonade, can be made using lemon juice. The shelf life of frozen lemon juice is three to four months.
Place Lemons in the Freezer
While lemons can be frozen, place the lemons in a freezer bag, and when you need them, defrost the bag until the lemons are tender once again. Although the pulp will be mushy, the juice can still be used. For three to four months, frozen lemons can be stored.
Freeze Lemon Slices
Remove the seeds from the lemons and cut them into smaller pieces. The slices should solidify after being spread out on a baking sheet and quickly frozen. Place the lemon segments in a freezer bag, then close it. For three to four months, frozen lemons can be stored. Lemons that have been frozen can be used as a garnish or in baking.
Tips for Storing Lemons
To help keep lemons fresh, consider the following advice on food storage:
- Pick the appropriate lemons. Lemons that are vibrant yellow and not overripe should be chosen, and younger lemons will keep better storage.
- Keep lemons by themselves. Lemons should not be kept with other fruits. Lemons’ natural ripening process can be sped up by the ethylene gas released by ripening fruits like apples and bananas.
- Make lemon water. If you have lemons that may be used as slices, make lemon water by blending the lemon slices with the water and refrigerating it.
- Peel the frozen lemons. A frozen whole lemon is simpler to zest than a fresh lemon. Take a frozen lemon out of the refrigerator and rub the rind against a lemon zester tool to give a recipe a citrus flavor.
Health Benefits of Lemon
1. Supports Heart Health
Vitamin C and antioxidants are abundant in lemons. According to research, these two nutrients are good for the heart and aid in preventing heart disease and stroke. Lemon fibers, however, can also considerably reduce the risk factors for heart disease.
Consuming lemon juice has been shown in a few small studies to help lower high blood pressure. About the primary method of treating high blood pressure, lemon can be useful. Lemon contains two plant chemicals known to decrease cholesterol: hesperidin and diosmin.
2. Aids in digestion
High levels of soluble fiber in lemon assist in maintaining regular bowel motions and enhance digestion. Pectin, the primary fiber in lemons, promotes better digestive health by speeding up the digestion of carbs and sugar.
According to Ayurvedic medicine, consuming a glass of water with lemon juice and pulp in the morning will help your digestion. Additionally, it supports a healthy digestive tract.
3. Help to Control Weight
Lemons contain pectin fiber, which expands and prolongs your feeling of fullness when consumed. Lemon water is frequently promoted as a weight loss and weight control aid, and the results on people were not evaluated in this study, which was conducted using mice. It’s also crucial to remember that water may be just as helpful as lemon at making you feel full and preventing snacking.
4. Kidney Stone Prevention
Those deficient in urinary citrate might use lemon water to prevent uncomfortable stones (a form of citric acid). More significantly, drinking more water helps fend off dehydration, a key contributor to kidney stones.
5. Help to Boost Immunity
Lemon is a fruit known for boosting immunity since it is rich in vitamin C and antioxidants. It aids in boosting the immune system’s defenses against the viruses that cause the flu and the common cold. A large spoonful of honey and a glass of hot water with lemon juice can assist with a cold or cough.
Can I freeze Whole lemons?
Placing lemons in the freezer will ensure that you always have fresh lemons available to lend zing to recipes and tang to beverages. You can freeze lemon wedges or slices, lemon zest, lemon juice, or whole lemons.
Is it Good to Keep Lemons in the Fridge Or Out?
It may be tempting to keep lemons in a nice bowl on your kitchen counter or dining room table, but resist the impulse to use fresh fruit as decor. Lemons left at room temperature will dry out, producing less juice and a harder rind. Lemons should always be stored in the refrigerator.
What Shouldn’t Other Fruits be Stored with Lemons?
Several fruit combinations should not be stored together, much like potatoes and onions. Apples, bananas, stone fruit, pears, and lemons should not be stored alongside other fruits, particularly apples. Apples release gas as they ripen, which can hasten other fruit ripening (and eventual spoilage). Simply keeping apples in one crisper drawer and the rest in another is a simple solution.
How Can I Tell if a Lemon is Bad?
Bad lemons will start to rot and get brown spots, becoming slimy and squishy, or, if left out for too long, they will start to mold on the peel. Lemons kept in the refrigerator may develop dark patches, a spongy texture, and shrivel up as they become dehydrated.
Conclusion
Lemons are a common item, but they are rarely utilized completely at once; recipes sometimes just use the juice, zest, or a few wedges of the fruit, leaving you with leftovers. However, if you don’t properly store extra lemon halves, zest, or juice, you’ll shorten their shelf life.
Lemons should be free from bruising, soft patches, and apparent scars like any other fresh fruit. A good lemon will be bright yellow and somewhat yield when squeezed. Lemons in their full form can be frozen, but you should zest them first.