Which Squeezing Method Gives You the Most Lemon Juice?
From flavoring water to grilling fish or preparing a lightly seasoned green salad , there are many situations in the kitchen that call for freshly squeezed lemon juice. But is there a “better” way to juice lemon?
There are countless different methods that various chefs say are the best way to get lemon juice. One of them is to roll the lemon on the counter first. Or you can microwave the lemon first. Some people say that you should cut the lemon into several pieces . You can even use a tool for the job, such as a hand citrus press . But what really works best? To see if there is a definite answer, we checked the five most popular methods.
Test
I decided to compare six of the most popular methods I’ve been told about over the years. Here they are:
- Control : Your standard no-frills lemon juice. I cut the lemon in half lengthwise and squeezed it by hand.
- Lemon Roll : With both hands, I rolled the lemon across the counter for 45 seconds, then cut the lemon in half widthwise and squeezed by hand.
- Microwave Lemon : I heated the lemon for 25 seconds on high power, then cut the lemon in half widthwise and squeezed by hand.
- Multiple abbreviations : I followed the advice of food writer Patricia Wells. I picked up a lemon and cut it vertically into three pieces, leaving the center piece in a triangular wedge shape; after that I compressed three sections by hand.
- Using a manual citrus press : I cut the lemon in half widthwise, then insert it, cutting side first, into the citrus press and squeeze.
I bought lemons of the same brand and variety (Sunkist) from the same store and wasted a suspicious amount of time in the grocery aisle choosing lemons of similar size, weight and density.
After juicing each fruit, I compared the juice yield of each lemon by weight in ounces using a scale rather than measuring the liquid in milliliters or teaspoons to get a more accurate reading. For each lemon juice, I tried to apply the same amount of effort (that is, I tried to squeeze each lemon as hard as possible).
results
Here are the entries for each method, in order from lowest to highest yield. In last place was the control one, which produced the least amount of juice, and the manual juicer produced the largest amount:
- Control: 1.25 oz
- Multiple cuts: 1.35 oz
- Microwave Lemon: 1.35 oz.
- Rolled Lemon: 1.375 oz
- Using a manual juicer: 1.95 oz
As you can see, at 1.25 oz., The control method – standard squeeze – was a real lemon (insert rim shot here). Every trick we have tried has been great, so there is almost no reason why you should squeeze lemon juice this way again.
However, the method that really knocked him out of the line was to use a manual citrus press that produced 1.95 ounces of juice. Not only did it give more than 55 percent more juice than regular squeezing, but it also prevented the seeds from getting into the juice and pulp on my hands.
My lemon juicer seemed to last forever (I’ve had it for almost a decade now, and I count). So if you don’t have one and use lemons with any frequency, be it seafood, desserts, or lots of lemon wedges, it’s time to invest in a $ 8 lemon juicer . Believe me, it’s worth its weight in gold.
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