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One of the first things that you will want to keep in mind when trying to get some longevity out of your lemons is what shape are they in when you store them? I don't mean are they “good” what I am referring to is the literal shape they are in. Are they whole lemons or are they wedges.

The way you approach this next part will depend on that very fact.

WHOLE LEMONS

The most common way people store whole lemons is sitting on top of a counter. I did this for years without knowing any better. As it turns out while this is okay it may not be the BEST option.

America's Test Kitchen tried out numerous ways to store whole lemons, including inside and outside of the refrigerator and with and without water, and discovered that the best way to keep whole lemons fresh for longer is to store them in the fridge, inside a zip-top bag, with no water in it. That will keep the moisture in there three to four times longer than it would on the countertop!

When I first read that I scoffed at the notion of three to four times longer but after using this method myself I found that it does in fact work.

LEMON WEDGES

There are many reasons why one would want to save lemon wedges. Either a recipe only calls for a part of a lemon or you are using them to clean and do not need the entire thing! If you leave them out you will find that in just a few hours the citric acid will have dried up and the lemon is now useless.

Here are a couple of options:

If you're planning to use the wedges in the next couple of days, wrap each wedge individually with plastic wrap, pressing it directly against the pulp and squeezing out as much air as possible as you go. Toss them into a zip-top bag and place them inside your veggie drawer.

If you don't expect to use your lemon wedges within a few days, you'll want to freeze them. As before, wrap each wedge individually with plastic wrap, then place them inside a zip-top bag inside the freezer.

If you'd prefer not to use plastic wrap, you can seal your lemon wedges with water instead: Place one wedge into each cup of a muffin tin, cover with water, and stick in the freezer. When it's time to use a lemon wedge, pop it out and defrost it with lukewarm water. Then clean away!

There you have it. Some foolproof ways to keep those lemons fresh and useable!

Do you have any tips that we did not list on here? Let us know in the comments below.

Source: Kitchn