Lemons-store in fridge or on counter?

[iamafoodie]

I notice on most cooking shows that they keep their lemons/limes/oranges in a basket on the counter.
I have always stored my citrus'y things in a bin in the frig.
but then again when you buy them at a grocery store you do not find them in a cooler.
So are there any pros or cons for storing them in a fridge? Does it matter?

 

[mmyap]

Good question. I always store mine on the counter because I thought that they give up more juice when they are warm. (Hence the microwave method of extracting more juice.) But that might be completely wrong. Looking forward to a more definitive answer then "because my mom did that" which is what I was relying on.

 

[Dawgluver]

Fridge for my citrus, they last a long time. I also freeze limes whole when I get a big bag at Costco. I guess it depends on how soon you plan to use them. They do look pretty in the baskets.

 

[4meandthem]

Fridge for me. They kept getting hard or brown on the counter.

 

[Andy M.]

You can store them at room temperature for a week or so. They will last longer in your refrigerator crisper drawer.

From personal experience, when they get a fuzzy blue-green coating and leak a brownish liquid into the bottom of the crisper drawer, it's time to think about throwing them out.

 

[Dawgluver]

From personal experience, when they get a fuzzy blue-green coating and leak a brownish liquid into the bottom of the crisper drawer, it's time to think about throwing them out.

Dang. No wonder my lemonade tasted funny.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

There have been a few times our strawberries grew beards.

I store my lemons and limes in the fruit drawer of my refrigerator, but take out what I need for a meal the night before. I think the reason the TV shows have lemons on the counter is because the props crew set them out to make the counter look pretty. I bet IRL those lemons are kept in the 'fridge when the filming is done.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

You can store them at room temperature for a week or so. They will last longer in your refrigerator crisper drawer.

From personal experience, when they get a fuzzy blue-green coating and leak a brownish liquid into the bottom of the crisper drawer, it's time to think about throwing them out.

What?!? That's when I name them...and make sure they have water in their bowl.

 

[Sir_Loin_of_Beef]

I just leave them on the tree until I need them.

 

[mmyap]

I just leave them on the tree until I need them.

I have a lemon tree as well. That's why I don't worry so much about longevity. I'm not throwing away lemons I spent money on.

 

[Kylie1969]

I just leave them on the tree until I need them.

That is what we do too as we have lemon and orange trees

When we didnt though, I would leave them on the counter, but thinking fridge would be better

 

[Dawgluver]

Would you guys in tropical climates please just cut it out? Would love a citrus tree here, but they don't tolerate below 0° F. I'm envious!

 

[Somebunny]

Would you guys in tropical climates please just cut it out? Would love a citrus tree here, but they don't tolerate below 0° F. I'm envious!

++1!

 

[ahoymatey2013]

We have a produce store that is so cheap that I don't worry about my produce going bad. I can get 5 lemons for a dollar so I always have them on hand. I keep mine in the fridge though.

 

[Cooking Goddess]

Would you guys in tropical climates please just cut it out? Would love a citrus tree here, but they don't tolerate below 0° F. I'm envious!

You can grow them at home and not even need a greenhouse. I managed to get a few Meyer Lemons off a tree (started out about a 5" cutting) before it got infested with whitefly from some cheap gardenia I picked up somewhere. Had to pitch the lemon AND a couple other plants.

If you don't have a tropical plant nursery you can order from Logee's in Connecticut. If nothing else, their site is neat for killing time.

Our BIL loves coffee more than anyone I know! As a joke housewarming gift I bought him a small (less than 1') coffee tree. Good thing they have a 2-story entry hall - in about 6 years that thing has grown to about 8 feet! He gets beans off of it, but never more than a dozen at a time.

 

[CraigC]

Some kosher salt and mason jars can help them last a good long time at room temp.

 

[Dawgluver]

You can grow them at home and not even need a greenhouse. I managed to get a few Meyer Lemons off a tree (started out about a 5" cutting) before it got infested with whitefly from some cheap gardenia I picked up somewhere. Had to pitch the lemon AND a couple other plants.

If you don't have a tropical plant nursery you can order from Logee's in Connecticut. If nothing else, their site is neat for killing time.

Our BIL loves coffee more than anyone I know! As a joke housewarming gift I bought him a small (less than 1') coffee tree. Good thing they have a 2-story entry hall - in about 6 years that thing has grown to about 8 feet! He gets beans off of it, but never more than a dozen at a time.

In my hippy-dippy days, I grew many things (legal) from seed. I had an avocado tree that grew so tall that we needed a hole cut in the ceiling, mango, and lemon trees. Nothing ever fruited, but they sure got big!

 

[iamafoodie]

Would you guys in tropical climates please just cut it out? Would love a citrus tree here, but they don't tolerate below 0° F. I'm envious!

yeah....no fair

 

[iamafoodie]

There have been a few times our strawberries grew beards.

I store my lemons and limes in the fruit drawer of my refrigerator, but take out what I need for a meal the night before. I think the reason the TV shows have lemons on the counter is because the props crew set them out to make the counter look pretty. I bet IRL those lemons are kept in the 'fridge when the filming is done.

I bet you are right Cooking Goddess...makes sense and it sounds as though the general concensus (here) stores their citrus in the fridge bins. Good to know and I'm glad I asked

it also makes sense that you would get more juice out of the lemons if they are at room temperature when you juice them. I usually roll them back and forth on the counter in the palm of my hand after I take them from the fridge. That helps get as much juice as possible out of the citrus.

 

[menumaker]

Counter if you are going to use them within a week. Others I slice and freeze for instant garnishes in Tea, G&Ts and soft drinks