Post #742805 by AceExplorer on Mon, May 11, 2015 7:00 PM

On 2015-05-11 17:38, mikehooker wrote:
Ace, how does your lime juice taste after freezing? Being that you're not adding preservatives or concentrating it, I imagine it's not too far from fresh squeezed. I think you showed me 1 oz cube trays that you pour your juice into and can pop out as needed. So what is your thawing process like when you want to use it? Do you just sit it out til it unfreezes or put it in the fridge and wait for it to liquify or what? I bought a 5 lb bag from Costco and am worried a bunch of them will go bad before I get to use them all, so wondering if I should just squeeze and freeze.

Mike, thanks for asking, this may be helpful to a few folks out there. Sounds like you may need this as well with your 5lb Costco bag of limes. Let us know how it goes.

"Squeeze & freeze" is a preservation and storage method. With a few precautions you should get pretty tasty juice for extended storage periods. I have no qualms doing it and enjoy the juice. I employ "squeeze & freeze" when:

• I don't want to waste fruit (the juice, specifically)
• I want to save a few bucks by saving unused juice for another night, or for another party
• I want the convenience of longer-term and on-demand juice storage without nasty preservatives
• I have surplus juice, and I'm out of room in the fridge, but my freezer has room, ha... (true!)

"In my opinion" when thawed it is surprisingly not far from fresh squeezed. This is even more true because some store-bought limes are sweeter/juicer than others poor ones in the same bag, and if you start with good ripe fruit, you've got a lot of good stuff to work with. However storing the juice too long (WAY too long!) I find that the flavor eventually begins to taper off just a bit. I would guess that this becomes first barely noticeable MAYBE around the 9-12 months point. But I only have juices frozen for that long period of time when I have had a HUGE surplus of fruit or when I haven't been entertaining much. My personal limes, which become harvestable all around the same time, are tree-ripened and really superior to any of the store-bought limes. That is the juice I value the most for its flavor and that is the juice I freeze and save most carefully for future use. I think the process works very well, especially when I have a spur-of-the-moment need for a good cocktail and don't have fresh limes handy or don't want to go to the store late at night.

Yes, I use the skinny 1-oz "water bottle ice" stick molds originally from Wal-Mart. They have since stopped producing them, and all the workalikes out on the market today suck in comparison. (Keep watching for them, they may come back!) But you can find 1-oz square ice cube molds and trays, and they work well, but they just don't store as compactly in the freezer as the long water bottle ice sticks do.

My thawing process:
First, note that I store three sticks in a plastic sandwich baggie to keep air off the juice, and to reduce oxidation. This is critical to preserving the flavor of the juice.
Second, I store 3 sets of 3 sticks in small square juice cartons with the tops cut off. This is purely for ease of handling and storage - it works great in the fridge - and also adds another layer of protection from air circulation.
Third, I defrost the juice in room temperature whenever possible, in advance if I have the time. The skinny sticks thaw quicker than square cubes. If I don't have the time or patience for this, then I will gently warm the juice carefully in the microwave. I avoid doing this for friends and company, but for myself will do this. But I have to be very careful -- warm temps quickly impact flavor, so I avoid being too aggressive in the microwave.
When I know I'm going to have a shindig at home, I do thaw my juices in the fridge and try to begin the process at least 24 hours in advance. If I have only a few hours notice, I may use a warm water bath in my sink since the microwave is the least-favored of the thawing processes.

I think this process works best for lemons and limes. I think grapefruit and orange juices may not be as robust, but more testing is needed. I have lots of lemon and lime juice experience and less orange and grapefruit experience.

I should post some photos, and will try to come back and do so later.