How to choose a lemon in the store: useful tips

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

The unique properties of lemon are known to everyone. It is famous for its high content of vitamins and minerals, and is an excellent means of prevention during the cold season. In addition, it is also used in cooking to give dishes a unique taste. However, to get the most benefit from using citrus, you need to know how to choose a lemon.

Benefits of citrus

Lemon contains many useful components necessary for the human body. It is especially appreciated for its high content of vitamin C. In addition, citrus saturates the body with other vitamins:

• A;
• group B (except B12);
• E;
• PP and others

The fruit is also valued for its mineral content: calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium, iron, zinc, manganese. Thanks to the thick peel, all the beneficial substances are preserved for a long time after the citrus has been removed from the tree.

How lemons are used

Lemon is a fruit that every good housewife has in the refrigerator. After all, hisapplication is varied. First of all, the fruit is eaten fresh, added to the preparation of various fish, meat dishes, confectionery, used as an additive to tea.

However, citrus will be useful not only in cooking:

1. Lemon juice is an excellent remedy for removing stains from clothes, lightening skin. It is also used to add shine to hair, strengthen nails.
2. Small doses of citrus improve digestion and promote weight loss.
3. Lemon zest is successfully used for pathologies of the respiratory system.
4. Lemon is a fruit that is used to relieve the symptoms of a cold. In combination with hot drinks, it helps to reduce fever, fights drowsiness and lethargy.

Everyone understands that not all lemons that are offered to us on the market and in supermarkets will be useful and will saturate the body with the necessary substances. Considering that most of the fruits are brought to our country from abroad, and this does not always allow them to keep their freshness and avoid damage, you need to know how to choose the right lemon in the store.

Features of choice

Most often on the Russian market you can find Eureka lemons. Such fruits are medium in size, oblong in shape, light yellow or rich yellow hues, without a large number of seeds. Citruses have a not very thick skin, juicy pulp, have a rather sour taste.

You can rarely find citruses from Georgia and Uzbekistan. The most popular variety is "Tashkent" -large orange-yellow fruits with thin skin, juicy flesh and mild flavor.

The only indicator that is guided by when choosing a product of any variety is the peel. By its color, texture and appearance in general, one can understand whether such a fruit will be useful or it is better to refuse to buy it.

Color

Before choosing a lemon, pay attention to the color of its peel. Bright shades are not always a sign of ripeness. How ripe the fruit is can be understood by evaluating the luster of the skin. An unripe citrus will have a matte surface, while the peel of a ripe fruit will shine. If there is no need to use the fruit immediately, you can choose unripe specimens. They will keep longer under the right conditions.

Sizes

The size and shape of the fruit depends on the type of tree. These indicators do not affect the quality of citrus at all. Therefore, a larger fruit will not necessarily be of better quality.

Density

To understand how ripe the fruit is, press the peel with your fingers, determining its elasticity. The rapid disappearance of the dent indicates the maturity of the fetus. If the surface of the citrus is not easily affected, it means that it is not mature enough. If the skin does not return to its original appearance after pressing, the fruit is soft, most likely it is overripe and is unlikely to benefit you.

Skin thickness

How to choose a lemon by this parameter, if it is difficult to determine the thickness of the skin by eye. It is quite possible to do so. In a thick-skinned fetusthe surface is bumpy and rougher. Smooth and delicate, citrus is likely to have thin skin. Due to the thick peel, the beneficial properties of the product are better preserved. However, thin skin is a sign that the tree has begun to bear fruit recently, so they are distinguished by a large amount of vitamins. Therefore, be guided by your preferences.

Defective

It is better to refuse to buy fruits with black patches or dark spots. Such defects indicate that the lemon was frozen during transportation or storage.

Seller tricks

Special attention should be shown when buying fruits in opaque individual packages, as well as those that are sold in a set with other fruits. Most often, such methods are used by unscrupulous sellers in order to sell low-quality or old lemons. The price of the fruit will not differ from the cost of a good product. Also, in addition to the expiration date, it is advisable to ask about the date of harvest, which will help you choose not only a quality fruit, but also give an idea about the content of vitamin C. As you know, its amount decreases if the citrus has been stored for a long time.

How to properly store and use the fruit

It is not enough to know how to choose a lemon. It must also be taken into account that improper storage will lead to the fact that the useful qualities of the fetus will be lost. Therefore, it is worth listening to some advice:

• don't freeze citrus;
• for storing fresh lemonsbottom shelf or refrigerator door works best;
• cut fruit should not be used if it has been stored for more than a day;
• to remove the bitter taste, pour boiling water over the fruit.

Before using the lemon, you need to wash it thoroughly. The surface of the fruit is often treated with compounds that contain wax or paraffin. Also, these funds may include antifungal additives and preservatives, the use of which will not bring benefits to the human body. Therefore, you should wash the fruits with hot water, using a special brush for greater efficiency. It is also allowed to use soap or a product specially designed for such purposes.

There is one way to tell if a fetus has been chemically treated or not. To do this, apply a napkin to the citrus. If traces of essential oils remain on it, then the lemon was not treated with chemicals.

How to cut a lemon beautifully

Lemons are used not only to add exquisite taste to dishes or treat colds, but also to decorate the table.

You can use a simple cutting method. For this you need:

1. Wash citrus.
2. Peel it off. To do this, you can use an ordinary grater with small holes, on which citrus is rubbed until it is peeled from all sides.
3. Cut the fruit into thin circles. In turn, cut them into slices, which are put on a dish in a zigzag pattern.

To cut fruit in an original and beautiful way, usea fluting knife and a small, sharp kitchen knife.

Using the first tool, make longitudinal grooves in the citrus peel, then use a sharp knife to cut it into thin rings.

You can also decorate the dish with a spiral of lemon, for this you need:

1. Cut citrus into circles (no more than five millimeters thick).
2. Make a cut from the center of the circle along the radius.
3. Turn the edges in different directions, put a piece of citrus in the form of a spiral on a dish.
4. Decorate the folds of the spiral with olives or cherries.