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I am a design student doing some design research to help me develop a new kind of citrus juicer. I wanted to ask some professional chefs if there is any difference between extracting juice by reaming or pressing, and if you have a preferred method that you use. If anyone could offer some insight it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[Lamorial]

I’ve used various methods to extract lemon/lime juice, some via the use of a stainless steel/plastic reamer mounted on a bowl. And I have resorted to the hand use of the porcelain reamer which is supposed to be used with an appliance mixer (saves cleaning). Far and away the easiest is to roll the lemon or lime on the kitchen counter thus breaking up the cell structure within, then cutting it in half and picking out the seeds then squeezing the lemon (a kitchen fork is handy to assist in this task - so is a beater from a hand mixer). : )

[foodpump]

In the professional kitchen the only things that count are speed, maximum extraction, and a minimum of fuss to clean up--don't care what method is employed.

[siduri]

Hi Footer,
My daughter is also a designer. I'm glad you're asking cooks for their input, most designers don;t bother, they just design things that they think will be useful, and that look nice.
i'm not a professional chef, but i cook a lot and love food. I like reaming citrus fruit, because i like the pulp. I don;t even mind the seeds, i have to say, as long as i can get the pulp. Probably i would be in a minority on that. (the seeds that is) I fish them out with a fork, when the juice is not for me, because a strainer would strain out the pulp. This goes if i'm drinking it or using it in food.
I guess you would want to make two kinds, for pulp-eaters and for non pulp-eaters

[shipscook]

roll it around on the counter to soften, or microwave for a bit if it's sort of hard.
Then my little wooden reamer, fast, easy, and washes in a second.
Microplaner for zest!
Nan

[Luc_H]

Hi Footer,

The ultimate procedure to extract the maximum amount of juice out of citrus fruits is to start with a thawed fruit. The freezing process creates ice crystals that break the juice sacks in citrus fruit, once thawed the fruit readily releases its juices.

I have plenty of frozen limes and lemons in my freezer. In a pinch, I pop a fruit in the microwave to thawed, roll it to massage, cut in half and squeeze. Plenty of juice!! (no reamer required)

For fresh... I prefer a wooden reamer.

Luc H.

[shipscook]

Good to know Luc!! I sometimes have lemons go bad in the chill box. Know they shouldn't be there, but I shop for long periods.Wow, things you learn, thanks.
Seems like the zest would still be good or is it too soft??
Thanks again.
Nan

[Luc_H]

Shipscook,

First, you are welcome.

Once the fruit thaws, it cannot be <zested> because it's too soft. If you have a good plane or sturdy grater, you can zest the frozen fruit but in the case of limes in particular, the zest is not as green (brownish a little) when it thaws.

What's cool about freezing citrus fruits, is since their skin is so thick you don't need to place them in bags. I only buy lemons and limes one sale during peak season when they are really ripe and store them in my chest freezer. I should start doing that with oranges for an excellent fresh OJ every morning.... that sounds like an Idea i'll try.

Luc H. (It's fun to teach somebody something)

[bughut]

I'm a reamer. Even when i have a lot to do. I want the bits and i dont like cleaning electric gadgets. It's not so much the cleaning, it's more the dis-assemble/assemble that gets me. And we lose important bits. In the same way, I dont use the slicer on the processer cos i like using my knife and i work almost as efficiently. I do have to say though, I like my mandolin, It's better than me

[siduri]

Originally Posted by Luc_H

Luc H. (It's fun to teach somebody something)

yes, and nice to learn something too. Great idea. I have a lemon tree on my terrace which produces just a few lemons, which i save for special occasion food, but my best storage system so far has been to keep them on the tree. They last longer. However last year, i was sadly disappointed when i discovered they'd been there too long and dried out! So into the freezer with them now. At least i know there are no chemicals on them.

thanks

[shel]

Originally Posted by Luc_H

Once the fruit thaws, it cannot be <zested> because it's too soft. If you have a good plane or sturdy grater, you can zest the frozen fruit but in the case of limes in particular, the zest is not as green (brownish a little) when it thaws.

What's cool about freezing citrus fruits, is since their skin is so thick you don't need to place them in bags. I only buy lemons and limes one sale during peak season when they are really ripe and store them in my chest freezer. I should start doing that with oranges for an excellent fresh OJ every morning.... that sounds like an Idea i'll try.

Luc H. (It's fun to teach somebody something)

You can zest first and then freeze the fruit. Another alternative is to zest the fruit and then extract the juice and freeze that. Someone named Luc and I discussed this in a thread a few months ago

BTW, for juice extraction I'll sometimes use an old fashioned hand operated citrus juicer, like the Orange-X. I love that puppy! I use it for lemons and limes infrequently, and always for larger citrus like oranges and grapefruit.



shel