Squeeze The Most Juice Out Of Dry Limes With A Simple Fork Trick

Fresh, juicy limes are the tangy key to elevating so many meals and fun cocktails. Ideally, you would use your limes when they're plump and juicy, with a slight give to the touch. But if you reach for those limes and find they're turning dry and a bit hard, don't lose all hope. With a simple trick, you can still manage to get the juice out of those limes instead of letting them go to waste.

Once you slice open your limes, simply grab a fork and poke away at the flesh of the lime. The fork will gently break up the pulpy membranes and easily release the juice in the lime. Once you've done this, you can squeeze the limes as you normally would, or turn to a juicer or reamer for some extra help. To really work out the tough membranes and get every last drop of lime juice, you can even stick the fork into the flesh and twist the lime around the fork tines.

If your limes are extra tough or you weren't able to pick out the best limes at the grocery store, you may need a little extra help. One easy way to loosen up the juices is to first stick the limes in the microwave for about 15-30 seconds to soften them up. Then you can roll the limes back and forth across the countertop. Like the fork trick, these methods help break up the membranes in the limes and can make them easier to slice open, too.

If you plan to squeeze your limes by hand, try out a slicing method that gets 100% of the lime juice. It's not the traditional slice-in-half-lengthwise situation. Instead, with this method, you slice your lime first into thirds. Holding the lime from the top, slice off the two sides of the lime, leaving the center intact. Continue slicing the middle section of the lime into thirds again, and you're left with lime wedges that have already burst the juice sacs, allowing you to extract the most juice.

These handy tricks are useful when you're in a bind, but with proper care and storage, you can make sure you're always using your limes at their juiciest and ripest. Since it's easier to slice and squeeze fresh limes at room temperature, you can keep them out on the countertop for up to a week before using them. But if you need to refrigerate them, make sure to do so using an airtight container or bag and just bring them to room temperature before using — you can also speed up this process using the microwave trick.

For long-term storage up to four months, you can also freeze your limes. Freeze them whole by placing them in freezer bags and you'll still have potent, tangy limes when you're ready to use — after defrosting them, of course. Once you've properly juiced out your limes, you can use those leftover lime rinds to create a tangy simple syrup for use in future cocktails. This way, you let none of that precious citrus go to waste. With a bit of TLC from a fork, you can easily get the most juice out of dry limes with little effort.