Lemons are one of the most popular fruits in the world, and probably the most versatile. I can’t think of too many other fruits or vegetables you eat, then wash your windows with. They are highly acidic and are used in every part of a meal: main dish, sides, salads and desserts. They are used to tenderize meat and in salad dressings. They are used in baking, drinks, sauces and dips. My favourite yogurt flavour is lemon.
They bring a fresh, delightful ZIP to everything they’re added to.
But did you know they’re also your best friend when it comes to cleaning your house?
They are clean and green, non toxic and relatively common. They cut grease and leave a pleasant smell behind, instead of the heavy antiseptic smell of normal household cleaners.
Recently I’ve been on a lemon-kick. I asked a lot of people what they use lemons for, and was surprised to find that very few people actually USE them outside of cooking or baking, and truth be told, not even a whole lot of that. Unfortunate. I suppose perhaps, most of us just don’t know their tremendous value. I readily admit, that lemons can be pretty pricey up here (in Alberta) for most of the year, but I thought: “if I had a house in Arizona and had a lemon tree, I’d probably use lemons for everything.” So I phoned my friend in Arizona who has a lemon tree, . . . . . Guess what? She doesn’t use them for anything more than I do LOL. Except that she puts them down her garburator because they help clean it out, and make it smell better. I don’t have a garburator anyway.
On the internet, I came across a TON of sensational claims for lemons! Apparently, they can do everything short of drive your kid to school. Who knew? It was tricky sifting through the ridiculous claims to extract reasonable tidbits of truth because there were SO MANY claims. It seems every thing on the internet has to be miraculous to get any attention. So I made it a matter of personal study. I bought some lemons and did a lot of experimenting, and I learned a lot of things.
The truth is – lemons are pretty amazing in the house and they don’t need us to exaggerate their usefulness, or try to make them look better than they really are. Admittedly, a lot of what they do well, vinegar also does – which is considerably cheaper in my world. Nevertheless, I think its worth taking note of some things, and I certainly think we should use them more than we do.
So I’ll tell you what I learned about lemons.
Fresh – Dehydrated – Powder concentrate – Oil
in the kitchen: cooking and baking
Add them to baking: breads, muffins and cakes; as well as lemon soups and other dishes. Who doesn’t like lemon poppy seed muffins? Lemon blueberry muffins? Lemon coffee cake, lemon sugar cookies, lemon cheese cake . . . . the list is endless of things lemons made better.
– Lemon marinade for shrimp
Dan uses lemon to marinade shrimp (that he grills on the BBQ). Very delicious. Lime would have been equally delicious.
– drizzle lemon juice over fish or chicken while grilling
– Lemon Chicken* See recipe below
– Ricotta Cheese* See recipe below
Not kidding. Use lemon juice to make homemade Ricotta Cheese*. Oh my goodness, so easy. You’ll never buy ricotta again.
– Lemon Sauce* See recipe below
Use to pour over fresh gingerbread and as a lemon drizzle for cookies, muffins or coffee cakes.
– Dehydrated
I dehydrate lemons and limes when I have excess. A couple of years ago, I came across a great deal, and dehydrated about 10-15 pounds. Sliced and laid single layer in the dehydrator, they took about 24 hours when the dehydrator was full. They’re Beautiful, and very handy to use the rest of the year.
One thing I love about having them on hand is lemon water. I use them dried to flavour cold drinking water all year long, when ‘fresh’ lemons are not readily available. I keep it in the fridge and serve it daily. I top up the water whenever we drink it down, keeping it going for a couple of weeks at least. When the lemons seem to have lost most of their flavour, I dump them into the dish washing water* (see below) and get a few new slices for the next jug of water.
Lemons as a natural alternative for cleaning
in the KITCHEN
CLEANING PRODUCE
claim:
fruits and vegetables from the store often have pesticides and other contaminants on them. The disinfectant quality of lemons make them a natural to remove toxins. Use 1/4 cup in 2 cups water. Soak your other and vegetables fruits for five minutes in the lemon water, then rinse and dry. Store as usual.
my experience:
seem to be fine
PREVENTING OXIDATION IN FRUIT AND VEGETABLES
claim: Fruits such as apples, pears, peaches and avocados begin to ‘brown’ when exposed to air. This is called oxidizing. Squeezing lemon juice over top with prevent of at least slow this natural process down.
my experience: ABSOLUTELY!! Who hasn’t used this age old kitchen hack?
CANNING ACID FRUITS AND TOMATOES
claim: Adding a tablespoon of lemon juice to a quart of tomatoes, increases the acid level needed for safe hot water processing.
my experience: ABSOLUTELY! Anything that is preserved in boiling water bath, MUST have a high acid content. The heat of boiling water is sufficient to kill off the micro organisms that cause spoilage, mold and fermentation, but not enough to kill botulism spores. Botulism can only develop in low acid, oxygen free conditions, which is why acid fruits like peaches and tomatoes are canned in hot water baths, but low acid foods like most vegetables, legumes and meat – must be canned at the much higher heat that pressure canning can offer. Acid is critical because it inhibits the germination of botulism spores. Adding a tablespoon of lemon juice (or vinegar) will give you an added level of safety to already acid rich fruits. I have ALWAYS added that little bit extra acid when home canning with the hot water bath method.
REPEL BUGS
claim:
to repel bugs
my experience:
I put some lemon wedges in a couple of house plants that were problematic for me with little types of fruit flies. Disappointingly, after several weeks, I didn’t find it helped at all. No effect worth reporting.
CUTTING BOARDS
claim:
Because of their antibacterial and antiseptic qualities, lemons are valuable for cleaning cutting boards, pizza stones and that sorta thing.
my experience:
I was happy with the results. It looked cleaner, felt cleaner, smelled cleaner, all of which gave me confidence that it actually did ‘good’.
REMOVING ODOURS
claim:
will remove unpleasant odours on surfaces like cutting boards and garlicky fingers.
my experience:
I rubbed half a lemon cut side down over the cleaned cutting board. Rubbed lemon juice or lemon oil onto my finger tips after peeling and mincing garlic. I was happy with the results. Smell gone from my hands completely. The board – pretty good, although I have used it to chop garlic and onions for years, so I don’t think anything is gonna bring it back to newness.
REMOVING ‘STICKY’ GLUE
claim:
will take away the stickiness on surfaces left from labels etc
my experience:
For label residue on book covers or other surfaces, just drop a couple drops lemon oil and rub gently around with your finger tips. Wipe away with clean cotton swab or tissue. Works GREAT!
NATURAL AIR FRESHENER
claim:
the oil in the skin of a lemon or lime is where the fresh scent is. Simmer uncovered gently in water for an hour on the back of the stove.
my experience:
pretty good
CLEANING STAINLESS STEEL, COUNTER TOPS, STOVE TOPS
claim:
to clean all that stuff
my experience:
dip half a lemon cut side down into coarse salt, and rub onto stove tops, counter tops, and stainless steel pots. Rinse and dry with dry cloth. I was happy with it.
SINKS, TAPS AND FAUCETTS
claim:
to clean, degrease and shine those things
my experience:
I used a lemon half with course salt or baking soda to scrub my sink and taps etc, in the kitchen and bathroom. I liked it.
CLEAN MICROWAVE
claim:
half a lemon in bowl of water in the microwave – power on for 5 minutes then let it sit for 5 more minutes to let the steam loosen the baked on nastiness, then simply wipe out with moist micro fiber cloth.
my experience:
I tried it and it seemed to work great, but I don’t have and never have had a really dirty microwave. I have talked to several people who’ve used lemons to clean them and they swear by it.
REMOVE HARD WATER SCALE AND DEPOSITS
claim:
boil water with a half lemon in your kettle for a five minutes then let it cool. Wipe out with a dry cloth to remove hard water deposits. Scrub with half a lemon if the stain is pretty set it. Soak your faucet head in lemon juice or vinegar overnight. Wipe down or scrub with with a brush. Rinse and wipe.
my experience:
I did exactly that and IT ROCKS!
CUTS GREASE
claim:
throw a leftover half lemon into your dish washer for a cycle.
my experience:
I don’t have a dish washer so I throw it in my sink of hot soapy water when washing dishes. I love how squeaky clean it makes every thing. Shinier metal pots, clearer glasses, streak free counters.
GLASS CLEANER: 3 T lemon juice + 1 cup of water in spray bottle. Spray onto windows and wipe with dry micro fibre cloth.
GENERAL CLEANSER: fill clean jar with clean lemon peel. Top up with white vinegar and let sit for a minimum of two weeks. Strain and put into glass spray bottle. See the image above for orange vinegar. Another excellent all purpose cleaner.
DEGREASER: 3 T lemon juice + 2 cups water + 1 T baking soda + 1 t dish soap. Spray onto surface, let sit for a few minutes, then wipe off with clean damp cloth.
LAUNDRY
claim: that they make your whites even whiter – no bleach required
my experience: Yes they do. Slice up a few lemons and add to a pot of water. How many? One, two, three: depends how big your pot is and how much water you’re using. Bring the water to a boil. Turn off heat, add your white tea towels, napkins, pillow cases or whatever, into the water and let them soak for an hour or so. Remove, wring out by hand, and launder them as you usually would – with other whites of course.
Will lemons replace bleach in getting out stains? I doubt it. The citric acid breaks down stains that make whites seem dingy after a while, and it IS a gentler alternative to bleach. But for the bad stains, bleach is still here to stay.
On a side note however, I find that sunshine also does a great job of keeping whites white. I use a clothesline in the warm months, and in the hot sun of summer, I’ll sometimes leave my whites on the line for two full sunny days. Back when I was using cloth diapers (yes, I used cloth diapers for all five kids), I found that by the end of winter, my diapers were getting a little dingy. Over the course of summer, they became noticeably brighter and whiter.
Clean whites soaked in strong lemon water and then hung on a sunny clothesline is a total winner!
BATHROOM
– Use half a lemon with baking soda on all your taps and faucets, scrub then rinse and wipe off with clean dry cloth
– plunge the water out of the toilet, then use half a lemon with baking soda to scrub the inside bowl. Dispose of lemon immediately.
– clean anything in your bathroom the same way – then rinse and wipe.
– soak your toothbrush in lemon juice and baking soda for 30 minutes then rinse.
– do the same thing with your hair brush.
SKIN CARE
Lemon juice as a :
– natural toner and cleanser,
– natural astringent, lemons will help decrease inflammation
– decrease oil that may contribute to acne and other blemishes
– breaks down dead skin cells for better removal, which also helps with acne
– Vitamin C is a natural antioxidant that helps reduce skin damage and premature aging
– mixing with aloe vera may help with any irritation caused by the acidity of it
– lemon oil dissolves sticky wax residue when waxing your skin
Lemons are *ANTIBACTERIAL, * ANTIMICROBIAL, * ANTISEPTIC.
The enzymes help with digestion, the rich vitamin content helps with our immune and respiratory systems, and “we” have discovered they help with kidney stones.
our experience:
My Dan is a professional kidney stone maker. He can produce them like nobody’s business, but if you’ve ever had a kidney stone, you know this isn’t a good thing. He’s done everything and taken everything, that we’ve ever heard of or read about, that even had the slightest chance of helping. We set all prejudice aside in the name of being open minded. So hard to say if most of those things helped or not, because after a while there was always another kidney stone. Until over 10 years ago. . . . We heard that the natural acid in lemon juice prevents the formation of kidney stones – something about dissolving the calcium they’re made of. I don’t pretend to be an expert, or even to understand the science behind it, but Dan started drinking lemon juice in his water faithfully every day. Its a pretty strong sour taste – but he acquired a taste for it. And for more than a decade, no more kidney stones! Yup, you could say we’re converted. Longest stretch in his adult life without kidney stones. Kinda hard to turn your back on that little wonderful fact. However, that much lemon juice in your water everyday is not without its underside. It is absolutely brutal on the enamel of your teeth! Dan hardly has any enamel left, and he’s in the process of getting lots of crowns. Truthfully, we cannot blame lemon juice entirely for all of that. I suspect a life time of drinking coke contributed, but the lemon juice sure didn’t help. Would we recommend it? Yes! Would we do it again? You betcha. But we’d pay more attention to the problem of acid on the teeth.
The Moral to that story? Lemon juice is good for you. But rinse your mouth out after drinking it.
PRICE
Winter is CITRUS SEASON. You should find prices will be best between November – April, especially December – February.
My TAKEAWAY from all my lemon experimenting –
Would I buy lemons just for cleaning? Living in Edmonton, probably not. Unless I got them for a pretty good price. I use vinegar for much of the same things. If I lived in Arizona however, I’d use lemons a LOT. For now, it would depend on price and availability. But – I’d sure second-use every piece of lemon that was in my house before I threw it into the compost.
I use lemons for everything I mention above and I REALLY like the results. I like the squeaky clean (literally ‘squeaks’) feel, and the scent. I like that it cuts through grease and stickiness.
words to define:
*ANTIBACTERIAL – prevents the growth of, or outright destroys bacteria.
*ANTIMICROBIAL – resists or destroys pathogenic micro organisms.
*ANTISEPTIC – destroys and prevents the development of microbes.
*PATHOGENIC – means capable of producing disease MICROBE – germs
Recipes:
*LEMON CHICKEN: Dan’s version (4 servings):
3 or 4 pounds chicken pieces – evenly sized
zest from 2 lemons + juice from one, slice the other lemon to use as garnish
2 cloves garlic crushed
fresh garden herbs in the summer: thyme and rosemary chopped OR
dried garden herbs in the winter: thyme and rosemary (crumbled)
1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper
2 Tablespoons melted butter
Marinade the chicken in lemon juice and seasonings for about two hours. After marinading, place chicken in baking dish (reserving the lemon juice mixture in the fridge), brush liberally all over with butter and bake at 425 for about 40 minutes. About 20 minutes into cooking, remove from oven and baste the chicken with ALL of the reserved marinade. Be generous. Return to oven and continue to bake till chicken is cooked through. Chicken is cooked when the juice runs clear and the skin is brown and crispy. Remove from oven. Don’t over cook.
Cover with tin foil and let rest for 15 minutes.
Serve with remaining juices in a saucer on the side.
* Not including marinade time, expect this dish to take about an hour. While its baking, prepare some rice or noodles to serve it with.
LEMON CHICKEN: Cindy’s version (4 servings):
I don’t cook meat, so I use freeze dried chicken pieces.
Using the same recipe as above, I would take the larger pieces of FD seasoned chicken strips (about 2 1/2 cups), and refresh / marinade them in the same mixture as above, for about twenty minutes to ensure all the wonderfulness of the lemon was absorbed fully.
In a hot skillet, I would saute Freeze Dried sliced onions, (just a minute or two until aromatic) in the melted butter, then add the seasoned chicken pieces and the remaining marinade liquid. I would probably add some FD red and green peppers because I could, and maybe some FD broccoli too. Maybe even some FD asparagus at the very end. Depending on the additional vegetables I ‘might’ add, its possible I might have to add a bit more water if necessary. Not too much. 1/2 cup to 1 cup (?)
When all is heated thoroughly, remove from heat and let it sit covered for 5 minutes.
* Not including marinade time, expect this version of the dish to take less than 15 minutes. You better have your side dishes ready.
Serve over rice or noodles or mashed potatoes – exactly the same as Dan’s recipe above.
*Lemon Sauce
1 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon white flour
1/4 cup butter
1 cup boiling water
Stir together over low heat till sugar is dissolved and sauce is beginning to thicken.
Add juice of 1 lemon (or 1 tablespoon of THRIVE lemonade powder). Stir till incorporated. Add a little more water if necessary. Pour over Ginger Cake, Christmas pudding, English trifle, or wherever you want it.
see the recipe for Ginger Cake 1
* Homemade Ricotta Cheese
What is RICOTTA CHEESE? Italian ricotta is a fresh, soft, white cheese made whole milk It is heated near a boil, which causes it to coagulate and form a soft cheese. Like paneer, and cottage cheese, and other fresh cheeses, ricotta can be heated without melting. This makes it perfect for filled pastas like ravioli, and baked good like cheesecake.
2 litres WHOLE milk
1 teaspoon of salt – optional
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (or 1 T Thrive Life Lemonade)
large pot, wooden spoon or silicone spatula, thermometer, something to keep the thermometer off the bottom of the pan, colander and some cheese cloth to strain the cheese, large bowl to strain into
Pour milk into a large pot and begin heating over medium low heat. Slowly bring to 180 degrees Fahrenheit. Expect it to take up to 30 minutes, stir frequently to prevent scorching on the bottom. Increase the heat and cook, watching closely until the surface begins to lightly bubble, but doe NOT boil. Keep a watchful eye on it, stirring regularly. This should be approx 200 degrees F (up or down a few degrees). Add lemon juice (or lemon powder), stir to incorporate. You will see the milk immediately begin to curdle.
Remove from heat and let the pot sit for 15 minutes. Line a colander with cheese cloth, and place over large enough bowl to catch the whey. Spoon the curds from pot to cloth lined colander, and let it strain for half an hour. When cheese is cooled squeeze gently to form ball. Use immediately, or store in fridge up to 3 or 4 days.
Have fun using your lemons!
Warmly,
Cindy Suelzle
- recipe for Ginger Cake : https://backyardcityhomestead.com/2025/11/05/carrot-ginger-cake/ ↩︎
