I Tried 6 Tricks for Juicing a Lemon—This Is the Only Method I’m Using From Now On

A good kitchen hack can feel like priceless knowledge, and it should make meal prep, cooking, and life in general easier. But as you’ll soon learn, not all hacks are created equally–or at least, not all of them make life in the kitchen truly “easier.”

One messy, time-consuming culinary undertaking–juicing citrus–has inspired the creation of many hacks in particular. From traditional methods to “gasp–that works?!” tricks, we rounded up six tricks of the trade for juicing citrus and tested them on fresh lemons to find the most main squeeze-worthy method.

Whether you’re whipping up a batch of fresh lemonade, homemade lemon bars, or another tart and delicious recipe, we’re revealing the best way to extract freshly-squeezed juice.

How We Tested the Best Citrus Juicing Methods

We used lemons as our citrus subject for this experiment, but these juicing tricks should work about the same across any citrus fruit. The lemons were the same size and weight and at the perfect stage of ripeness for juicing (they weren’t overly firm and gave a little when gently squeezed). 

Surprisingly, all of the methods below yielded approximately the same amount (1/4 cup) of lemon juice. (As it turns out, a lemon typically has 2 to 3 tablespoons of juice inside.) Since the yield was the same, we chose to rank our results based on other factors, including messiness, amount of seeds and pulp left in the juice after squeezing, and relative ease in executing the hack.

Here are our favorite ways to juice citrus, from top to bottom.

1st Place Winner: Manual Juice Press

Definitely the cleanest and easiest to perform, the manual juice press only involves making one knife cut—slice your fruit down the middle—and two squeezes for perfect juice extraction using a tried-and-true tool. This also makes cleanup easy. The only caveat here is that the harder you press, the more pulp you are likely to extract. If that doesn’t bother you, then feel free to test your grip strength to get as much juice as you can out of that citrus.

Pro tip: This Allstar-approved gadget makes for the easiest citrus pressing in our tests.

2nd Place Runner-up: Citrus Reamer

Only one knife cut is needed for using the reamer, and the process of twisting to extract the juice is simple, but this method yields more in the way of pulp and seeds, as well as dishes, than the press. That being said, it’s relatively easy to pour the juice through a sieve to remove any unwanted pulp or seeds. For the best two-in-one solution, we love a reamer with a built-in seed strainer.

But otherwise, those extra dishes are why the reamer is the runner-up. 

3rd Place: The “Poke-a-Hole” Hack

If you haven’t seen this method on the internet yet, you’re about to have your mind blown. For this hack, the lemon stays intact (no cutting!), and a skewer or metal straw is inserted into one of the ends (but not out the other end) to create a hole. The skewer (or straw) is removed, and the lemon is squeezed to extract the juice. 

Beyond being a fun way to juice citrus, this method is popular because you can squeeze out what you need, when you need it. Keeping the fruit intact (unlike cutting it as in other methods) preserves moisture, which means you’ll (most likely) get more juice out of your fruit if you don’t need it all right away.

As a side note, the harder the lemon, the harder you’ll have to squeeze. Your best bet for this hack is to use ripe lemons that give a bit when pressed gently. But even with a softer lemon, you’ll still need a firm squeeze to extract the juice. A firm squeeze can break the skin and create another route for juice to escape, and that, my friends, can cause a rather messy situation. Because of this, the poking method ranks third.

4th Place: Rolling and Squeezing

Rolling and squeezing is the method I used primarily when in culinary school. It’s fast and requires only a few knife cuts, but results in plentiful pulp and seeds if you’re reckless. If you’re in the know, you squeeze the citrus over your open palm, which prevents some of the pulp and all of the seeds from escaping into your juice. This is a true hands-on experience. It’s definitely messy and requires clean hands to keep things safe. While I love it, most people probably don’t. The mess factor and seed situation put it in fourth place.

5th Place: Cut, Squeeze, and Twist

This hack is best explained visually, so we recommend viewing this video tutorial. It involves cutting your fruit into slices, leaving the center of the fruit intact. You then squeeze each slice and tightly twist the center of the fruit to release as much juice as you can. Expect plenty of knife cuts with this hack, and lots of hands-on time. While I love the idea of this method, I have a theory that it’s only good for smaller citrus, such as limes. Those extra cuts reveal more surface area for the juice to release when squeezed, but for larger fruits, squeezing that final middle section can be a bit tricky and messy. This one is fifth for mess, time, and ease.

6th Place: Microwaving and Squeezing

If microwaving your citrus sounds crazy, it’s not. A brief stint in the microwave can soften it up, which will help when it comes to squeezing out the juice. This method works as well as the others, but heating the fruit means you’re also heating the juice. If you keep the cooking time short, the heat shouldn’t affect the flavor. This one ranks last because of the extra time for microwaving, the potentially warm juice, and the requirement of a microwave.

The Bottom Line

Any of the above methods can be used to extract juice from your citrus. Test one or all of them the next time you’re cooking to find your favorite. While we love the press, a simple “roll, cut, and squeeze” will also serve you well.

Finally, for best results, remember to purchase citrus that’s ripe to ensure maximum juice extraction.