If life gave you a lemon, make lemonade. But what to do with all that zest? Don't throw it away - let it serve a purpose, too. Lemon juice contains about 5-6% citric acid and a pH level between 2 and 3. This makes it ideal for safely removing limescale and mineral stains from kitchen surfaces.
Below are ways to use lemon peel:
In the home.
1. Removing sebum stains.
Oily buildup on pots? Overgrown cooking burners with grease? If your kitchen has fallen victim to grease stains, try using lemon halves before resorting to toxic cleaners. Sprinkle some salt (for abrasion) on a lemon half and rub the greasy stain with it, then wipe the surface with a cloth. (Be careful with marble surfaces or any other acid-sensitive surfaces.)
2. Cleaning the kettle or coffee makerCleaning the microwave oven
To remove scale buildup in your kettle, fill it with water, add a handful of finely chopped lemon zest and put it all on the fire. After boiling, let the kettle with this liquid stand for an hour, pour out the liquid and rinse the kettle well. To clean your coffee maker, put ice, salt and lemon zest in it, give it all a good shake for a minute or two, shake it out and rinse the coffee maker. Everything will shine!
3. microwave oven cleaning
Cooking food in the microwave, especially unsuccessfully, usually results in a quick loss of the latter's cleanliness and appearance. Stains can look like dried-up pieces of cement. Before you get your hands on a chemical cleaner, try this: add lemon zest to a microwave dish half-filled with water. Turn the oven on full power for 5 minutes, allow the water to boil and the steam to condense on the walls of the microwave. Then simply remove the dishes and wipe off all that dirt with a damp cloth.
Use lemon zest4. Deodorizing the garbage can.
You can also use lemon zest to deodorize the place with the most unpleasant odor - the garbage can - and give your kitchen a fresh scent. This, by the way, is a good last use of lemon after using any of these other tips.
5. Polishing chrome surfaces.
Mineral sludge on a chrome faucet, as well as on other surfaces made of this metal, can easily be removed with lemon. Rub such a surface with the squeezed half of a lemon, rinse and lightly polish with a soft cloth.
6. Waxing Copper Surfaces Waxing Copper Surfaces
Half a lemon dipped in salt or baking soda can be used to clean and refresh copper, brass and stainless steel utensils. Such half of a lemon should be rubbed on the soiled area and left for 5 minutes. Then the dishes should be rinsed with warm water and polished dry.
Cleaning Stainless Steel Sinks7. Cleaning the Stainless Steel Sink
Use the same method as the one used for cleaning the chrome surfaces.
8. Insect repellent
Many animals have an aversion to citric acid. You can slice lemon and place the slices on your threshold, window sills, near cracks and holes through which uninvited guests in the form of ants and other pests can enter your home.
Making a scented humidifier9. Making an Aromatized Humidifier
If the air in your home is dried out by the heating in winter, lemon again comes to the rescue. Fill a pot with water, put lemon zest in the water and put it on the stove. Once it boils, turn the heat to a minimum and leave it that way for a while. The air will moisten and fill with a fresh aroma.
Freshen the cutting board10. Freshen the cutting board.
Because of its low pH, lemon has antibacterial properties, making it a great cleaner for many kitchen surfaces, including cutting boards. After disinfecting, rub the surface of the board with half a lemon, leave it for a few minutes and rinse.
In the food
11. Keep brown sugar crumbly
If your brown sugar is more like refined sugar, try adding a dried peel of lemon peel (removing all traces of zest from it first) to keep it moist and crumbly. (In all recipes using lemon peel, always clean its surface well of dirt and wax).
12. Dried peels.
Lemon peels can be grated on a fine grater and will retain all the flavor of the lemon. You can use the rind fresh, dried or frozen. (If you know you'll be harvesting the rind, it's easier to grate it while it's still on the lemon, before squeezing the juice). To dry the peels, spread them out in a thin layer on a towel and leave them until completely dry, then transfer them to a jar. To freeze the peels, use a special container for freezing foods. Lemon peels can be used in salads, marinades, baked goods, cereals, etc.
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