Is it possible to replace lemon juice with citric acid? How to properly dilute citric acid

Quite often in culinary recipes there is an order to "sprinkle a dish (mainly salads) with lemon juice." Citrus fruits are generously added to pastries. Sour lemon juice makes it less luscious. Citrons are added both in dough and in creams. Use both a peel of exotic fruit, and candied pieces of pulp and peel. But most often the ingredient of the dishes is lemon juice. It is added as soups (for example, hodgepodge), and in drinks - tea, alcoholic and refreshing cocktails. This article is devoted to one question: can I replace lemon juice with citric acid? And if so, how to introduce white crystals into the composition of the dish? What are the proportions? What should be done to taste the dish as if it had natural lemon juice? This you will read below.

What is citric acid

What is this white crystalline powder really? Unquestionably, this is a synthetic material. And before clarifying the question, whether it is possible to replace lemon juice with citric acid, we must establish a connection between these two products. Does it have anything in common synthetic powder with citrus? Citric acid was first learned in history by the Swedish pharmacist Karl Scheele in 1784. How did he get it? He took it from the juice of immature lemons. As you can see, the connection between these products is direct. The resulting powder is a tribasic carboxylic acid. It dissolves perfectly in water when it reaches at least eighteen degrees. Citric acid also well enters the compound with ethyl alcohol. Therefore, it can be used to make home-made tinctures and vodkas. But in diethyl ether powder is poorly soluble.

Industrial production of citric acid

Any reasonable person will ask: if the powder is extracted from citrus, then why is it much less expensive than fruit? After all, a pharmacist of the eighteenth century evaporated natural juice to get white crystals. Then the lemon juice was added to the biomass of makhorka. This plant also contains a large amount of this acid. In modern times, industrial production receives a powder by biosynthesis from molasses and sugar using aspergillus niger mold strains . Citric acid is used not only in cooking, but also in medicine (including for improving metabolism), cosmetology (as a regulator of acidity) and even construction and the oil industry. The world volume of its production makes more than one and a half million tons. And about half of this amount is produced in China. In light of this, the question of whether it is possible to replace lemon juice with citric acid seems even more urgent. Especially if the label says: "Maid in China."

The benefits of citric acid

Synthetic powder is widely used in the food industry and is labeled as E330-E333. But is this flavor additive safe, is it possible to replace lemon juice with citric acid without harm to the body? Powder is consumed in the food industry, not only to improve the taste of the product. Citric acid prevents the development of microorganisms, the appearance of mold and unpleasant odor. Therefore, E330 is also used as a preservative. Despite the fact that citric acid is no longer extracted from fruit, it, like citrus fruits, improves vision, strengthens immunity and has a positive effect on the digestive system. As it speeds up the metabolism, it is used in diets to reduce excess weight. This substance removes toxins, toxins, harmful salts from the body.

Harm to citric acid

Not all people can tolerate citrus fruits. These fruits can cause an allergic reaction. Likewise, citric acid is unacceptable for some people. With caution, it should be used by a patient with gastritis and a stomach ulcer. But we asked ourselves: can citric acid replace lemon juice? It's time to answer it. Yes maybe. But in the case of powder, care must be taken not to make the solution too concentrated. In fact then it can lead to unpleasant sensations in a stomach, to a heartburn, colic and vomiting. Do not eat undissolved powder, because it causes a burn of mucous membranes.

Is it possible to replace lemon juice with citric acid

Subtropical fruits can not be called cheap. And in most recipes for a dish, only a couple of drops or a teaspoon of lemon juice is required. The rest lays in the refrigerator for a long time, it dries and withers. While citric acid in a bag can be stored for years. Yes, and it is a mere penny. Therefore, experienced housewives to the question of whether lemon juice will replace lemon juice, usually answer: "Yes! And vinegar too! And it can also be washed with lime and rust contaminated metal surfaces. "

As for cooking, the range of dishes in which you can use both citrus juice and citric acid is quite wide. If you knead the dough, you can mix a small amount of synthetic powder with flour. In other cases, the crystals of the acid must be dissolved in warm water until the concentration of ordinary lemon juice is reached. The proportions are as follows. A small pinch (some recipes recommend at the tip of the knife) for fifty milliliters of warm water. The solution should be cooled.