Exact Answer: Up to 3 weeks
The shelf life of lemons depends on their storage. The lemons need to be stored correctly to hold their freshness. The citrus fruits would stay fresh for a long time if they are stored in the fridge. Once the lemon turns yellow, then it will not last for more than 7 days at room temperature.
The lemons would not stay fresh in the hot temperature. Everyone should keep the lemons in sealed plastic bags or containers. Packing them in sealed bags or containers would keep them away from moisture, Moisture would affect the freshness of the lemon. The lemon comes with a protective coating just like oranges.
The weather condition plays a vital role in predicting the shelf life of the lemons. The nutrient content of the lemons could be claimed if they are consumed during the fresh stage.
How Long Do Lemons Last In The Fridge?
| Lemons In The Fridge | Time |
| In weeks | 3 weeks |
| In days | 21 days |
The shelf life of the whole lemon, sliced, and cut lemons would be different. The whole lemon would last longer in the fridge. The best part about the fridge is the constant cold temperature, which is required for the lemons. Sometimes, opening the fridge door very frequently would disturb the temperature of the fridge.
This may cause the lemons to go bad early, but not before 3 weeks. If someone tries to store sliced lemons, then it would not last for more than 2 weeks. The person should wrap the cut pieces of the lemons before storing them inside the fridge. Putting an aluminum foil on the wrapped cut lemons would help in increasing the freshness of the lemon.
Always make sure to put dry lemon inside the fridge as the moisture may decrease the shelf life of lemon. If someone tries to store the whole lemons in the fridge then putting them in a moisture-free bag is vital. People can also store lemons in the freezer, but they need to be defrosted before the person uses them.
To defrost or thaw, the person can allow the lemons to stay at room temperature for around 30 minutes. In the freezer, the lemons can stay for around 1 month without getting bad. Nobody should store the lemons in the fridge with other fruits and vegetables in one container.
Some vegetables may get worse and this would cause the lemons to go bad faster. The moisture content in lemons is very high and this moisture can get out of the pores of the lemons. Therefore, keeping them in a dry and cold place would help in holding the moisture for a long time.
Everyone would notice the lemon’s color is changing after weeks. This is a sign that lemons are not fresh.
Why Do Lemons Last For This Long In The Fridge?
The lemons can go bad very early if they start hosting bacteria growth. The bacteria growth would make the lemon expire in 2 to 4 days. Once, the lemons are expired no person should eat them. As expired lemons would cause food poisoning symptoms in the person.
The expired lemons can cause allergic reactions, bacterial infections, and nausea in humans. The toxins present in the lemon would get transferred to the human body if it is consumed after getting expired. These toxins and viruses present in the lemons would host many other gut problems in humans.
Everyone should always look for the texture and color of the lemons before eating them. The texture of the lemon would become hard when they would start to expire. If people are using packaged lemon juice, then it will come with an expiry date.
Everyone should make sure the lemon juice is used before the expiry date. The raw lemons will last longer than the yellow ripe lemons.
Conclusion
The lemons would last around 3 weeks if they are kept away from sunlight, heat, and moisture. People should use clean containers to store the lemons in the fridge. The lemons would start smelling bad when they are getting worse. The citrus smell of the lemon is a sign that they are fresh.
The lemon juice can be stored for more than 3 to 4 days. Therefore, it’s better to store the whole lemon and not the lemon in juice form.
