What's the most efficient way to juice halved lemons and limes?

Question

Between squeezers, reamers, and juicers, what's the fastest way to juice small citruses?

Limes are cheap in my area, so I'm willing to sacrifice juice per fruit if I can get the same volume faster from more of them.

I care about volume because I'm using juice in drinks.

Answer 1

Short of using an electric juicer, the squeeze press type of juicer is very popular for doing large quantities of citrus quickly and efficiently. They are both fast, and squeeze almost all of the available juice, getting the best of both worlds.

These come in sizes that are best for limes, lemons, oranges, or even grapefruits.

Answer 2

For making large amounts of margarita, I've found it hard to beat a press like this one:

It extracts almost all the juice in one easy movement.

I don't see the benefit in a rotary juicer.

Answer 3

Since the question as it is written asks for speed, one of the devices mentioned above will definitely fit that bill. Especially if you are processing a large amount of citrus. Me personally, I'm not a huge fan of uni-taskers in the kitchen. Thus, I generally opt to:

• Roll the fruit in all directions while still whole. Apply a decent amount of pressure.
• Halve the fruit
• Squeeze the fruit into your container, you can use a mesh strainer to catch seeds and large amounts of pulp
• You can use this method in conjunction with a sturdy fork pressing into the fruit against the palm of your hand to extract as much juice as possible.

Mesh strainer -- http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-KRONA-Stainless-Steel-Strainer/dp/B00004RDE1

Answer 4

For a large quantity of juice, buy a simple electric juicer. I doesn't have to be a large fancy machine. I use one to juice the many grapefruit from my tree. This link might help: http://canvasli.com/citrus-juicers/best-citrus-juicer-reviews/

For a smaller amount, say for a recipe, I use a wooden citrus reamer. Do a Google image search and you'll see what I am talking about. I've used mine over a strainer and it is quick and simple.

Answer 5

Tim Ferris in 4-Hour Chef quotes Chef Jeffrey Zurofsky:

"make sure you roll them out by hand first. You'll get twice as much juice."

This should work regardless of the device used to aid with the juicing. I'm personally not a fan of the crushing devices as they tend to break the seeds which release bitterness. The rotating citrus juicers (electric or otherwise) such as this one work for me: