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Are you making guacamole but you have no lime juice? How about 7 great ways to substitute for lime juice in guacamole? Keep reading to learn how to replace lime juice in any guacamole recipe and get great results!
Guacamole is a Mexican inspired avocado based dip made using avocados, lime juice, tomatoes, onions, salt, black pepper, and sometimes other ingredients like jalapeños and cilantro.
Guacamole is usually served with tortilla chips, tacos or even fajitas and this avocado dip is super easy to make and delicious.
However, if you’re in the process of making guac, or you’re planning on making it but you can not find any lime juice, what do you do?
Well, you simply replace the lime juice with suitable stand ins. Below, you will find 7 tried and true lime juice substitutes that work in guac along with conversion ratios for each.
But first, many people want to know
Why is lime juice added to guacamole?
There are two reasons why lime juice is used in guacamole. Lime juice contains citric acids and ascorbic acids which helps to prevent enzymatic browning in avocados, or guacamole, in this case. This means that lime juice is important as it helps to delay the avocados in the guac recipe from turning brown and rewards you with a nice green guacamole instead.
Lime juice also gives a nice tart flavor to guac which helps balance out the mild, creamy, buttery flavor of ripened avocado.
Substitutes for lime juice in guacamole
Sour orange juice
Sour orange juice is a great guacamole lime substitute. Sour orange is sour, astringent and somewhat bitter, but because it contains citric acidic and ascorbic acid, fresh sour orange juice can easily replace lime juice is guacamole.
A good substitute ratio for lime juice to sour orange juice is 1:1
Substitution ratio: 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice = 1 tablespoon fresh sour orange juice
Lemon juice
Lemon juice is another good substitute fro lime juice in guac recipes. Lemon juice tends to be slightly sweeter, but it remains acidic and sour and will do a great job in a guacamole dip.
Substitution ratio: 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice = 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Orange juice
Orange juice is another good guacamole lime juice substitute. Note that orange juice is sweeter and has less citric acid when compared to the citric acid in lime juice.
Nonetheless, freshly squeezed orange juice is okay to use in guacamole if this is all you have on hand.
Substitution ratio: 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice = 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
Grapefruit juice
Grapefruit juice also makes another possible guacamole lime juice substitute. Grape fruit is sweeter than lime juice and it does tend to have some bitterness, but it can work to prevent the browning of the avocados used in guacamole.
Substitution ratio: 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice = 1 tablespoon fresh grapefruit juice
Pomelo
If you have no lime, but you can get your hands on pomelo, then use pomelo juice in your guac. Pomelo has a somewhat similar flavor to grapefruit except that it is sweeter and not as bitter.
Vinegar
To make guacamole without lime or lemon juice, the other best option is vinegar.
Substitution ratio: 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice = ½ tablespoon vinegar
Bottled lemon or lime juice
Bottled lemon juice or bottle lime juice also make excellent alternatives for fresh lime juice for guacamole. They have a lot less flavor, so use more of the bottled lime of lemon juice to replace fresh lime.
Substitution ratio: 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice = 2 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice or bottled lime juice
There you have it! 7 easy replacements for fresh lime juice when making guac recipes. So, whether you’re just about to make guacamole, or you’re planning on making this dip later and you can’t find limes anywhere, these are lime juice alternatives that can easily and effectively work in your guac.
