Citric Acid Powder

[jamesndawson]

About every week I buy 2 to 4 large lemons, squeeze juice from them and put it in a little jar and into the fridge. I often use this to tarten my daily fruit smoothie and sometimes my pasta sauce.

But sometimes I run out. I thought it might be convenient to get some lemon powder to have on hand when I do. I went to the natural foods store for some of this, but all I found was powdered lemonade with sugar in it, which I'm trying to avoid. But they did have citric acid powder, which I bought.

In reading Wikipedia, it said that CAP was very caustic and will burn your eyes and skin, though as I was pouring it in the little bag, I didn't experience any burning in my throat or eyes or on my skin, and there usually is a little dust that comes up when you do that. (I HAVE had the problem, quite badly, with Thai seasoning powder.) It also warned that it's bad for your teeth, but isn't any sort of citric juice? Is CAP worse?

Some more questions:

Do they sell pure lemon powder and does it have any nutritional or other advantages over CAP? I suspect the powderizing process would leach out all the vitamin C and other good nutrients out of lemon powder.

I make my smoothie in about a 20 oz. single-serving blender. If I were to use CAP in it, how much would be safe? I don't want to burn a whole in my stomach.

Your help with answers, advice, links, etc. would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[ninearms]

Citric acid powder is also sold under another name: kettle descaler. Not sure I'd want to drink that!

I'd just buy Jif lemon/lime juice for your purpose. It doesn't have to actually taste like fresh fruit, or have any nutritional benefits (and in that amount it would be negligible anyway).

[emm7]

I strongly advise you NOT to consume citric acid powder.
It is used as kettle descaler for espresso machines and also in "eco-friendly" limescale remover products.

[tal]

Couldn't you just buy lemon juice from the supermarket? Sure it won't be as fresh as if you squeeze it yourself but if it's only for the flavour you should get on fine with the pre-packaged variety.

[Gelert]

James, this would not be a good idea.



It's the kind of thing we either wear gloves and goggles to use in the laboratory, or get undergraduates on summer projects to use for us instead, as they are generally regarded as expendable. It is known as a respiratory, eye and skin irritant.

Plus, buying too much of it in this day and age will likely get you an orange jumpsuit and a free holiday to Cuba.

I would agree with ninearms that a lemon substitute would be an useful option instead. Or perhaps lime juice?

Additionally, citric acid confers no particular health benefit as a supplement. Indeed, our entire aerobic metabolism depends on it - but only because we make it ourselves as an intermediate in the tricarboxylic acid cycle which derives about 2/3rd of the energy from our daily bread.

[jamesndawson]

Thanks everybody. I don't think I will use it. I'll just get a bottle of pasteurized lemon juice. The reason I thought powder might be better is because I thought it'd keep better. It seems juice might go bad before I'd use much of it.

Not to spurn your warnings, and I'll definitely heed them, but if CAP is so dangerous, why do they sell it in the food section of my natural food store right next to the lemonade, and why didn't I cough or anything when dust came up when I poured it? It's listed as an ingredient in jams, pasta sauce and lots of other foods. By the way, I absented mindedly put a big teaspoonful of it in my coffee (thinking it was my stevia). It ruined my coffee and I poured the rest out, but didn't burn my stomach or make me gag or anything. I was annoyed with myself but not sick or staggering around or anything.

Again, not arguing, just puzzled.

[Gelert]

There are lots of things which are irritants but don't make you cough upon first exposure. Quite often it's repeated, sometimes tiny exposures that do the damage. In fact, the only respiratory irritant that I've worked with on a regular basis that lets you know that it's irritating your lungs by making you cough is sodium dodecyl sulphate. This compound, AKA sodium laureth sulphate is in the vast majority of soaps and detergents you can buy. But because it's wet, it doesn't get into your lungs.

All this said about CAP, it's probably safer for you and your testicles than the stevia you planned to have in your coffee.

http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/webpage/stevia

[vegimator]

[quote="Gelert"]
All this said about CAP, it's probably safer for you and your testicles than the stevia you planned to have in your coffee.

http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/webpage/stevia

[Gelert]

Not heard anything bad about it for humans - dogs don't do well with it though, from what I recall.