Key Lime Pie Not Sour Enough? Here's The Quickest Fix

Ever make a beautiful key lime pie only to find it not sour or tart enough to pucker your lips? Before you make your next citrusy dessert, know there's a quick fix for that conundrum: Add a splash of lime oil to the pie filling. The result? A perfectly sweet and tart key lime pie. 

Lime oil comes from the oil you can find in lime peels. As it is an extract (like vanilla extract), food-grade lime oil comes in small bottles and doesn't come cheap. For example, a 4-ounce bottle can set you back over $20. The good thing about lime oil, however, is that you won't need to use a lot of it to add extra flavor. Adding about ¼ teaspoon of lime oil to the filling for one pie should suffice to enhance bright, zesty flavors. Simply stir in the lime oil as the last step of making your filling. Give it a taste and if you feel it is still not sour enough, add a little more lime oil (just a splash) to taste. The beauty about this quick fix is that you can apply it to almost any key lime pie recipe.

While lime oil does not come cheap, it does come with a long shelf life. When you properly store lime oil in a cool, dark place (away from direct sunlight), it can last up to a year, and perhaps longer. Lime oil has other uses beside adding more tartness to key lime pies. You can use it in other desserts and in your lime beverages and mocktails to add more flavor. 

But if you're still not ready to invest in a bottle of lime oil, fret not. There are other fixes to ensure your key lime pie will satisfying your tart and sour-loving taste buds. For example, before squeezing the limes to add fresh juice to your pie filling, use a microplane to extract all the zest from the lime peels. Be sure to incorporate the fresh zest into your pie filling, and reserve some for sprinkling over the pie as a garnish. Be sure to also check out our other great tips for cooking and baking with limes.