Really stupid fermentation question--slightly OT

Early this year I took some limes from a lime tree in the back and squeezed the juice into a used (but washed) PVC apple juice carton. My initial thought was to get the juice into something I could refrigerate so I could use it for marinating stuff over the next few months after the lime tree went dormant.

Well it wasn't much later I looked in the back of the fridge and the liquid started to change texture and had puffed out the PVC container. I slowly opened the lid and let out alot of gas. Since then it's continued to "ferment".

The question is I don't plan on consuming this but clearly there's some sort of fermentation going on here (how I'm not sure since the container was clean and closed). How bad is it to use this juice for marinating meat at this point? Any idea from those who've trod before me on what's going on here and the risks with using this stuff?

Pure citrus juice usually has an awful flavor when it ferments. Often described as similar to vomit. If you want to marinade with it, I'd suggest tasting a little bit of it first (if you're brave enough) and see if you'd really want to eat something soaked in it. Smell it at least before you taste it.

The container may have been clean, but was it sanitized? And how about the limes themselves? Fruit off a tree is going to have wild yeast all over it's skins. Did you do anything to avoid getting that in the juice? If not, you have a wild yeast ferment going on (and maybe some bacteria as well) so who knows what it'll taste like. I don't think I'd like it on my steak.

ChshreCat said:

Pure citrus juice usually has an awful flavor when it ferments. Often described as similar to vomit. If you want to marinade with it, I'd suggest tasting a little bit of it first (if you're brave enough) and see if you'd really want to eat something soaked in it. Smell it at least before you taste it.

The container may have been clean, but was it sanitized? And how about the limes themselves? Fruit off a tree is going to have wild yeast all over it's skins. Did you do anything to avoid getting that in the juice? If not, you have a wild yeast ferment going on (and maybe some bacteria as well) so who knows what it'll taste like. I don't think I'd like it on my steak.

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I may have forgotten to sanitize the bottle, I can't be sure. I can say with certainty the lime skins were washed with water but not all were in great shape. Some of them had already started to bruise from being on the ground for a day or so. I didn't think about the wild yeast but I bet you're right about that...

Probably worth a smell...and then a dump. I'll check.

duskb said:

Probably worth a smell...and then a dump. I'll check.

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Dude, you just made the quotes page

There could be any number of microorganisms working in there. Yeast is only one possibility. I'd throw it out.

Potter1 said:

Dude, you just made the quotes page

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Very funny. Reading it back 48 hours later I almost can't believe I wrote that.

LOL