If you don’t have time to squeeze an orange, or if you’re traveling and can’t bring a carton of juice with you, there are plenty of other drink options that will give you the vitamin C your body needs.
Some of the most popular substitutes are frozen orange juice concentrate, orange extract, orange zest.
Read on to find more substitutes for orange juice.
Table Of Contents
Quick Look at the Available Orange Juice Substitutes
Let’s have a quick look at the available options. To learn more details such as the substitution guide, just head to the next part.
For Flavor | For Acidity | For Taste & Acidity |
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What Can You Substitute for Orange Juice?
The following options can be good replacements for blood orange juice, store-bought orange juice, and fresh-squeezed orange juice.
1. Frozen Orange Juice Concentrate
Frozen orange juice concentrate is an easy substitution for orange juice in a recipe.
Once you have reconstituted the orange juice with water, you can substitute equal parts of reconstituted orange juice in any recipe without any flavor difference.
If you don’t want to make up the entire batch of concentrate for the recipe, you can just use part of it.
The package will explain just how much water you should add to the concentrate to make orange juice that is indistinguishable from real orange juice. In most cases, you will use ¼ cup of concentrate and ¾ cup of water to make one cup of orange juice.
2. Orange Extract
Orange extract is an excellent option to add an orange taste to a recipe.
Orange extract is an acceptable flavor substitution for orange juice in marinades, sauces, salad dressings, smoothies, mixed drinks, and desserts.
Orange extract has a stronger and brighter taste than regular orange juice because it comes from the oil of orange peels. Thus, you will need far less extract than you would juice.
Two teaspoons of orange extract is equivalent to a cup of orange juice. Add a cup of water to the extract if you need the equivalent amount of liquid.
You will need to add a squeeze of lemon juice if your recipe needs acidity (such as baking recipes which use baking soda instead of baking powder).
If your recipe also needs sweetness, you can add a tablespoon of sugar per teaspoon of extract.
3. Orange Marmalade
Orange marmalade has the sweetness and acidity necessary to make a good substitute for orange juice in sauces, salad dressings, glazes, marinades, and desserts.
While it is possible to substitute equal parts orange marmalade, the results might be too sweet if your marmalade is particularly sweet. Thus, you might want to water the marmalade down to dilute it or adjust the amount of sugar in the recipe to balance out the extra sweetness.
4. Orange-Flavored Liqueurs
Orange-flavored liqueurs make excellent replacements for orange juice because they are already sweet. Some orange-flavored liqueurs you can use to substitute for orange juice include:
- Grand Marnier
- Cointreau
- Triple Sec
- Curaçao
Orange-flavored liqueurs are an excellent substitute for orange juice in cake recipes, marinades, sauces, soups, and desserts.
The alcohol content will decrease by 10% for every 30 minutes [1] of cooking, but the orange flavor will remain.
You can use equal parts of the liqueurs to substitute in the recipe. However, since the orange flavor is less intense, you may want to add just a little extra to increase the orange flavor.
Also, if the recipe relies on orange juice acidity, you can add a little lemon or lime juice to increase the acidity. Try two teaspoons of lemon or lime juice per cup of liqueur.
5. Orange Zest
It can be handy to zest oranges to have on hand when you don’t have oranges or orange juice and want a hint of orange flavor in a dish.
Orange zest is best for dishes that need a touch of orange flavor, such as in baked goods or drinks.
Because orange zest does not have a strong flavor on its own, it is necessary to substitute ¼ cup of orange zest for every one cup of orange juice in a recipe. Therefore, orange zest substitution is only practical when the recipe needs only small amounts of juice.
You may like: 12 Orange Zest Substitutes in Baking/Cooking
6. Orange-Like Citrus Fruit Juices
Citrus fruits that taste similar to oranges are equals when it comes to orange juice substitutions. You can use the juice from these fruits just like you would orange juice in any recipe:
- Clementines
- Mandarins
- Tangerines
While you may not have a bottle of most of these juices sitting around your house, squeezing the juice from the fruits by hand or with a citrus juicer yields excellent results.
Because they have a similar taste, sweetness, and acidity, you can use equal parts of these citrus fruit juices to substitute in any dish.
7. Orange Soda
Orange soda can provide an orange flavor, sweetness, and acidity in recipes that originally call for orange juice.
You can use orange soda in the same proportions as orange juice for almost any recipe. The consistency may be different, but the flavor will be similar.
Using orange soda to substitute for orange juice in cakes results in exceptionally fluffy cakes.
8. Sour Citrus Fruit Juices
If you don’t have any orange juice on hand, you can substitute with sweetened and diluted versions of other citrus fruit juices:
- Meyer lemons
- Lemons
- Lime
- Key lime
- Grapefruit
- Yuzu
- Kumquat
Add one part sugar (or ¼ part simple syrup), 1 part citrus juice, and two parts water to make a diluted, sweet juice from any of these more tart citrus fruits.
9. Citric Acid
Citric acid can add an extra citrus bite to some recipes that call for orange juice. Citric acid is best as a substitute for orange juice in baking, drinks, and sauces.
Citric acid has a concentrated citrus flavor, so you will want to use it sparingly. You will only need ¼ teaspoon of citric acid in each cup of sugar for baked goods, and just a pinch will do in drinks.
10. Vinegar
You can use sweet vinegar to substitute for orange juice in savory recipes that use the juice for its acidity. Substitute vinegar for orange juice in marinades, salad dressings, and some sauces.
Some vinegar types that will make acceptable substitutes include:
- Apple cider vinegar
- Sugar cane vinegar
- Balsamic vinegar
- Red wine vinegar
- White wine vinegar
- Rice vinegar
Add equal parts vinegar and water to create the original liquid amount for your recipe.
You May Like: Apple Cider Vinegar Vs. White Vinegar
11. Tamarind Paste
Tamarind is a sweet and sour fruit popular in Thai, Indian, Mexican, and other international cuisines. Its sweet and sour qualities make an excellent flavor substitution sauces, marinades, glazes, curries, and beverages.
You will need to add one part tamarind paste to one part water. Sweeten it with sugar if desired.
12. Pineapple Juice
While pineapples are not citrus fruits, they have a similar acidity and sweetness to oranges, making pineapple juice a fitting orange juice substitute.
Pineapple juice is an especially good substitute for orange juice in marinades because its acids and bromelain enzymes help soften meats [2].
You can substitute pineapple juice in the exact proportions as orange juice.
Further reading: 17 Best Substitutes for Pineapple Juice in Baking/Cooking
13. Lemon Juice
You can also try lemon juice. It’s a great way to add some extra Vitamin C to your diet.
In baking, lemon juice can add a bit of sweet-and-sour flavor that mimics what you would get from orange zest. It’s also a great way to make a fresh fruit salad or top off your morning oats.
Lemon juice is a bit tart, so you may need to add a little sugar or honey to balance the flavors. But overall, the two juices are fairly similar in taste.
Further reading: How Long Does Lemon Juice Last?
Other Substitutes
- 14. Orange simple syrup
- 15. Fruity flavored liquor
- 16. Tart fruits (pears, peaches, and plums, etc.)
- 17. Tart berries (raspberries, green grapes, cranberries, etc.)
- 18. Limetta
- 19. Pomegranate juice
- 20. Cream of Tartar
FAQs About Orange Juice
What can I substitute for orange juice in cake recipe?
Orange-flavored liqueurs will be your best orange juice substitute when making a cake. One of the most popular three liqueurs for cake recipe is
- Grand Marnier
- Cointreau
- Triple Sec
What can I substitute for orange juice in marinade?
Consider using one of the following options you prefer for marinade:
- Orange extract
- Orange marmalade
- Orange-flavored liqueurs
- Tamarind paste
- Pineapple juice
What can I substitute for orange juice in smoothies?
Orange extract will be your best alternative to orange juice in smoothie. It’s fairly similar to orange juice with the sweet-and-sour flavor.
How much orange juice equals one orange?
1 orange = ⅓ cups (or 5 tablespoons) of orange juice
What can be used to substitute for orange juice in baking?
There are a lot of orange juice substitutes for you when baking:
- Orange Extract
- Orange Zest
- Citric Acid
- Lemon Juice
- Orange juice concentrate
- Cream of Tartar
- Buttermilk
Conclusion
Vitamin C is a very essential nutrient for every human being. Since orange juice is rich in Vitamin C, it is a healthy drink which provides energy as well as helps in growth and development.
However, if you don’t have it on hand then there are many orange juice substitutes for your choice. Just simply choose the one you prefer from the above options!
