posted by Monique on Health/Wellness, Juice Recipes, Smoothies Recipes

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A question I get every week, even daily, is how to make fresh vegetable juice. Today I am sharing with you the two main ways to make juice so that all you need to do is actually put it into action. Now, preferably .

There are two main ways to make juice, depending on the equipment you have. It is not essential to buy expensive juicers or blenders. If you already have a simple juicer or blender, you can simply use that in conjunction with a nut milk bag (or muslin cloth) for easy, fast, pulp/fibre-free juices.

Juicers are machines specifically made to separate out the liquids from the solids of produce such as fruits and vegetables, whereas blenders are more versatile machines that can be used to blend into a liquid/puree anything from soups to smoothies to baby foods.

I’ve juiced using juicers, and using a blender combined with a nut milk bag to separate out the fibre, and get great juices using either method. From a nutritional perspective, the more expensive juicers usually provide a higher quality of juice, as they don’t get as heated or oxidised from the machine.

 

The main difference in the two methods from a practical standpoint is in the preparation and clean up involved. When using a juicer, you can often just grab the produce and start juicing, with a minimum of cutting beforehand, whereas when using the blender method it’s best to cut down all produce before adding it to the blender.

On the other hand, there tends to be more clean-up time involved with juicers and less with blenders. If you happen to have access to both a juicer and blender, then you can use this knowledge to your advantage. If, for example, you have 5 minutes to juice before you need to get out of the house, it might be a better choice to run the things quickly through the juicer and deal with the clean-up later (although cleaning up straight away is always easiest!).

How To Juice:

When using organics, there is no need to remove the skin from your foods, as it contains many nutrients that are beneficial. Only peel your fruits and vegetables if they are conventional (not organic). If you are using a high powered blender like a Vita-Mix or Blendtec in combination with straining through a nut milk bag, you can keep the seeds of your fruits in too, as these will be strained out. When using a juicer or less powerful blender, consult your user’s manual for removing seeds from various fruits before juicing.

With A Juicer:

Cut all your produce into pieces that will fit into your juicer before you start juicing. This makes the whole process easier and smoother. Feed the produce through the juicer chute one at a time. The liquid of the produce will be separated from the pulp/fibre. You drink the juice and watch your health and energy transform!

With A Blender and Nut Milk Bag:

Chop all the produce you intend to blend into pieces. If you’re using a high-powered blender, you will not need to cut things very small. With a less powerful machine, it’s better to chop into small pieces.

Depending on the size and power of your blender, you might also want to start with small batches, adding water or coconut water to the chopped produce, to help with the breakdown of the food. Adding enough water to cover the blades of the machine is usually adequate to get things going.

Blend the foods for the shortest amount of time possible, to avoid heating the produce and increasing oxidisation – just long enough to ensure the produce is completely liquefied.

Place the nut milk bag over the opening of a jug or a mixing bowl (it’s helpful if it is wide or deep enough to get both hands in for squeezing the bag). Once you have liquefied the produce, pour it into the nut milk bag in batches and squeeze. You will feel like you are milking a cow .

Discard the dry pulp afterwards and enjoy the juice as soon as possible after.

Fresh juice is always best but if the only way you can get your juice in is to make it well in advance, then go for it. Keep it in an airtight container, as cold as possible (you can even freeze it and drink it as it defrosts) and drink it as soon as you can and feel hungry for it – don’t force it done just for freshness sake.

That, my friends, is how you make juice!

What juicing method do you use and why?

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