How to Juice Garlic in a Juicer

 

It’s not the most popular thing to juice, because it certainly does have a strong flavor, but there are a lot of people who like to juice garlic.

And yes it is something you can run through an auger juicer. There’s no reason why you can’t juice garlic.

But if you are planning to do so, it does require a bit of preparation.

What I have set out to do here is guide you through the process of how to juice garlic in a juicer.

This simple run through is for the brave folks who are ready to tackle probably the most daunting thing you can juice: Garlic

But First, Can You Juice Garlic?

 

 

 

 

 

 

A lot of people wonder if you can juice garlic. I won’t spend too much time on this section since I already covered it in a blog post a while back.

The simple answer is yes. The more tricky questions involved are:

• Where the garlic comes from?
• Is the garlic organic?
• How to clean to get rid of the smell.
• What to juice garlic with

Those are all more serious questions that you need to look at. The simply “can you juice garlic” is a simple yes.

So, yes. You can juice garlic.

Why Don’t Most Juice Stores Offer Juices With Garlic?

So if you can juice garlic, why don’t most stores offer garlic in their juice recipes?

Simple, it’s such a strong smell and taste. It would require extensive breakdown and cleaning of the machine beforehand.

If you’ve ever cut raw garlic and then had to wash your hands repeatedly with soap to get rid of the scent, then you know the issue.

Garlic’s going to leave a scent on the juicer machine. It’s unlike most other fruits or vegetables with the exception of ginger.

The people who run the juice bar understand that most of their customers don’t want garlic or garlic flavor in their juice.

If a juice store were to offer a fresh juice made with garlic, then it would require them to shut down the entire production while they clean the machine afterwards.

That’s just too time consuming. And when you consider that most people are not looking for garlic juice, it becomes a reason to not offer up garlic on the menu.

When you do see garlic on a juice menu, it’s often accompanied by a significant extra fee. That charge compensates for the cost of cleaning the jucier after you’re done juicing.

How To Prep A Juicer to Juice Garlic

There is little prep needed to juice garlic. The standard auger style juicer can juice garlic exceptionally well. The only time consuiming aspect of the entire process is the cleaning part.

Prep would include making sure you are prepping the garlic. You shouldn’t juice garlic if you haven’t peeled it. The paper like wrapper on the garlic isn’t juiceable and will only clog up the juicer.

I am not a big fan of buying pre-peeled garlic. It’s just not that safe, in my opinion.

So, just go out and get real whole garlic bulbs and peel them yourself. It’s not that time consuming and you’re only going to juice a small ammount.

It’s not like you’re making pasta sauce!

 

Can All Garlic Be Juiced?

Yes all types of garlic can be juiced, but not all types of garlic should be juiced.

Some types of garlic that I would avoid juicing are:

• Garlic from China (bleached, grown in filthly water, etc….)
• Pre-chopped garlic (can have bacteria)
• Non Organic Garlic

Here’s the best video online that covers why you should avoid Chinese garlic at all cost

One tip I have for people who have never juiced garlic before is to go slow. Don’t over do it with a whole had of garlic.

Start by adding a single clove of raw garlic to a green juice. You don’t want to end up with something that is not drinkable.

What Should You Mix With Garlic Juice

Ok so you’re ready to juice garlic now the question, what should you juice with garlic?

You should not juice garlic with fruit. Sorry, it just won’t be a good mix.

So that leaves vegetables. Well, which ones?

I like to use vegetables such as cucumbers and dark leafy greens as a base. So something like kale or spinach.

Then to cover the garlic flavor, I will add a beet root or ginger (another strong flavor).

As an aside, I don’t recommend that you start juicing if you’re a new juicer. In fact, when I wrote my guide that covers the best juicer for beginners, I stick to juicers and juices that are more easy going: fruit juices or light green juices.

How To Clean A Juicer After You’ve Juiced Garlic

This step is the most important of all. You’re going to want to really make sure that you’re removing the smell of garlic from your juicer.

It’s simply not acceptable to have a juicer that has the left over smell of garlic. So you will want to really clean it thoroughly.

What I suggest here is to do a very complete scrubbing in a container of soapy water.

You can’t just use running water and get a good result.

The problem with garlic is that it’s sticky when crushed. The oils will get onto the juicer auger.

This means that you have to use a sponge with soap to scrub the juicer.

And you also have to make sure that you’ve cleaned the juicer completely free of soap. You don’t want to clean your juicer only to ruin the flavor with the taste of soap.

So, step one is a complete washing with soap. And step two is a rinse with clean water.

For a more complete review of how to clean and wash your juicer, look here.

It is important to always clean your juicer after every use, but it’s very important when you are juicing something as potent as garlic.

You don’t want the garlic flavor to ruin a morning juice that should taste like lemon and apples!