How To Use A Juicer: Everything You Need To Get Started

There are many reasons why a person might want to start juicing. But before you can get started, it is a good idea to learn something about how to use a juicer. It’s easy to juice, but I know that not everyone is as familiar with how to use a juicer and how to get started juicing as I am. So, here is my attempt at a beginners guide to juicing and a 101 level guide to learning how to use a juicer.

The goal here is to provide you with enough information to get started making fresh juices at home. In this article you will learn what a juicer is, what the different types of juicers are, how to use them, and how to clean them so that they last for a long time

Understanding Juicers and What They Do

Juicers remove the liquid from fruits and vegetables. They do this either by using a ream, and screw(auger) or a cutting disc. The type of design is important and I’ll get to it later. But that’s essentially what a juicer is.

You take an apple, for instance, and a juicer will separate the fiber and solids from the liquid in the apple. That’s how you get apple juice, or orange juice,or green juice.

The reason people like juicers is that they allow them to make fresh juice at home instead of buying juice from the supermarket. That store brought juice is pasteurized and doesn’t have the same healthy nutrients that freshly squeezed juice does.

Juicers are able to separate pulp from juice. That’s the key feature. Be it by use of an auger and masticating design, a cutting disc, or a ream like you see with citrus juicers, all juicer designs are based around separating pulp and solids from the liquid.

If you are looking to remove pulp and get juice from vegetables or fruit, then you will need to get a juicer.

 

My Top Suggestions For Quality Juicers

(These are four of my favorite juicers. My faves are the Omega and Hurom, but the Aicok is a strong contender and it’s great for people on a budget).

If you’re looking for the best bang for your buck, then this would be my pick for the best juicer for leafy greens.

How Is A Juicer Different Than A Blender?

A juicer is different than a blender in that it removes pulp and fiber. A blender, on the other hand, simply blends everything up so that it is easy to drink. A blender and a juicer create two very different results. One will give you a juice, the other will make you a smoothie.

Juicers are better when you are looking to get a lot of beneficial antioxidants and phyto-nutrients that are found in the highest amounts in the juice of the vegetables or fruit.

Smoothies are better for when you’re making a shake (obviously) and also when you’re trying to use things like berries, bananas, or even avocados. You can’t really juice fruit like that. It’s better to blend those fruits up in a blender and make a fruit smoothie. There are some juicers that you can use to puree and make frozen fruit sorbets (Omega, for instance). But as a rule, a juicer is not capable of handling berries and bananas.

If you want to drink celery juice, kale juice or other leafy greens, and make fresh pineapple, lemon, or other citrus juices, then you will need a juice extracting machine.

Juicers remove pulp and fiber. There is always some beneficial fiber left in juices, but most of the glass will be pure juice.

Blenders on the other hand are great at making smoothies which have fiber. These blend up fruits, vegetables, and other things such as nuts and seeds.

I juice and blend. It’s not an either or proposition. You can do both! But, i tend to blend berries and bananas and other

 

Do You Need A Juicer?

Before you order a juicer online, decide if you need one or not. I have a really simple set of questions I tell my friends to answer. It will help anyone decide if they are ready to buy a juicer and if they really need one.

1. Do you buy fresh juice?
2. Have you ever tried one of the “organic” fake fresh juices from the supermarket
3. Are you health conscious and looking to lose weight and help your blood pressure and heart?
4. Do you want to save money?

If you’ve answered yes to all or some of the questions above, then odds are you would benefit from owning a juicer. Why? Because buying fresh juice is super expensive. If you own a juicer, you can recoup the cost of the juicer after only a few weeks!

Also, if you are someone who is health conscious and want to lose weight or otherwise lead a healthier and more productive lifestyle, then adding fresh juices (especially leafy greens…my fave obviously as I named the site after them) will do loads to improve your life.

The reason I also ask if you’ve ever purchased those “organic” juices from the supermarket is that you would do much better if you simply purchased a juicer and made your own fresh juices. Those fake healthy juices that you see for sale in the supermarket are not much better than bottled and canned juices that are sold on the non-refrigerated aisles.

What Type Of Juicer Should You Choose?

So now that you’ve decided that you should get a juicer, the next step is to decide which type of juicer you should get. The type of juicer that you eventually decide upon is going to be determined by what type of juicing you want to do.

Obviously, as the name of my website suggsts, I am a big proponent of juicing leafy greens. These types of juices will include kale and spinach and herbs like parsley (in small ammounts) as well as other greens such as celery. You might also throw cabbage into the mix when making green drinks.

If you’re planning on making these types of juices, then you do need a special type of juicer. Not all juicers are capable of juicing and extracting the liquid from the fiber of leafy greens. In fact, many of these juicers simply mince up or cut the vegetables into super small pieces and hope that the juice flows out from them. But that’s not common and if you’ve every had leafy green juice made from a old style juicer, then you will have seen that most of the pulp is really wet.

So, I suggest that you ready my intro article on juicers for leafy greens.

If you’re only doing citrus juices such as oranges juices or lemon juices( but really,who would only drink lemon juice?) then you get make due with a citrus style juicer (these use a ream). But if you are looking to juice oranges, you should get a press style juicer that uses a ream and not an auger. Cold press juicers are fine if you’re looking to juice organic produce including oranges and lemons and want to juice the skin. But if you are only looking to juice the pulp, then you need to use a citrus press juicer.

Finally, there are wheatgrass juicers that are designed specifically to be used with wheatgrass. They are hand cranked models and honestly I don’t see the point in using them if you already own a cold press masticating juicer. I’ve always been comfortable using my Omega to juice wheatgrass. But, some people do like a standalone manual wheatgrass juicer. It’s an option to consider.

Personally, I suggest that unless you are only juicing citrus or only juicinng wheatgrass, then you opt for a masticaging style juicer. My perfered brand is Omega, but Kuvings and Hurom and Greenstar also make excellent products. Here’s a video of a vertical Omega design. You can see how fast, easy, and simple it is to use.

So, I reccomend that you get a cold press juicer. The design is up to you (some people like vertical juicers, while others –including me– are fine using a horizontal juicer). A lot of the decision comes down to how much counter space you have, your budget, and also the reviews.

How To Use A Cold Press Juicer

If you’ve taken my suggestion and purchased a cold press juicer or if you already happen to own one, then you might want to learn how to use it correctly. Now, for those of you who have already been juicing for a long time and who are comfortable with how to use a juicer, then this information might sound silly.

But remember that not all people are knowledgeable about how to use a cold press juicer. There are many people however that have no idea about how to use a cold press juicer, so it does warrant some discussion.

So, is a cold press juicer operated differently than a regular juicer? Yes and no. Let’s see why I say yes and no!

In many ways, yes, cold press juicers are used in the same way as other juicers. You take fruit or vegetables and put them into the opening and out comes the juice!

The difference is that cold press juicers are slow juicers! That means that the juicers operate at a much slower pace than centrifugal juicers. And while that might seem like a bad thing, it’s actually a good thing!

Slow juicers produce much healthier juice than fast juicers because fast juicers destroy nutrients. I really don’t care to argue with the sales guys who will try and tell me that a centrifugal juicer is just as good as a slow press cold juicer. They’re wrong! Slow juicers extract more juice and they give you a healthier end result.

So, no, they are not like those fast juicers from years ago that produced a wet pulp (which meant that you needed to juice more to get the same amount of juice in your glass!).

Also, slow press juicers work best when you cut up the vegetables and fruits. That’s because the augers can get jammed if you over stuff it. Personally, I like to slice up fruit and vegetables into inch size chunks. If you get a wide mouth design cold press juicer then this is unnecessary.

My basic “cheat sheet” for first timers planning on using a cold press juicer is as follows:

• Select Organic Fruit or Vegetables

This is a key point and I always stress with friends. The reason should be obvious, but to go over it again, you want to remove all of the outer dirt and any chemicals that might be on the fruit or vegetables.

• Cut and Peel Fruit and Vegetables (if necessary)

Next, you want to cut and, if necessary, peel the fruit of vegetables. Some fruit and vegetables I do suggest peeling. For instance, while you can juice things like pineapples, watermelons, and carrots without peeling them, I tend to always peel them. Some fruit and vegetables should be juiced with their skin on (apples, for instance) while fruit such as pomegranates and pineapples should, in my estimation, always be peeled.

• Prep Your Juicer Workstation

You can do this before prepping the fruit and veggies, or after. Basically what it entails is making sure you have a clean container to catch the juice. And that your space is free of any clutter. I keep the plunger, a clear pyrex container if I’m planning on making more than a single glass of juice (i pour the extra into the pitcher) and a bowl that holds the clean fruit and veggies.

• Juice Slowly–Don’t Rush It

When you are juicing, take your time. Don’t force the fruit and greens down into the juicer. Use the plunger, but don’t use too much force. The juicer is designed to work without you having to push and shove the fruit down into the auger. There is the risk that if you use too much force and stuff and press the fruit down into the juicer that, over time, it will damage the motor.

• Drink The Juice, Store the Rest, and Clean Your Juicer

Drink your juice as soon as you’ve made it. I don’t recommend that you store juice for a later time unless you’ve intentionally made more than a single glass. If you are planning on saving your juice, I suggest that you use a mason jar or some other glass. Nothing plastic! Then make sure to clean your juicer.

You don’t want your juicer to dry with juice and pulp in it because that can make it harder to clean and eventually, harm the juicer. I have an article that covers how to clean your juicer. You can read it and get a good idea how to make sure your juicer stays clean.

What Should You Juice In Your Juicer

Can you juice anything in a blender? Or are there certain fruits and vegetables that are better for salads or smoothies? Seasoned juicers already know which fruits and vegetables aren’t really conducive to juicing. But I decided that the simplest way to go about this was to create a fast cheat sheet style list:

Fruits and Vegetables You Can Juice

• Greens
• Kale
• Spinach
• Apples
• Celery
• Pears
• Lemons
• Beets
• Cabbage
• Cucumbers
• Ginger
• Grapes
• Limes
• Watermelon

Fruits and Vegetables You Can’t Juice

• Berries (better to use in a blender or the puree attachment that comes with your juicer)
• Bananas
• Avocados

As a rule, you can always use your juicer to turn bananas or berries or avacoads into a vegan ice cream, or a nut butter mix. You can’t juice an avacado, for instance, but you can certainly turn it into a delicious creamy non-dairy ice cream.

How To Clean A Juicer

The simple answer would be to follow the instructions on your juicers instruction manual. Most juicers are simple enough to clean. There are simple instructons that explain exactly what is regquired. You can even clean most juicers in the dishwasher. The Omega, Kuvings, Hurom and GreenStar are all juicers where you can wash them in a dishwasher machine.

I suggest that you always keep your juicer clean after using it and that you do not leave it to dry. A dried out juicer will not function properly after a while. The guked up dried juice will become too stickey to remove with just soap and water. This is why you should focus on using soap and water and the provided cleaning brush.

My prefered method of cleaning a juicer involves taking them apart and putting all of the parts of the juicer that were exposed to juice and fruit/vegetable pieces into a bin. Then take a paper towl or spounge and clean down the main body of the juicer. You never want to submerge the entire juicer into water as it can damage the electric system and render the juicer useless.

Once the juicer body has been cleaned up and washed, then I take the parts of the juice that come into direct contact with the juice (the auger, the strainer, and the lock) and clean them throughougly with soapy water.

Some people like to use vinegar. That’s perfectly fine and it’s acceptable as long as you use the right type of vinegar. If you use vinegar to clean your juicer, I suggest that you only use clear vinegar. Never use a raw unstrained vinegar such as Brags. While those types of apple cider vinegars are very healthy, they do not provide a good cleaning result. That’s because unfiltered vinegars have bacteria in them and other solids that will leave a residue on your juicer. So, only use a clear vinegar. I think something such as Hines plain vinegar is fine for cleaning!

But i really suggest that you try and use soap. If you’re concerned about the enviroment, then you can always make sure to use an organic soap that does not have any harmful chemicals that will damage the enviroment. All stores carry these. You can sometimes find them onsale at Costco. I’ve not had much luck at BJs. Also, you can buy something like 7th Gen online at Amazon.

 

How Long Does Fresh Juice Last In Your Fridge

The next point that I’d like to cover is how long fresh juice will last in your fridge. If you make fresh juice, be it green vegetables or fruit, then you should idealy consume it as soon as you’ve made it. However, that is not always possible.  I’d love it if everyone I reccomended juicers to always made fresh juice on demand. But that’s not possible. What you’ve got to do is understand that not all people eat and drink like you do. And that’s ok.

So, if you are not able to make fresh juice every single day, but you’d like to drink freshly made juice every day…then it makes sense that you’ll be looking for a method to keep your juice, then I do have a few suggestions.

First, always keep your juice in a glass container. That’s the rule number one. Never use plastic to keep your juice in. You can make a fresh juice and store it in a blender bottle if you’re planning on drinking it within an hour or two (like if you’re brining it to work). But if you are going to keep juice in a container for any serious length of time please, please do not use plastic (here is just one of the hundreds of articles that discuss how bad plastic is for you and the negative health effects).

So, use glass. You can use a mason jar, but there are also good brocelite glass containers that are designed to hold juice. It all depends upon what you’re comfortable drining out of.

As for how long that juice can last in the fridge? I’d not exceed 36 hours. Idealy, I would not exceed 24 hours. Really, you’re risking that the juice loose much of it’s good nutrients the longer it sits out.  Also, because you are not pasturiesing the juice, you can not let it sit around for too long. If that is the case, then the juice might go bad and actually make you sick. So, don’t get lazy and make fresh juice only to let it get sour old and foul in your fridge.

It’s better to simply make new juice every other day (if you’re not up to makign it every day).

When Should You Juice and Drink Juice?

The next thing people tend to ask me is when they should drink their juice? First thing in the morning? Midday? Beofre a workout? After a workout? It totally depends, in my opinion. I think that a fresh green drink in the morning is great, but oftentimes I am too rushed to juice. So, I end up making a juice when I get done working for the day.

Idealy, if you are on a schedule where you can make a fresh juice early and have it as your first drink or meal or even bring it to work in a thermous, then that’s great. But if you can’t and you need to make your juice at night when you get home, then make sure to drink it not too soon before you go to sleep. There’s a few reasons for that, but alot of it comes down to accepted convention wisdom that you should not eat anything at all too soon before bed. It interfeers with your sleep. There’s a decent ammount of studies out there that suggest that eating too soon to when you go to sleep (and I include drinking juices) isn’t great for sleeping. I think that idealy you should go to bed a bit hungy.

 

How Often Should You Juice

This one is totally optional, but I always try and juce a few times a week. You don’t have to be someone who juices everyday. But if you want to learn how to use a juicer and end up as someone who turns into a healthy person, I reccomend that you juice at least three times a week for the first year.

Why do I pick that number? It’s because it will instill a habit of juicing and turn it into something that you basically do automatically. This way juicing becomes an ingrained part of your lifestyle and it’s not something that you have to remember to do.

If you don’t do it, and if you keep putting off juicing and only doing it occasionally, then it will turn into a chore. You should view it as a necessartyy at first and then, it will become a welcome healthy habbit.