Drinking juice is one of the easiest ways to get your daily requirement of fruits and vegetables. Store bought juice can be expensive and is often made with preservatives that make it less healthy. This article has tips on how you can make your own juice from fresh fruits and vegetables.
Do some trial and error to find what sort of juice mixes you like. Softer fruits like peaches or strawberries will have a much thicker consistency than harder fruits like apples. Mix them up in different amounts to see what makes the consistency of drink that you like the best. The more you like it, the more you will drink it!
When attempting a juice-only diet, it can be helpful to remove all processed foods from your house first. Having a box of crackers, a jar of peanut butter, or some candy bars staring you in the face while you can only have juice is an easy way to cut your diet tragically short.
The best rule for getting into juicing is that the juicer should be out and visible all the time. This will remind you to use it, and also make it easier to use so you don’t skip it because you don’t want to lug it out. Keeping it in sight will also keep it in mind.
You don’t have to buy a fancy juicer to start juicing, you can use a blender or food processor just to get the hang of it. In fact, a food processor can do just as good a job as a juicer! I also picked up an inexpensive citrus juicer, though, as I found doing it manually hurt my hands.
If you can’t afford to juice with organic fruit and vegetables, don’t worry about it. It’s nice to have pesticide-free items, but you can only work with what you have available. Wash your produce in a mixture of 8 cups of water with 3 tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide and 3 tablespoons of baking soda to get all the nasty stuff off. Rinse your produce well before using.
Buy a juicer that does NOT heat up any parts near the items being juiced. The heat can cause the juice to begin oxidation, leading to a breakdown of the nutrients in it. Choose a juicer that says specifically that the parts touching the juice will remain cool throughout the juicing process.
If you absolutely must store your juice after you make it, make sure to store it in a completely air-tight container. Letting air get at it will start a process which breaks down the nutrients in the juice, leaving a tasty but empty drink that won’t provide you with the healthy benefits you were looking for in the first place.
It’s important to juice wheatgrass as our bodies can’t actually process the plant fibers contained in it. I like to include wheatgrass in my apple/ginger/orange juice, but you can come up with a hundred more recipes that make great use of wheatgrass and it’s wonderful earthy flavor. Give it a try!
When figuring out your recipes and buying produce at the market, remember that approximately one pound of vegetables and fruit will lead to one cup of juice. Softer fruits will yield about as much juice as is equal to their weight as they won’t lose much pulp, while harder vegetables will produce a lot of pulp and produce less juice.
To make sure that your juices pack the most nutritional punch, always choose organic ingredients if they are available. Organic produce has a higher nutritional content than conventionally grown produce and it also usually tastes better. You’ll also avoid any possible toxic chemicals like pesticides and fertilizers that are used in conventional agriculture.
Some people claim that mixing fruit and vegetables in your juice leads to indigestion as the enzymes required to break down fruit are very different than those to break down vegetables. I, personally, have never had a problem, but if you find you have any tummy upset after drinking a mixed juice then you should probably stick to one or the other.
Juicing gives your body the freshest nutrients but it is also a good way to control blood glucose levels. Juice from stores contain a lot of carbohydrates which increase your BGL because carbohydrates turn to glucose. Juicing at home gives you control over what goes into your body.
A good juicing tip is to start with simple ingredients if you’ve never juiced before. A lot of people start juicing for the health benefits but if you start using really healthy ingredients right off the bat, you might find that the taste is just too bitter for you.
A great juicing tip is to always chop up produce that’s too big. You run a big risk by putting big chunks of produce into your juicer because you can potentially ruin the motor. Chopping produce into smaller chunks will also provide you with a much better juice solution.
If you’re being treated for cancer, juicing can help you have energy, appetite, and a cleansed body. Include coriander and basil to increase your hunger, and avocado, blackberry, chili pepper, garlic, leek, onion, orange, papaya, or pumpkin for their cancer-battling properties. You’ll find you’re happier as well as being healthier.
The advice in this article shows how easy it actually is to make your own fresh juice at home. Juicing fruits and vegetables yourself is more cost efficient and healthier than purchasing pre-packaged juice from the grocery store. Once you start juicing on your own, you will never want to buy pre-squeezed juice again.
