How to Choose the Best Juicer

A guide for people who prefer to drink their fruits and veggies

Your parents always told you to eat your vegetables, but not everyone enjoys them. Some people love them but must balance a busy schedule with a balanced diet. Juicing is an efficient way to sneak vitamins past those finicky taste buds. Here is a rundown of the ideal small appliance to turn those veggies and fruits into tasty beverages.

Benefits of juicing

Many benefits come from owning a juicer. Some of these include:

Concentrated nutrients
Quick digestion
Customized recipes
Room for supplements

The packed nutrition in one glass of juice provides an ideal meal for a busy lifestyle. The easily metabolized nutrients provide a burst of healthy energy, ideal to get you through your day. If you still don’t like spinach, you can cater your concoction to match your preferences by using tart citrus fruits to make the perfect juice blend. Best of all, including a variety of natural superfoods provides additional flavor and nourishment. Add a sprinkle of cayenne pepper for immune-system wellness or a dash of bee pollen for a protein boost.

Juicing vs. blending

It helps to understand the differences between juicing and blending — and the advantages of both. Juicing extracts liquid and liquid-soluble nutrients from fruits and vegetables so that vitamins and minerals fill the glass while the pulp stays behind. Blending, with a food processor or a standard blender, liquifies whole fruit and vegetables resulting in a thicker texture where seeds are present.

Juicing creates a smoother texture and silkier consistency. Blending can’t produce the same smoothness, but it retains fiber and antioxidants. Your nutritional needs should dictate the preferable method, so go with the one that is more appetizing to you.

Types of juicers

Juicers come in four basic types: masticating juicers, centrifugal juicers, triturating (twin gear) juicers and juice presses.

Sometimes called speed juicers, centrifugal juicers quickly slice and chop produce. The juicer then sends the material at high speed through a screen. The quickness of these extractors produces a beverage in little time, but also generates heat, which can affect the nutrients.

A slow auger, or gear, inside a masticating juicer crushes the fruit and vegetables. While it's more time-consuming, these models extract the maximum nutrition by thoroughly grinding up produce. These are sometimes called "cold" juicers because they create minimal heat.

Triturating juicers use two augers to chew ingredients up and then filter the pulp to create the juice. The powerful motors on these juicers pulverize anything; they also are the most expensive models available. These are the juicers used by the pros.

Other juicer considerations

Juicers come in different sizes and configurations. The method of extraction affects factors like noise, speed and the type of juice you make. Here is a review of these considerations.

Types of juice/yield

Certain juicers work better with specific types of fruits and vegetables, so it's important to think about what kind of produce you want to juice. Masticating juicers produce a lot of dry pulp, which means less messy waste. Masticating and triturating juicers are ideal for things like leafy greens. If you plan to juice more fruits and hard vegetables, a centrifugal juicer might be your best option.

Size and storage options

Horizontal juicers can produce a lot of juice, but they're large and less portable than other options. They’re fine if placed in a permanent spot on your countertop, but can be challenging to move from cupboard to counter for use and then back to storage.

A vertical juicer has a smaller footprint, suitable for a small kitchen or one with limited counter space. Most vertical models can easily sit inside a cabinet or on a pantry shelf. Lightweight centrifugal juicers are ideal if there's no permanent counter space and you need to store your small appliances between uses.

Noise and speed

Masticating and triturating juicers are quieter, which is an important consideration if you’re juicing early while the rest of the household is sleeping. However, if noise isn't a problem, centrifugal juicers are invariably faster.

Juicers with multiple speed options provide the versatility to handle a variety of foods. Slow speeds are good for soft fruits, while high speeds are better for firmer produce.

Ease of use

Regardless of whether you plan to juice a little or a lot, an important factor to consider is how easy the device is to set up, use and clean. Cold presses offer straightforward use and most feature a dishwasher-safe design. However, they require the most effort since your muscles provide the juicing power. Masticating, triturating and centrifugal juicers feature straightforward, user-friendly controls. Centrifugal juicers generally have more components and a slightly more complicated setup. The auger-driven unit's maximum extraction offers less waste and easier cleanup than centrifugal juicers. While most juicer models provide some dishwasher-safe parts, and all require routine deep-cleaning.

Consider juicing with a blender

Whether your regimen demands serious fiber, or you want more versatility from a small appliance, you always have the option of juicing with a blender. If you decide to go this route, you can choose between a full-size, single-serve or hand blender.

A hand or immersion blender features blades at the end of a long wand. These efficient appliances can be submerged in a variety of containers for quick performance and minimal clean-up.
A traditional model with an electric base and a removable pitcher, full-size blenders whip up traditional shakes and nutritious smoothies. Blenders give you the option of making a milkshake when you're taking a break from juice.
If you have an active lifestyle or bustling household, check out single-serve blenders. They offer the convenience of ready-to-go cups for juicing on the run or portioning for the coming week.

You can improve upon texture when you juice with a blender. Smooth out the finished product by running it through a fine mesh screen. Just remember that you may lose fiber and antioxidants in the process.

Explore the range of juicing options at your disposal then choose the appliance that's right for you and get juicing.