Juicing Basics: How To Get Started With Healthy Juicing

Sounds appealing, a healthy juice cocktail with all the essential nutrients your body needs. But you don’t even know the juicing basics. What do you need? How long does it take? Which veggies can you use? Is it expensive and on and on! Don’t be put off because it’s simple and you can learn the basics right here on this page and get started today!

Why Juice Anyway?

Why would anyone want to juice vegetables and fruit? Firstly raw fruit and vegetables are nature’s Super Foods and are simply bursting with essential nutrients. Cooking vegetables destroys some of these nutrients but juicing them helps us get even more than our 5 a day! A simple juice can deliver the nutrients in a plateful of raw spinach or a huge salad. But there is an even better reason, especially if you are older or have not been well. As we age our body loses the ability to absorb nutrients in the solid form but juices can be absorbed immediately supplying all the vitamins, minerals and enzymes for use right away. Besides, fresh juices taste fantastic!

Which Juicer?

You need a juicer and you’ll be glad to hear it need not be expensive. There are two types.

• Centrifugal juicers and
• Masticating juicers

The centrifugal juicer with a wide chute is the one you will probably choose to begin juicing. A wide chute makes it possible to add a whole apple or large pieces of fruit or vegetables without much cutting up. It is by far less expensive and works for all fruits and vegetables. It is said there is minor loss of nutrition because of heat caused by the juicing process. It is probably also true to say that slightly less juice is produced by this type. Any downsides though are offset by the speed with which you can make juices. That’s preparing, juicing and getting cleaned up again.

If you really get into juicing every day and want to juice your own wheatgrass or you want to make sure that none of the nutrients are harmed during the juicing process and you achieve the highest juice yield for your fruits and veggies then a masticating juicer is for you. Before you make this investment you will be long past the juicing basics and know exactly what you want.

What Can We Juice?

Any vegetable you like and any fruit in any combination you think will taste good for you. Of course there are loads of recipes in books and on my website but you can take a few apples as your base and add leaves, carrots, celery, cucumber or whatever takes your fancy. It’s also possible to sneak in something good that you don’t normally eat like spinach and mixed with other flavours you won’t even notice. You can experiment by adding fruits and ginger or herbs to enhance the taste. To turn a juice into a smoothie just whiz with a banana or half an avocado in your blender.. delicious!

Anything Else?

It’s important to drink your healthy juices as soon as possible because vitamins and other essential nutrients have a short life. If you do need to keep a juice for later make sure your container is dark and air tight. Always clean your juicer as soon as you are finished otherwise the juices stick firmly to the pieces of the machine and make it hard to clean. First the clean up, then the juice! Simple juicing basics complete! Get started with juicing! It’s the single best thing you can do for yourself, your kids, grand kids and anyone else whose health and well-being are precious to you! Juice up your life!