Juicing for a better you

Maybe you watched a video or read a book or even know someone who is juicing now.  You might be thinking about doing vegetable and fruit juicing for your health and/or to loss weight.   Some people use juice as a detox diet for their bodies.  Regardless of your reason here is some information on starting juicing that can help you.  Whether or not you use organic vegetables and fruits is up to you.  Wash the vegetables and fruits before use.



Get started with Green Vegetable Juices
Green is THE drink for most persons juicing for health but drank also for other reasons. Some like it and some don't, it's your call. If you have never tasted green juices before you might find them a bit earthy or bitter. Try adding an apple, a few seedless grapes or other fruit. Start off by using the milder tasting green leaves like Red leaf lettuce, Green Leaf lettuce, Romaine lettuce, Lamb’s quarters or Escarole. You can use celery and cucumber too. Try adding watercress or arugula to give it a bit of pep. If you like the spicy life, adding any pepper will do, but remove the seeds and membranes before juicing or they can be overpowering.
Then experiment with green cabbage leaves, Chinese cabbage, Bok choy, spinach, parsley or cilantro. Those videos with people doing full bunches are hard core, try much smaller amounts to start. Add bitter leaves like collard greens, kale, mustard and turnip greens when you get used to the taste. Pep the vegetable juices up even more with fresh ginger (1/4"), garlic (1 clove), a radish (trimmed and peeled) or add a teaspoon or more of your favorite green food.  

Carrots
Your going to see lots of carrots in juice recipes.  This is not only because everyone agrees that they are good for you but also they produce a lot of juice for a little money and universally taste good juiced.  Trim ends before using. There is a dark side. Sugar and carbohydrates have to be watched if your a diabetic or if you count carbs.  These babies can pile them on.

Those other vegetables and fruits
Some of the fruits and vegetables that can be juiced: zucchinis, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, beetroot, parsnips, cucumbers, lettuces, garlic, parsley, ginger, cilantro, greens, melons, spinach, cabbage, endive, kale, watercress, bok choi, carrots, tomatoes, brussel sprouts, radishes, oranges, apples, pears, pineapples and most fruits.
Think about how much you are consuming in a day.  It would be rare for someone to consume 6+ apples a day or 4 pounds of carrots.  A variety of vegetables and fruits in a day is a better approach.


The juicing machine
There are various types and brands of juicers.  There are videos on YouTube and multiple websites all hawking one or the other.  Expect to see prices from around $40 to $400 for a new one.  You can learn about them on the web.  Check Ebay, your second hand store or ask if any of your friends has one you can borrow to save some money and still be able to try juicing. 
Face it, they all have ads or fans saying their brand is the best or gives the most or best juice.  You don't need to go there until you have used one, heard it run, or cleaned the thing. Check the warranty time frame.
Tip:  Use discarded shopping bags and produce bags as a juice pulp container liner, making cleanup much nicer.  Use a kitchen sprayer to rinse the parts first and after each use.  Always clean the centrifuge basket or worm gear after each use or the materials will harden on the parts and become a bitch to get off.  Wash at the end of each day the parts in the dishwasher or well by hand, this saves a lot of time and adds some convenience.
Use a jar lid or small saucer as a drip catcher for your juicer. Juice carrots and fruits that make a lot of juice AFTER the items that make little juice to help was the pulp out.  If your juicing a lot of items (by weight) clean out the machine midway to reduce motor burn out or a clogged basket.

Canned or bottled juices
There are many that yell they are all bad and have "dead" juice in them.  Maybe. You can use them to fill in between your "meals" and to curb the hunger pains.  Check the ingredients and nutrition label.  If not mostly juice (65% or more) pass.  Heavy sugar drinks or heavy fruit drinks will be detrimental and hard to give up later.  

For me, I chose commercially canned tomato juice.  Easy to find, low priced, basically good for me and a drink I don't mind drinking but not something I will over consume. If I am rushed, weak or lazy this fills in and helps keep me on track and from cheating.  Taste varies by maker and so does the can size.  Try to find a "stand by" drink for yourself or bottle some of your own homemade juice.  Homemade juice goes off flavor in a day, so consume in the same day juiced.

No comments:

Post a Comment

We would love to hear your comments.

Share

Twitter Delicious Facebook Digg Stumbleupon Favorites More