Ok, if you are looking for your first juicer, you may feel as if you are lost in a sea of choices. There are hundreds of models to choose from. So how do you know 'what is the best juicer for you?'
Fortunately, I have been using juicing machines regularly for the past 10 years. I love to cook and spend most of my spare time in the kitchen making something or other, and I have used a lot of gadgets (I love gadgets!) and made a lot of juice.
While I am not the most definitive expert in the world regarding juicers, I have used and owned a variety of machines and I can certainly point you in the right direction based on what is right for you.
The most important thing to understand is the difference between the two main types of electric juicer machines: Masticating juicers and Centrifugal Juicers.
Made famous by the Jack LaLanne infomercial (a great guy, but steer clear of his juicer, it is not so great), the centrifugal style juicing machine is usually the type that jumps to mind when people think of a juice extractor. I recommend the centrifugal machines made by Breville, they are awesome.
The upside of these centrifugal juicers is that they make juice super fast. With a high-quality Breville juicer machine, you can make a juice in just 4 seconds if you got your fruits and veggies all lined up. The fast-speed system also makes it effortless, you don't need to use force, just a light push on the pusher and the juicer does the rest.
These machines use a high-speed cutting disc, something like a round cheese grater. This disc rotates rapidly, chopping produce into tiny pieces that are then pushed by centrifugal force against a filter basket. This force squeezes out additional juice to that released during the grating.
The cons of the centrifugal variety are that they don't extract as much juice and nutrition from fruits and veggies as masticating machines. They work fast but are less thorough.
Also, the high-speed mechanism produces heat that causes some oxidation, this kills some of the antioxidants and creates some foam. However, don't let this make you think that produce bad juice - they don't. You still get an awesome nutritious glass of juice full of health benefits, but if your priority is to get the most nutritious juice possible, then you will need a masticating juicer.
Click Here to check out my reviews of the 5 Best Centrifugal Juicers.
Masticating juicers use a slow method for extracting juice.
Take a look at the pic above, the green/beige part is the gear that extracts the juice. This is why masticating juicers are also known as 'single gear juicers'. This gear rotates slowly to crush the juice out of produce that is passed down the shoot.
The slow thorough action has several benefits:
The flip side of these benefits:
Click Here to check out my reviews of the 5 Best Masticating Juicers.
Just a quick note here to add blenders to the mix since they are a "kind" of juicing. The main upside to blending is that you keep all the fiber of fruits and veggies. The "disadvantage" is that less fruits and vegetables are used per juice since the fiber is additional volume. Thus you get more antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.
