Everyone knows about fruit juices, carrot juice, tomato juice, and maybe even melon juice - but you can create juice from almost any vegetable. In fact anything that can be eaten fresh (without cooking), can be juiced. Some vegetables however need to be cooked to be palatable or to remove undesirable chemicals in the flesh; potatoes or brown onions for instance, so these are not good candidates for juicing.
The biggest trick to creating fresh vegetable juices is to make them taste good so some people add carrots or apples for sweetness. So yes there are ways to avoid drinking a mix that is akin to tasting grass clippings!
Tips
- Always use fresh vegetables.
- You can mix fruits with vegetables to improve taste.
- Make sure that for each serving you use at least 2/3rd green vegetables and no more than 1/3rd fruit, carrots or beets (anything containing sugars); blood sugar levels spike if you use too many sweet fruits and vegetables. This is important for everyone but especially so if you have problems with the control of blood sugar or if you are diabetic.
- Preferably use organic produce for best health benefits but if you can’t then just make sure you wash your vegetables really well before using.
- Try to include the peel or skins as these contain most of the nutritional value as well as the most fibre.
- Use a variety of vegetables and vary those you use each day.
- Most fruits can be added to leafy vegetable blends, but if you use starchy vegetables like carrots and beets or even zucchini or broccoli then only use apple; starchy food blended with fruits high in sugars can have an effect on the functioning ability of the digestive enzymes in your body.
- Blend for as short a time as possible to prevent oxidisation (when the food is exposed to oxygen through processing it immediately triggers oxidisation) and this can affect the nutritional value. To help prevent this blend slowly at first and then only on high for a couple of seconds.
- Buy the best blender possible within your budget. – A strong motor ie 600 watt will pulverise broccoli stems, watermelon and grape seeds which are rich in zinc and magnesium.
- Ensure that you do not use the following seeds and pits when blending or juicing as they contain a chemical that can release cyanide into the body when ingested.look for a blender with a strong motor. A 600 watt motor will pulverise the fruit and vegetables making it easier for the nutrients to be absorbed into the body.
- Drink it fresh!
- Clean the blender thoroughly after use.
