Using a juicer is an excellent way to improve your intake of fruits and vegetables. Now, one of the most common questions people have about juicers is, do juicers need water?
Juicers don’t need water to operate. They squeeze out the juices from fruits and vegetables. That’s why you don’t have to add water in them to extract the juices. Depending on whether it’s a centrifugal or cold-press juicer, it will either grind or cut and press the fruits to extract their juice.
Let’s talk about this in detail now.
How Do Juicers Operate?
Juicers in the most basic form consist of a jar with blades or pressing gears, a chute through which they drop the produce, a plunger to push the ingredients, and a motorized base.
Depending on the type of juicer and the produce, you may have to chop the ingredients to fit the chute.
The device will efficiently liquefy the ingredients, separate the juice from the pulp, and release the juice into a container.
Now, there are two different types of juicers: centrifugal juicers and cold-press juicers.
Both these devices work in slightly different ways.
1. Centrifugal Juicers
Centrifugal juicers use centrifugal force to separate the juice from the pulp.
They have sharp spinning discs that operate at high speed.
When you place ingredients in a centrifugal juicer, the blades shred and cut the ingredients.
Due to the spinning action of the jar, the juice that forms will move to the edges.
It passes into the mesh or sieve in this area.
The sieve catches the solid pulp while allowing the juice to fall through.
It collects at the bottom of the jar. You can conveniently pour it out through the sprout.
In these centrifugal juicers, the spinning action of the blades and the jar separates the juice from the pulp.
It also produces a lot of froth and foam.
After the juicing process, you can extract the pulpy remnants and discard them.
Centrifugal juicers can juice most fruits and vegetables.
However, they don’t produce impressive results with hard, fibrous, and leafy ingredients.
2. Cold-Press Or Masticating Juicers
The second type of juicer is the cold-press juicer.
They operate at slower speeds than centrifugal juicers.
Hence, they are also called slow juicers.
These appliances crush the ingredients before extracting the liquid.
You begin the process by pushing fruits and vegetables down the chute.
A pair of rotating gears will drag down the ingredients and crush them.
The resulting crushing and pressing action releases fine juice and leaves the pulp behind.
Then the juice passes through a fine filter which separates any remaining solid particles.
Since cold-press juicers use high pressure and force to extract liquid, the remaining pulp is very dry.
The main benefit of using cold-press juicers is that they extract maximum liquid and nutrients.
Hence, these juicers yield more nutritious juice than centrifugal juicers.
Another advantage is that these juicers can juice dry, leafy, and hard ingredients like kale and spinach.
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Should You Add Water To A Juicer?
Juicers can extract fresh juice from fruits and vegetables without any need for water.
They are different from blenders, which need a liquid medium.
A blender needs some type of liquid to create a drag.
The liquid pulls the ingredients and pulverizes them into a uniform mixture.
In the absence of enough liquid, the blades of a blender will take longer to cut through the ingredients and face more friction.
However, a juicer uses a different mechanism.
The blades of juicers can operate in the absence of liquids.
They can crush and pulverize the pulp of fruits and vegetables.
Regardless of whether it is a centrifugal juicer or a cold-press juicer, it will extract the liquid from the ingredients easily.
Juicing is a great way to get a lot of nutrients into a glass of drink.
Nevertheless, not everyone is fond of concentrated juice.
So, you can add water to a juicer. It will not interfere with the device’s operation.
If you like to have your juices in diluted form, you can always pour some water into the juicer.
The device will blend the added liquid with the fruit extract and yield diluted juice.
However, if you intend to increase the amount of juice or dilute its thickness, adding water may not be the best option.
Water doesn’t improve the nutritional value of the juice.
It will only increase the volume of the juice and make it feel watered down.
So, you will have to drink more juice to enjoy the same nutritional benefits as opposed to using only fruits or vegetables.
Adding water will also reduce the flavor and make the juice very watery.
It’s better to add more fruits or vegetables to your juice.
Whether it is to cut the bitterness out of sour fruits or to enjoy a bigger glass of juice, you can add more fruit into the mix.
Adding fruits or vegetables with high liquid content, like kiwis or cucumbers, will dilute the flavors of strong ingredients.
It will also enhance the health benefits of your drink.
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When Should You Add Water To A Juicer?
Water doesn’t improve the nutritional value of a juice.
It only increases the volume and dilutes the concentration of fruit or vegetable.
It’s not necessary to add water when using a juicer.
This device can extract fresh juice from the ingredients itself and it doesn’t need any liquid to operate. However…
You may prefer to add water to a juicer in the following situations.
- The juice is difficult to drink: Certain ingredients like ginger have strong and intense flavors. Similarly, green juices made with a lot of leafy vegetables can taste bitter. You may find it difficult to drink these juices in their concentrated form. In such situations, it may be useful to dilute the juice with water. It will be easier to drink the juice when it’s not too concentrated.
- To store it for later use: Fresh juices are best consumed soon after preparation. However, if you will not be drinking your juice right away, you can use water to fill your bottle to the brim and store it for future use. For instance, when you put bottles in the fridge, you should try to fill them up to the brim. Any space will trap air and increase the chance of spoilage. If you don’t have enough juice to fill the bottle, add just enough water to reach the brim. It will ensure that the juice keeps for longer. Juices made with centrifugal juicers should be had within a day. Cold-pressed juice keeps better and you can have it within three days.
Interesting Further Reading:
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How To Add Water To A Juicer?
If you decide to dilute your fruit or vegetable juice with water, you can add the water to the jar before you add fruits and vegetables to the chute.
The fruit juice will mix with the water and form a uniform mixture.
However, when you add water to a juice and let it stand for too long the juice can settle into two layers.
So it’s best to consume the juice immediately after preparation.
It will taste best when freshly prepared and provide the nutritive benefits of the ingredients.
