The main use of a juicer is to make juice. But this versatile kitchen appliance can do much more.
You can also use it to make smoothies, shakes, soups, sauces, cocktails, mocktails, nut butter, nut milk, and baby food.
Some juicers can also make sorbets or ice creams, fruit pops, and vegetable burgers in a pinch.
Let us look at each of these uses in closer detail.
1. Make Nutritious Fruit Juices
As we saw earlier, the primary purpose of a juicer is to make nutritious fruit juices. Juicing is possible with all types of juicers, whether they are centrifugal, masticating, citrus, or twin-gear juicers.
In all these juicers, you clean the ingredients and add them to the juicing compartment.
The main benefit of a juicer is that you don’t have to remove the seeds or skin.
Depending on the type of juicer, it will either crush and extract the juice or grind the components and separate the liquid from the skin and seeds.
You can cut the produce into pieces that fit the feeding tube, and the machine takes care of the rest. But the quality of the juice depends on the type of juicer.
For instance, cold-pressed juice will have an even consistency, while that made using a centrifugal juicer may contain more solid content that separates from the liquid over time.
2. Make Nutritious Vegetable Juices
Vegetables are made into juices that serve as a nutritious drink for convalescent patients or as a part of a healthy meal plan. Vegetables like cucumbers, kale, spinach, gourds, and carrots are often used for juicing.
Just like fruits, you can juice vegetables using a juicer. Removing the peel of vegetables like carrots and cucumbers is optional.
You can just chop the vegetables to the right size that fits the feeding tube of the juicer. Alternatively, you can also place them inside the juicing jar.
After the juicing process, you will have the liquid component separated from the solid part.
3. Prepare Smoothies
Juicers do a good job of blending multiple ingredients like fruits, milk, yogurt, nut butter, and nuts into luscious and creamy smoothies.
However, they may not be able to crush ice like blenders. Check the device instructions to confirm if it’s safe to crush ice in a juicer or not.
If the blades are delicate, crushing ice can damage them.
If you use the juicer with the strainer, the smoothies will be free of pulp, seeds, and other solid components. So the texture of the smoothie will not be chunky but deliciously smooth.
4. Make Shakes
Just like smoothies, you can also make protein-packed shakes, milkshakes, and various other healthy and tasty drinks in a juicer.
In this case, you will have to add all the ingredients to the juicing jar and run the juicer as usual.
It will ensure that all the ingredients combine well and achieve a homogenous consistency.
If you prefer to have a chunky shake or smoothie, you can even save the pulp from fruits and vegetables and add them to the smoothie or shake.
5. Make Soups
Juicers are good for making soups if you are on a raw food diet. Additionally, you can also use these devices to prepare the base for a soup and heat or cook it to its final consistency later.
To use a juicer for soups, chop all the ingredients into the desired size and place them inside the juicer.
You can also add herbs and seasonings like salt, pepper, basil, rosemary, thyme, or garlic.
Once the juicer blends all the ingredients to a smooth mixture, transfer it to a saucepan on the stove and heat it till the soup is cooked.
6. Prepare Sauces
Tomato sauces for pasta or pizzas are some of the sauces you can make in a juicer. But juicers will crush the tomatoes and vegetables and separate the pulp.
If you want the sauce to contain both the juice and the pulp, you must mix the solid component inside the filter with the liquid separately.
You can also add ingredients like onions, garlic, leek, and herbs to the sauce mix for a more flavorful recipe.
7. Cocktails and Mocktails
You can use a juicer to prepare the fruity part of a cocktail and mocktail. The main benefit is that this liquid will be silky smooth and free from any chunky bits.
The strainer will catch all the solids. So after preparing the smooth juice part, you can mix it with the alcohol or soda base to create delicious cocktails and mocktails.
8. Make Nut Butter
If the juicer comes with a blank screen attachment, you can use it to make nut butter.
In this case, add the nut of your choice to the container or feed it through the feeding chute. You can use peanuts, almonds, cashew nuts, and other varieties of nuts.
Add only small quantities at once. Also, add some oil or a suitable thickener to the juicer. It will chop and pulverize the nuts and mix them with the thickener.
If you prefer, you can also add a sweetener like sugar for added taste.
9. Nut Milk
To prepare nut milk in a juicer, add small amounts of nuts into the juicer with water or any other liquid of your choice.
Run it till all the nuts are chopped and release their liquid. This nut milk will combine with the water or liquid in the jar to form fresh and nutritious nut milk.
You can transfer the nut milk into a bottle or container and refrigerate it for later use.
10. Baby Food
A juicer makes it easy to prepare fresh and nutritious baby food for young babies. You can add a mix of vegetables, fruits, and other healthy ingredients into the juicer to combine them.
After they combine, you can cook them on the stove to thicken the consistency.
Alternatively, you can first steam or cook ingredients on the stovetop before adding them to the juicer.
If the juicer doesn’t have a blank plate and the solid components end up in the strainer, you can mix the pulpy part with the juice after the process.
11. Sorbet and Ice Cream
Some juicers come with a special ice cream attachment. In this case, you can use it to make homemade sorbets and ice cream.
The best way to prepare them is to use slightly thawed frozen fruit.
Add it to the juicer and let it blend into a smooth, creamy consistency.
Transfer this to ice cream or sorbet mold and chill to enjoy nutritious and fresh sorbets and ice cream.
12. Fruit Pops
To make fruit pops in a juicer, simply transfer the fresh fruit juice into fruit pop molds or icicle trays.
Place them in the freezer for a few hours. The best thing about it is that you can customize the recipe to suit your taste.
13. Vegetable Burgers
Though juicers are not the traditional choice to make vegetable burgers, they can be used for this purpose too.
You can use vegetables like carrots, beets, and spinach in the base.
After juicing these ingredients, take the pulp out of the strainer and mix it with ingredients like cooked beans for the patties.
You can also add seasonings like salt, pepper, and paprika or herbs for flavor. Shape the patties into the desired shape and thickness, and cook on the stove or grill as you like.
