People have always enjoyed drinking freshly squeezed fruit juice at home. In the past, this has been limited to the juice
of citrus fruits and melons because of their higher juice to pulp ratio and the ease of extracting the juice. Today, this is not the case. It is possible to purchase juicers today that will extract the juice of virtually any fruit or vegetable. This article will discuss how to make natural fruit juices at home utilizing one of these juicers.
Juicers come in three distinct types, centrifugal, masticating, and twin gear. Each type has its own advantages and drawbacks. The common trait they all share is that the meat, or pulp, of the fruits is compressed to break the cell walls of the cells and release the juice.
Centrifugal juicers work by straining the pulp of the fruit against a basket that contains very tiny openings for the juice to squeeze out through. This basket spins rapidly, creating a buildup of centrifugal force to push the pulp against the grating sides of the basket. This same centrifugal force will force the juice out through the openings in the basket as long as there is free space for it flow through. The pulp tends to build up and must be cleaned out more frequently than with other types of juicers. Centrifugal juicers work best with relatively wet fruits, citrus and melon for example.
Masticating juicers work in much the same manner as a jaw chewing the pulp of the fruits to break the fiber and cell walls down. The juice is then shunted off to a collection point and the pulp that is left over to another collection point for disposal. This removal of the pulp allows for continuous juicing operation if so desired without having to stop to remove pulp. Masticating juicers work well with almost any fruit and many vegetables. They do run slower than centrifugal juicers.
Twin gear juicers have two very fine toothed interlocking gears that will squeeze the juice out virtually anything that is placed inside it. These juicers do not do as well with very wet fruit types because the softer pulp tends to clog the gears and spaces surrounding them. Average to very dry fruits work well in a twin gear juicer as do most vegetables, including wheat grass.
With a working juicer of one of the types listed above, making natural fruit juices at home is as easy as flipping a switch and dropping in the fruit.
