What is Cold Pressed Juice?
Cold pressed juice is made from a hydraulic press (such as a cold-pressed juice machine) that extracts the juice from fruits or vegetable. It’s made 100% from the juice of fruits or vegetables and doesn’t have any added ingredients.
The juice is extracted using a slower process than centrifugal juicers and retains a higher nutritional value than other juices because the enzymes in the juice are not heated enough to break them down.
Home pressed juices give you more juice and they last much longer in the fridge! The best cold-pressed juicer, in my opinion, is The Biochef Axis juicer.
How to Make Cold-Pressed Juice
There are two ways you can make cold-press juice. The first way is by grinding the produce into a pulp, wrapping the fruit into a filter bag, then using force to squeeze the liquid out. However, this is a long process requiring some serious elbow grease! Having a cold-pressed juicer substantially cuts down the time and effort needed.
Here’s how to make cold-pressed juice using a cold-press juice machine:
- Cut down your fruit, or vegetables, to size so it will fit in your juicer.
- Insert your fruit or vegetables into the juicer to grind the produce.
Hey presto – cold pressed juice! What could be easier?
You’ll need to choose the speed based on the amount of juice you are using and your machine. If you’re only making a single juice, then you’ll want to use a single-speed. If you’re making a larger batch, switch to a batch speed. Note that a batch speed will take longer.
Your juicer will apply pressure to the pulp that it creates, and you’ll be left with the extracted cold-pressed juice. You can store your fresh juice for about a week in the fridge.
Cold Pressed Juice Benefits
I drink pressed juice every day as a way to start my mornings. While my partner has been into juicing for years and swears that juicing has increased his energy levels, I wasn’t convinced at first. I used to think that juicing was a fad that would pass with time.
Drinking juice might sound like an insane way to overcome ailments at home. Or maybe you’re worried that, unlike with smoothies, you don’t get the fibre in your drink. So I wanted to share some of the benefits of cold-pressed juice.
The Benefits of Cold-Press Juice
Here are some of the main benefits for why cold-press juice is worth it!
- Cold-pressed juice is healthier: Fruits and vegetables are full of vitamins and antioxidants. Cold pressing allows you to drink all of those benefits from the fruits and vegetables that you consume.
- You get more juice when you cold-press with a juicer: Fresh produce can be expensive, especially if you aren’t able to buy seasonal fruits and vegetables. When you juice your fruits and vegetables, you want to be able to get the most juice that you can! Cold-pressing gives you a lot more juice than other methods, and the machines do all the work for you!
- Juicing is an easy way to consume more fruits and vegetables: Eating fruits and vegetables can be difficult. If you’re a busy person, who doesn’t have time to munch on an apple or grab a carrot, juicing can help you get your daily recommended fruits and vegetables while on the go!
How Does a Cold Press Juicer Work?
A cold-pressed juice machine may also be referred to as a cold press masticating juicer or a slow juicer but they are, essentially, different names for the same thing.
A cold press juicer works differently than a standard juicer (sometimes called a centrifugal juicer) This type of juicer uses a different process to create juices from fruits and vegetables. It involves very little to no heat and separates the juice from the rest of the fruit or vegetables by slowly placing pressure on the produce and squeezing the juice out.
A cold press juicer works by using a screw auger to squeeze and crush the produce to get the juice. As a result, the nutrients and enzymes are left intact within the juice.
How Long Does Cold Pressed Juice Last?
Fresh-pressed juice lasts much longer than other juicing methods. Since there is no heat involved in the extraction of the juice, cold-pressed juice still preserves the enzymes and vitamins from the fruits and vegetables. The shelf life of cold-pressed juice is about 3-5 days in the fridge and it can be left out for about 12-24 hours at room temperature.
Can You Freeze Cold Pressed Juice?
As long as there are no heating techniques used to make your cold-press juice, you can freeze your raw cold-press juices and still preserve the vitamins, enzymes, minerals, and flavours.
Freezing cold-pressed juice is as simple as putting it in a bottle or freezer-safe container and then placing it in your freezer.
Once the pressed juice is frozen, it must be kept in the freezer to avoid degrading the flavour or nutritional value of the juices. It can be stored for up to six months frozen.
Best Fruits and Vegetables to Use
You can use just about any fruits or vegetables to create healthy fresh cold press juice but some things are easier than others. If you want to juice a lot of very hard items, like carrots . or sweet potato, make sure to get a high quality juicing machine that can handle the tougher ingredients.
Some low quality juicers also struggle to extract much juice from leafy greens due to their thin and delicate nature. If you want to take advantage of being able to juice things like spinach and kale be mindful of this when buying a juicer.
My cold press juicer reviews will let you know exactly which juicers are best for which ingredients so make sure to take a look. My favourite all round juicer is the Biochef Axis cold press juicer, so be sure to check it out.
Here are some of my favourite fruits and vegetables to juice but don’t limit yourself to just my favourites!
- Spinach or Kale – Both pack a punch when it comes to nutrients and vitamins but the flavours are so mild they can easily be disguised with the small addition of a nice sweet fruit. You’d never even know you were drinking them.
- Celery – Very low in calories and packed full of vitamin A, C and K and leaves a delicious tang to the juice.
- Ginger – Goes great in carrot and orange juice to give a little kick and is supposed to be great for the immune system.
- Carrots – Their mild natural sweetness means you don’t have to add very much fruit to disguise any vegetable taste and all that beta-carotene has to be good for you!
- Green Apple – Any apple is great for juicing but the strong flavour and sweetness in green apples is perfect for disguising vegetable tastes and added a hit of sweetness.
Cold Pressed Juice Recipes
Juicing is a fun and delicious way to enjoy a healthy drinkable treat that will leave you feeling fantastic. Fruits and vegetables are a vital part of living a healthy lifestyle, and juicing can be a great way to sneak in more opportunities for fruits and vegetables.
If you are starting with juicing, then you’re going to want to grab your cold-press juicer and try out some of these recipes! Don’t be afraid to try the vegetable packed juices, you’ll be surprised how delicious and sweet some of them are.
Mean Green Juice – Spinach, cucumber, celery, green apple and mint
Beetroot Zing – Beetroot, carrot, apple, celery and ginger
Sweet Potato Pick Up – Sweet potato, carrot and orange
Carrot Boost – Carrot, orange, ginger
While there are a bunch of different ways you can enjoy fruit and vegetable juice, cold-pressed juice is my favourite way! You can enjoy the same store-bought pressed juice for a fraction of the price, and the health benefits are undeniable!
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