Juicers?

Some folks do go that route and have found it useful. For me, it seemed to be more trouble and mess than it was worth. I find I do just as well during a flare by sticking to well-cooked, non-fibrous veggies. I peel any fruits or veggies I consume. Blended soups are another option.

My daughter found juicing to be a great way to keep up her energy levels when she was in the middle of a flare. She could juice just about any veggie or fruit and as long as she put an apple in with it, it was pretty drinkable. (well... maybe not spinach ) She also used to eat a lot of baby food, too. The strained foods and veggie/meat combos were nutritious without a lot of residue. Hope this helps you out.

any suggestions for recipes/combinations of fruits veggies that won't cause as much gas/bloating?

any suggetions for juicer brands that really can handle the peels?

any guidance appreciated!

Ugh. I've had bad memories of juicers ever since I was eight and my dad would juice whatever was in the fridge and give it to us for breakfast. He'd make us things like broccoli-cucumber-carrot juice. No rhyme or reason.

I've got a Champion brand (masticating) juicer that I use regularly. I usually do 5-6 gala apples and 3-4 granny smith apples with a bag of baby carrots and a couple sticks of celery. It's a pulpy juice that I think provides some easy to deal with fiber, plus it tastes very good. I always save the carrot pulp separately so we can make carrot cake with it. The juicer came with a recipe book, but I usually stick with the apple/carrot/celery juice. White grape juice is awesome too, but at the current price of $4/lb it's some really expensive juice. I'll be doing some cherry/blueberry juice in the summer when (hopefully) the prices come down.

I have just realised, I didn’t give you proper information in my previous post. I am looking to buy a new juicer and have been researching brands and prices for the last few months, so the following information may be useful to you too: Centrifugal juicers are the most common and affordable type. A rotating blade cuts vegetables & fruit and this is then pushed against a strainer at very high speeds. They seem to range in price from $50 - $250 and can be brought at most High Street retail stores. Non-centrifugal juicers can be either a masticating (chewing) or a cold-press style. This style retains more vitamins, minerals and enzymes in the juice than the centrifugal juicers. They are a more specialised product and tend to cost from $500 upwards. Most juicers are single gear. Twin gear juicers are top of the range and the most expensive. From my understanding, you only really need twin gear if you are using it in a café in a high capacity setting. Although the non-centrifugal types are more expensive, they have a number of advantages: Juice can be stored for 24 – 74 hours depending on the brand of juicer. You can’t store juice from c entrifugal juicers, as it spoils within hours. Some of the brands can also be used for food processing (i.e.) mincing, grinding coffee beans, making sausages, pasta & noodles, seasonings, nut butter, soy milk, baby food and ice cream. The cold-press ones can also juice wheatgrass and herbs. They are quite to use and normally come with really good warranties of 10 or 20 years.     I can’t decide between the following two n on-centrifugal juicers: Oscar Vital Max 900 Living Juicer $499 or the Green Power Greenstar 2000 Twin Gear Juicer $995. Obviously the Oscar Vital Max is a lot cheaper but the Green Power Greenstar is meant to be one of the best in the world and people rave about it.   I plan to use the juicer twice a day, everyday, that is why I want one that will last for years.   I juicer I currently own is a centrifugal juicers . I paid about $120 for it and it is terrible. It is always over-heating and it is very loud. It seriously struggles when I try to juice hard carrots or delicate things like spinach. And it is a pain-in-the-you-know-where to clean.   Anyway I hope my research assists you in some way.

kelina said...
does it matter if you peel or take the seeds out before you juice them?

 

If the produce is certified organically grown, I will juice the peel and seeds.

 

If the produce is conventionally grown, I will peel and de-seed first.

 

However, it can also depend on the product, as obviously apples are much easier and less time consuming to peel than grapes.

 

Also many nutrients are found in or just below the surface of the skin, so if you peel the product, you will lose a lot of those nutrients.

 

Then again, in conventionally grown produce, pesticides can be at their most concentrated in or just below the surface of the skin.

 

Also there are some items that you would definitely peel, whether organic or not (i.e.) beetroot bulbs.

 

There are hundreds of books available for sale (or check your local library for free hire) on the subject.

 

I always eat the whole Kiwi fruit – but everyone I have ever met, peels it first.

 

So I suppose in the end, it’s an individual choice to what suits you best.

 

 

texasyankee said...
I have been using the Greenstar juicer, borrowed from a friend, and while it does a great job of extracting juice from the pulp it is a pain to clean.

 

 

This is excellent information - thank you.

 

Until yesterday, I have only seen these juicers on-line.

 

I saw the Oscar Vital Max 900 Living Juicer in a shop yesterday and it looks like it could be a pain to clean too.

 

But maybe that’s the sacrifice I will need to make, to get the most nutrients from a machine.

I also bought a juicer and not a very expensive one. I have found that it doesn't seem to squeeze out alot of juice. So, I didn't pay the extra $ up front in the cost of the juicer but I am certainly paying for the extra because it takes a significant amount more of fruit to "juice" to make a serving (especially with veg's). It appears that the extra money upfront will pay off if you really use the juicer.

I think you're missing the point about juicing. Yea, you can go to the store and buy juice, but there's not much there......it's flavored water for the most part. A masticating juicer like I use simply chews up whatever you stick in it and extracts the maximum amount of juice. The pulp is almost totally dry. It costs slightly more than buying pre-bottled juice, but you get the full benefit of consuming the raw, unprocessed fruit/vegetable. Centrifugal juicers aren't going to pull all the juice from the fruit, so there's a lot of waste, and they're hard to clean. It takes 2-3 minutes to clean mine and put it away. I got it online for under $200.