Freshly squeezed juices are a storehouse of vitamins necessary for our health. Having a household appliance for a priceless drink, you can provide them with your family throughout the year.
Unfortunately, most buyers are not very sure about what points to pay attention to when buying. Let's find out together how to choose a home juicer so that it becomes your best assistant.
Why do we need it
A home appliance for making juice does not belong to the category of basic necessities. It is quite possible to do without it, getting a vitamin complex from pharmaceutical preparations or regularly consuming fresh fruits and vegetables.
Unfortunately, most children do not really want to eat healthy foods, preferring sweets and carbonated drinks to them. Therefore, all attempts to feed your favorite child in the winter with grated carrots or coleslaw will most likely be futile. But if you squeeze juice out of these vegetables and serve it in a beautiful glass with a cocktail tube, then even the most capricious kid will not refuse such a treat.
Our review article contains basic information on the technical characteristics and operation principle of various types of devices for obtaining juice. We hope that, armed with new knowledge, it will be easier for you to understand how to choose a juicer for your family.
For whom we squeeze juices
Household appliances that the trading network offers us differ not only in the brand names of the manufacturers, but also in the features of the device. Therefore, to find out exactly how to choose a good juicer, you should answer several important questions:
- What fruits and berries do you like most of all juices from?
- What do you prefer: juice with or without pulp?
- How much drink is supposed to be produced?
The first item can even be expanded by finding out the region of your residence and the seasonal availability of fruits and vegetables for your wallet. The answer to the last question is easier to give, knowing the number of members of your family and their preferences.
Divide into types
The wide variety of juice dispensers available on store shelves may at first lead you into a slight confusion. Indeed, how to choose a juicer from such an assortment of models?
According to the principle of action, all devices for the production of juices are divided into two groups:
- screw;
- centrifugal.
Juicers of the first group are most often used in domestic conditions. Representatives of the second group have a universal purpose.
Miscellaneous management
In turn, screw type juicers according to the control method are divided into three types:
- hand held;
- mechanical;
- electric.
The manual device works by analogy with a meat grinder. The main difference is the conical shape of the screw. If you find it difficult to choose which screw juicer and are limited in means, then you can purchase a special nozzle that is attached to a meat grinder. Thus, a traditional forcemeat scrolling device will simultaneously serve as a home appliance for producing a fresh vitamin drink.
Mechanical devices operate on the principle of press-pressing. Manage this design will have to using a simple lever. Electric juicers are equipped with a powerful engine that drives a disk grater.
Subtypes of electrical devices
How to choose a juicer for home, so as not to be mistaken? It is necessary to pay attention to its purpose. In accordance with these parameters, electrical appliances are divided into three categories:
- household - used in the home kitchen;
- professional - produce juice in large volumes and are applicable at catering enterprises;
- industrial - powerful devices for large processing plants.
Next, we propose to consider in more detail the different options for models of household appliances for juice. To get started, find out how to choose a citrus juicer. This will be easy to do after we study the device and the principle of operation of the unit.
Golden orange
Lemons, grapefruits and oranges are literally filled with delicious refreshing juice, which has absorbed the strength and color of the southern sun. It is not difficult to isolate the liquid from the fruit, since the pulp of citrus fruits consists of thin-walled capsules, which easily part with their contents. The specialized juicer has a simple device, low productivity and is intended for only one type of fruit.
The complete set of the device includes the following elements:
- cone-shaped nozzle;
- control lever;
- engine;
- capacity for collecting juice.
The juicer works simply. Ripe fruits are cut in half and placed on the cone with the pulp down. By pressing the lever, the press mechanism is actuated, which reliably squeezes out all the liquid from the half of the orange. There are also inexpensive hand-held devices that do not have a lever on sale, so you have to press them to the cone with a hand effort.
The juicer is quickly filled with squeezed fibers, so after one or two glasses of juice, you need to take a break and clean the cone. The device is quite suitable for a small family of two to three people. The approximate consumption of fruit for one glass of drink is three medium oranges. It is not difficult to take care of the device - it is easily washed under a strong stream of water.
The information received is enough to know exactly how to choose a juicer. Reviews of citrus drink lovers note one slight inconvenience in use. This is a quick heating of the press, which negatively affects the beneficial properties of fresh juice. As you know, under the influence of elevated temperatures, the rapid destruction of vitamin C occurs. Therefore, the juice obtained from oranges should be drunk immediately after squeezing.
We press
How to choose a juicer for apples? In home appliance stores, pay attention to press-based appliances. Their cost is quite high, but this is fully justified by the excellent quality of the juice obtained. To the question of how to choose a juicer for carrots, you can safely answer the following: pay attention to the hydraulic screw presses.
They can perfectly squeeze juices not only from root crops, juicy fruits or vegetables. Press juicers are able to squeeze out liquid even from greens and leaf crops. A good result is achieved through the preliminary preparation of fruits and vegetables. Washed fruits are first cleaned of seeds and seeds, and then finely chopped with a knife. As a result, we get juice of excellent quality and absolutely dry meal.
Now it becomes clear how to choose a fruit juicer to get a quality drink. There is only one drawback with press devices - the complexity of the preparatory process. In a situation where you are thirsty and want to get a glass of life-giving moisture right this second, such a juicer can hardly be considered as an ambulance.
To achieve a quick result, it is better to pay attention to a different type of device. Let's discuss in more detail how to choose a juicer for apples and other juicy fruits and vegetables.
Centrifugal force to help
Among fans of freshly squeezed juices, centrifuge machines are most popular. With their help, you can squeeze the juice with maximum return. But this applies only to hard and juicy fruits, such as apples, pears, quinces, carrots, pumpkins, celery root and the like. Unfortunately, good juice cannot be obtained from bananas, raspberries, blackberries and other fruits with a low moisture content.
How to choose a juicer for vegetables with a centrifuge? Pay attention to the power of the device. The high efficiency of such devices guarantees the receipt of a whole liter of juice in just half a minute. Agree, this is an excellent result, especially for those people who experience a constant lack of time.
The composition of the components is small:
- engine;
- knives
- a sieve (there may be several of them in a set, with different cell sizes);
- two containers - for juice and oilcake.
Fruits, falling under the blade of a knife, are crushed, and then under the influence of centrifugal force are pressed through a sieve. The size of the cells directly affects the amount of pulp in the resulting juice.
Pros and cons of centrifuge crush
How to choose a juicer to get juice fast? Particular attention must be paid to the diameter of the inlet. The larger it is, the easier it is to get juice. Fruits can be lowered into the wide neck simply whole and without any cleaning. It is convenient to use a pusher made of wood or plastic to finish fruit.
The power of the engine directly affects the rate of juice production. How to choose a juicer for domestic use? Buy the model that has a power of no higher than 500 watts. Such an aggregate works not too noisy and produces a large amount of juice in a short period of time.
If you need only two glasses for daily consumption, then you can buy a device designed for consumption of 250 watts. Imagine you throw whole apples and after a few seconds you get a whole glass of amber drink. Therefore, among the obvious advantages of centrifugal juicers are high labor productivity and excellent quality of the juice obtained.
A disadvantage can be considered the same property of rapid heating, as with devices designed to work with citrus fruits. Exposure to temperature inevitably leads to the oxidation of the juice. As a result, it quickly darkens and changes its taste. Vitamins are also destroyed very quickly. To avoid this, you need to try to drink juice within five to eight minutes after receiving.
Screw devices - sales leaders
How to choose a universal juicer? Pay attention to devices with a screw mechanism - this will provide you with high-quality juice from any berries, fruits, vegetables, herbs and cereals. The principle of operation of the device is similar to a meat grinder. The metal axis with a twisted spiral intensively rotates and grinds the fruits.
The resulting pulp is pressed through a fine-mesh lattice and already flows into the substituted container in the form of juice. The cake is soft and wet. This unit belongs to the category of manual auger machines. They extract juice well from soft and juicy fruits and vegetables (citrus fruits, tomatoes, cabbage, herbs and so on).
When you are faced with the task of figuring out how to choose a universal juicer, you need to know what other types of auger devices work efficiently. Devices with a vertically arranged screw screw are the best option for obtaining a large amount of juice from almost any fruit.
Horizontal augers can also cope with various types of fruits, vegetables and herbs. In addition, they have additional options. The ability to regulate the concentration in the pulp juice allows you to prepare healthy mashed potatoes for babies. And squeezing cereal products or nuts, you get a great butter.
Advantages and disadvantages of screw juicers
The main advantage is the presence of cold pressed.In the process of extraction, the juice does not heat up, respectively, it does not oxidize and retains its freshness and usefulness for a long time. The high content of vitamins and minerals is also due to the principle of grinding the fruit pulp at low engine speeds (70-120 rpm). For comparison: in centrifugal devices, the rotation speed is in the range of 1000 - 20 000 rpm.
Another positive quality of screw machines is the low noise level of the engine. Care for juicers does not require much effort, because the number of working parts in them is minimal.
Only one circumstance can be added to the list of disadvantages of screw models - a relatively high cost. But this fact, of course, pays off with multifunctionality of devices. One screw juicer may well act as a food processor.
Now the question "which screw juicer to choose" should not be in front of you. It is obvious that both vertical and horizontal devices work with the same performance and excellent quality. And the ability to produce juice by cold pressing allows you to regularly maintain your health at the proper height.
Making the final choice
Whatever type of juicer you choose for your family, we recommend that you do not forget to pay attention to some important little things when buying. For example, it is better to give preference to those models that come with a large set of accessories.
This facilitates operation and increases the safety of the use of devices. It is convenient to use a special cover made in the form of a tray. It protects the device from external pollution and prevents the loss of food. It is good when a special brush for cleaning internal surfaces is included in the package.
Pay special attention to the power and performance of the juicer. Analyze your needs and decide what is most important for you: small portions of a fresh drink daily or large volumes of canned juice.
The service life of any model of juicer depends not only on the brand, quality and capabilities of the device. The duration and duration of the operation are directly affected by the frequency and intensity of use, as well as the quality of care for the device.
