There far less expensive juicers on the market. The Ntribullet is a relatively small one, but has a high power motor.
In comparisons done by Consumer Reports, most of the moderate priced ones are alike in how much juice they extract; give or take.
Cuisinart & Black & Decker are both fairly good and have moderately priced models of the most common variety of juicer.
There are 2 basic kinds of juicer. The most common are the ones that have a high revolution motor, and use a shredder-spinner combination to extract the juice. The other kind has a slow revolution motor and grinder-masher mechanism to extract the juice.
Choosing the one that is right for you depends on what you intend to juice the most. The high revolution motor style most commonly found in stores, is for juicy produce like fruit and root vegetables, cucumbers, celery etc.
The slow revolution motor style is for leafy greens and more fibrous produce like wheat grass and members of the cabbage family. These are usually only available on-line or in specialty health food stores.
What to look for in a juicer:
- high power motor (the highest power that you can afford)
- large receiving chute that you put the produce into (reduces having to cut the produce into small bits)
- fine shredding blade (the finer the better as this allows more juice to be extracted)
- large receptacle for the shredded produce (cuts down on having to stop and clean the receptacle when making a lot of juice or working with fibrous produce)
- large container that holds the juice, preferably with a lid, so left overs can be stored for later use in the same container
- steel is preferable to plastic/aluminum for the gears, shredding and grinding blades because it will last longer. Plastic tends to wear down, especially in the gears
- the fewest parts possible that is easily dis-assembled for cleaning
- smooth surfaces inside and out; sharp corners tend to trap shredded vegetation and makes cleaning a chore
You can also put a blender to work for juicing:
Add a bit of water to the receptacle, add chopped vegetables/fruit and blend on high until it is pureed. Add water as needed to allow the blender to work. Put a fine mesh strainer over a bowl (a jelly bag can be used instead) and pour the contents into the strainer/jelly bag. Set in the fridge to drain. Squeezing the jelly bag to get the juice works well too.
You use the fibrous left overs in soup and stew, or can make mineral & fiber rich crackers out it:
Crackers:
To the fibrous left overs (vegetables work best), add enough of any of the following or a combination: ground flax/quinoa flakes/nut meal, to get the consistency of thick cooked oatmeal.
Spread 1/4 inch thick onto cookie sheets, score into 2 x 3" squares and bake at 150 F until fairly dry. Turn the pieces over to dry on the other side. If you have a dehydrator, use that instead of the oven. It takes around 10 hours to dry.
Voila...low calorie, high fiber, nutritious, crunchy snack crackers that go well with dip or topped with nut butters, yogurt, salsa etc.
Happy juicing

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With love, Erika