How to Make a Fresh Juice Without a Juicer

Let’s be honest—juicing is quite the pricey habit. Unlike more common kitchen appliances, like blenders or food processors, which are able to tackle a handful of kitchen tasks, there’s only so much that you can do with a juicer (hint: it involves...juice). That’s why it can often feel like too much of an investment for something that you likely won’t use every day (unless you live on a perpetual cleanse, in which case it might be worth it).

On top of the fact that juicers are going to take a serious swing at your bank account, they’re also a huge kitchen counter hog and they’re a pain in the a** to clean. At this point, if you’re not convinced that maybe you don’t need that juicer in your Amazon shopping cart, then there’s no saving you. Just proceed to checkout, you big spender, you. However, if you can control your spending impulses and you’re still craving a freshly squeezed juice, look no further than the items you already have in your kitchen to get the job done.

Watch Now: How to Juice Citrus Fruit

All you’ll need is a blender, a strainer, and a large bowl. I feel confident advising you to buy any/all of these items if you do not already own them because they can help you achieve success in a wide variety of kitchen activities beyond fresh juices. Now, take the produce items that you’re looking to transform into a silky-smooth juice and give them a whirl in the blender. Anything from celery to carrots to beets and fresh ginger root is fair game. If you’d add it to a juicer, go ahead and toss it into your blender.

Not to mention, foods like ginger, carrots, and beets don’t necessarily need to be scrubbed (if they’re organic) and peeled. In the case of citrus and apples, don’t worry about coring or seeding, as it will be strained out later. Ideally, it’s helpful to incorporate some water-heavy fruits, like citrus, tomatoes, or cucumbers, to help the concoction blend into a uniform liquid. Put these in the blender first so that they’re closest to the blade and will start blending immediately. If you’re having trouble getting the components to blend, add in some water or unfiltered apple juice to get it going.

Once all of the fruits and veggies are nice and blended, place your strainer on top of a large bowl, and run the mixture through the strainer. This way, you’re filtering out any seeds, fibers, or pulp that would definitely put a damper on your fresh juice-sipping experience. It’s helpful to use a rubber spatula here to push the mixture through the strainer and efficiently extract as much juice as possible. Let it sit for a couple minutes if you need to. And that’s it! You’ve made it! Give yourself a pat on the back for being the utilitarian juicer that you are, and take pride in knowing that you saved yourself a serious chunk of change.