Make Cucumber Juice
Cucumber juice is a very healthy and versatile drink. Cucumbers have a high content of water and contain noteworthy amounts of potassium, silica, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, and chlorophyll, among other nutrients. Many people add cucumber juice to their diets to improve the quality of their skin, nails, and hair, and when consumed regularly, the drink can help treat high blood pressure and kidney stones. Cucumber juice can be prepared straight, with nothing but cucumbers, or you can blend it with sweeteners and other juices for extra flavor.
Contents
Ingredients
For Simple Juice
- 3 medium cucumbers
For Sweetened Juice
- 1 medium cucumber
- 2 cups (500 ml) water
- 2 tbsp (28.3 g) sugar
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) honey
- Salt, to taste
Servings
- About 2 glasses
Steps
Simple Cucumber Juice
- Peel your cucumbers. The skin of a cucumber is coated in a protective wax. While you can eat this coating without much problem, the wax will distort the texture of cucumber juice. You can accomplish this task by using either a potato peeler or a sharp knife with a smooth blade.
- Slice off the ends of your cucumbers using a sharp knife. The bottom and top stem are hard, inedible parts that you should not attempt to turn into juice.
- Chop the cucumbers into large chunks. The pieces can be up to 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) in height, width, and depth. Smaller pieces will also work, but you should avoid using pieces that are much bigger than that.
- Place the cucumber chunks into a food processor or blender. You should leave a couple of inches in between the top cucumber pieces and the rim of the machine. Do not fill the food processor to the top.
- Blend the cucumber pieces on a medium or high speed. Run the machine for approximately two minutes. The mixture should be pulpy, but it does not need to be smooth.
- Place a mesh strainer over a large bowl. The strainer should be small enough to fit inside the mouth of the bowl, but if possible, you should use a strainer with a wide enough rim to rest on top of the brim of the bowl. By resting the strainer on top of the bowl, you free up both hands.
- Place cheesecloth inside the strainer. The cloth will allow you to strain out more pulp. You can also line the strainer with coffee filters to create the same effect.
- Slowly pour the blended cucumbers through the strainer. Pour as much of the cucumber puree into the strainer as possible without causing the puree to overflow.
- Stir the puree with a rubber spatula or metal spoon, occasionally pressing down into the cheesecloth or mesh. By stirring the cucumbers, you encourage the juice to seep out and flow through the strainers, into the bowl. Continue stirring and pressing until no more juice comes out.
- Pour the cucumber juice into glasses, chill, and serve. You can also store fresh cucumber juice in a sealed container inside the refrigerator for one week.
Sweetened Cucumber Juice
- Peel, slice, and chop the cucumbers. Use a peeler to remove the waxy skin and a knife to chop off the ends. Cube the cucumbers with a knife to make them easier to work with.
- Grate your cucumber chunks into fine shreds. You can either use a hand grater or a box grater, depending one whichever is easiest for you to work with. Grate the cucumbers into a bowl to avoid losing any shreds.
- Pour 2 cups (500 milliliters) of water and 2 tablespoons (28 1/3 grams) of sugar into a medium-sized saucepan. Bring the water and sugar to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring frequently. Once it boils, the sugar should break down into the water, making it a little thicker.
- Add the grated cucumber to the boiling sugar water. Turn the heat down to medium-low or medium and simmer the mixture for approximately 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Heating the cucumbers together with the water and sugar combines the flavors more thoroughly than mixing them cold.
- Remove the cucumber mixture from the heat. Allow it to cool slightly, at least until it stops bubbling and steaming.
- Transfer the cucumber mixture to a blender and add 2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) of honey. Blend it on a high speed until it resembles a puree with very few noticeable chunks of cucumber remaining. Blending releases more of the juice trapped inside the cucumber.
- Spread cheesecloth inside of a large glass bowl. The cheesecloth should be large enough to drape over the sides of the bowl.
- Carefully pour the pureed cucumbers into the cheesecloth. Go slowly to prevent the sides of the cheesecloth from slipping down into the puree.
- Once the puree is inside cheesecloth, bring the sides of the cheesecloth together into a tight bundle. Knot the cloth or tie it to secure the ends in place.
- Allow the cucumber juice to drain out of the cheesecloth and into the glass bowl. Once the juice stops dripping out on its own, squeeze the cheesecloth pouch to wring out any excess. When squeezing the pouch no longer produces juice, remove the cheesecloth and discard or save as desired.
- Add salt, to taste, into the cucumber juice. Stir to combine. Salt takes off the bitter edge that cucumber juice naturally has, but the bitterness may already be less obvious due to the sweeteners.
- Serve the cucumber juice in glasses, either chilled or with ice. Save any extra inside the refrigerator up to a week.
Tips
- Cucumber juice has a versatile taste that can be combined with many other flavors. You can try adding mint or ginger for a cool, refreshing zing, or you can mix in other juices like apple or watermelon juice to add more depth.
- You can save the leftover pulp and use it for other purposes. Both simple and sweetened pulp can be frozen and used in dishes like granita or cucumber porridge, and simple pulp can be used to create a hydrating face mask.
Things You'll Need
- Sharp knife
- Potato peeler
- Box grater or hand grater
- Food processor
- Blender
- Medium saucepan
- Mesh strainer
- Cheesecloth
- Coffee filters
- Large glass bowls
- Heat-resistant spoon
- Rubber spatula
- Metal spoon
- Serving glasses
- Pitcher with lid
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