I didn’t
grow up in a home that juiced oranges for breakfast every day. I wasn’t a fan
of juice in the first place, except for a brief obsession with pink grapefruit
juice in high school, until I realized that I should probably be saving those
calories for something a bit more satisfying. The first time I used a
mechanical juicer while was working in a restaurant. During my first week or
two at Clio I was taken down the prep kitchen in the basement and introduced to
the Champion juicer. It was a large, white, heavy piece of equipment. Given
the fact that I only had to juice a couple of yellow peppers it seemed a bit
intimidating. I also wondered how long it would take me to clean it when I was
done. Then I tasted the pepper juice that emerged from its belly and I
understood why it was there. That juice was the sweet essence of yellow
peppers, vibrant, flavorful, and somehow alive on my tongue. The
cleaning process was easier than expected and just like that, the juicer became
an irreplaceable staple in my batterie de cuisine. In that kitchen we used the pepper
juice, slightly reduced, as the basis for vinaigrette. In our kitchen juice is
just the starting point. Juice is so much more than just something to pour into a
glass. It’s a magic elixir that will make all your dishes into something
special.
Juice is
by definition a fluid naturally contained in plant or animal tissue. A juicer
is a machine that facilitates the extraction of this liquid by breaking down
fibers and cell walls, which allows the liquid to seep out of the structure.
There are three basic types of juicers on the market. Centrifugal juicers are
the least expensive. They are quick
and relatively efficient to use. Centrifugal juicers contain flat blades
resting at the bottom of a circular basket. The fruits or vegetables to be used
are placed in the basket and the unit spins forcing the ingredients against the
blades, which shreds them. The shredded pieces are then forced outwards to
press against the sides of the basket while the juice falls through the holes
in the basket and are drained from the machine using a spout. The downside to
using a centrifugal juicer is that they are noisy, the quick speeds of the
motor tend to heat up the juice, the spinning action introduces
oxygen which can destroy nutrients and reduce the shelf life of the juice, and
they are less effective with leafy vegetables and herbs. They are the
economical choice for small quantities of juices that will be used immediately.
Masticating
juicers work by using a slowly rotating auger to chew or crush the produce into
small pieces. This process breaks down the fibers and cell walls of the fruits
and vegetables to help release the juice. The chewed pieces are pressed against
a mesh strainer and separated into juice and pulp. The two products are ejected
from the machine separately. Most people simply use the juice and throw the
pulp away, although in many cases the pulp can be utilized in recipes and
treated as an ingredient on its own. Masticating juicers produce more juice
than centrifugal juicers. The mastication process is much slower and introduces
less oxygen than that of the centrifugal juicer. It produces less foam and
oxidation, which in turn preserves more live enzymes and nutrients in the
finished product.
The gold
standard in masticating juicers is the twin gear or triturating juicer. They
produce the highest yield and the most nutritional juice. The process works at
the same speed as a masticating juicer. Instead of using a single auger, the
triturating juicer has two stainless steel gears in very close proximity. The
gears turn in towards each other and slowly crush the produce between them. As
with the masticating juicer, the ingredients are then pressed through a
screen and the juice and pulp are ejected separately. They are the most
expensive juicers, in return they produce the highest quality and yield and
have the ability to juice almost anything.
Both
types of masticating juicers can be used to make things other than juice. They
are very effective at pureeing ingredients and allow for attachments. Because of this you can make soymilk, baby foods, pastas, and grind meats, nuts, and
spices. Even if you never make anything other than juice, a juicer would still
be a great addition to the kitchen of any serious cook. The possibilities are
endless. You can play around with juicing non-traditional fruits and vegetables
and you can use the juices to flavor many different kinds of recipes from soups
and braises to cakes and breads.
While the
juice is the focal point, the pulp manufactured as a by-product during the
juicing process creates some interesting possibilities, either on its own or
combined with the juice. The grinding process creates a unique texture, especially when working with root vegetables. One of our
favorite fall/winter recipes is a parsnip porridge made by combining the juice and the
pulp of this sweet root vegetable and stewing it down to a delicious, velvety
bowl of goodness.
Parsnip Porridge with Black Truffle
2.75 pounds/1.25 kilograms parsnips
16
ounces/460 grams heavy cream
3/4 teaspoon/4.5 grams salt
1.75
ounces/50grams black truffle
Armando
Manni olive oil
Tasmanian pepper in a mill
Preheat the oven to 170°F (75°C)
Wash the
parsnips thoroughly. Cut the tip and top off the parsnip and peel them. Put
the peels and the trimmings into a medium sized pot and cover with the cream. Use
a masticating juicer to juice and run the parsnips through twice.
Lay the
parsnip pulp on a silicone lined sheet pan. Spread the pulp evenly out in the
pan and then place in the oven. Bake the parsnip pulp until it is
completely dry, about 2 to 3 hours. Stir the pulp every thirty minutes. The
parsnip will be dry and crumbly and a golden brown when it is finished. Remove
the parsnip pulp from the oven and let it cool. When the parsnip pulp is cool,
place it in a blender, and pulverize it until it resembles a course ground
polenta. When the parsnip pulp is ground, add it to the cooled parsnip cream.
Stir the mixture and refrigerate until you're ready to serve.
