Best Carrot Juicers

All vegetable juicers are not created equal. When choosing a juicer the first thing you need to consider is : "What type of food will I place in the machine?" - that means you will be thinking about the consistency of the food. Hard or soft? Pulpy or not?

Carrots are hard, with tough fibers. Their juice is nutrient rich, but can be hard to extract with certain machines. Let's take a look at the types of juicing machines that are available.

These juicers are popular with people that are just entering the world of juicing. They work by essentially grating the fruit or vegetable that is fed through a chute. The juice is expelled through a fine mesh-like grater basket.

The basket spins very rapidly which 'throws' the juice through the basket and into a collection channel. While the juice is extracted very quickly, the resulting juice has been exposed to heat from the extraction process and a lot of air. This increases oxidation and reduces the time you have to store and drink the juice before it goes bad.

Heat in any juicing process reduces the quality and nutrition of juice. Carrots respond well to centrifugal machines due to the grating action. They release a good amount of their juices, but the juice should be used right away.

Centrifugal juicers are best for beginners that will be using their machine sporadically and on non-pulpy fruits and vegetables.

These juicing appliances masticate or chew the foods and crush the juice out. Many masticating juicers are hand cranked, though there are fully automated versions.

When juicing carrots, using a masticating juicer can produce more juice than a centrifugal machine. These juicers also tend to not produce as much heat from friction during juicing, so the resulting carrot juice will have a longer shelf life.

Also, since these juicers are low speed, you will not introduce as much air into the finished juice, this can prevent discoloration from the oxidizing process.

The best way to explain how a masticating juicer works is to think of teeth. When you chew a carrot, your teeth chop and smash the carrot until it is pulp. The juice you taste has just been extracted by your personal masticating machine!

For the advanced juicer, masticating machines are preferable to centrifugal juicers.

A twin gear juicer is the top of the line for juicing. People that are living a raw or living foods diet will benefit the most from these machines.

Twin gear juicers are very low speed and often are built from high quality stainless steel. All metal machines are the very best, though there are some high quality juicers in this category that have a few plastic parts.

Carrots respond the best to twin gear juicers. This is because the twin gears smash and crush every fiber as much as possible to extract every drop of juice from the carrot. Tough fibers are no challenge to a twin gear juicer.

There are certain companies that use special coatings that are claimed to extract more nutrients from the juiced foods. The major material is ceramic. Some juicers incorporate magnets throughout the construction or into the collection unit.

The hands down best choice for juicing tough carrots is the twin gear machine. These can be very expensive, so here are the best in each type for carrot juicing. Keep in mind that these are the best for this particular vegetable!

Centrifugal:

Easy Health Cyclone Juicer (no cutting before juicing)

Masticating:

Champion Juicer +2000

Twin Gear:

Norwalk Juicer

Juicers can be expensive but keep in mind that they are a long term investment, both as an appliance and in your health. Choose the best that you can afford to ensure that you are getting the most nutrition from the juice that you make.