Juicing is the process of extracting the liquid from plant tissues. The procedure can involve grinding, squeezing, or pressing fruits and vegetables for their juice. Juice extractors work in these ways.
Another way of extracting juice is using steam which features optimum heat and pressure in the process.
What are the facts that differ between these two juicing types, and which is a better option in certain situations?
Let’s find out the answers with an in-depth comparison of steam juicer vs. juice extractor.
What is a Steam Juicer?
A steam juicer is a type of mechanism that separates the juice from fruits and veggies with the help of steam in a sealed chamber. It’s primarily used for preserving juice for a period of time.
What is a Juice Extractor?
Juice extractors use traditional juicing methods which include shredding, squeezing, and grinding to separate the juice out of the pulp. It uses a cutting disk or sometimes a hydraulic press to extract juice from seeds, skin, and pulp. This method ensures maximum nutrition, minerals, and vitamins in your juice.
Contents
Steam Juicer vs. Juice Extractor– Differences in Mechanism
Steam Juicer
A steam juicer uses basic mechanisms to yield juice from fruits and veggies. The construction of a steam juicer includes several pans, which have different roles to play in executing the process.
The mechanism simply works like this –
Steam juicer construction
Your ingredient goes into a perforated pan with a closing lid. It sits on top of a collector pan, and beneath this, a pan of boiling water powers the whole procedure.
The Steam
When the water boils, it creates steam that rises through the opening of the collector pan and finally reaches the perforated pan containing your ingredients.
Juice collection
As the steam is trapped within the closed lid, it starts to break down the cell walls of your fruits and veggies, which results in releasing the juice from the pulp into the collecting pan.
There is a pipe/hose that helps to drain the produced juice into jars, cans, or bottles.
Juice Extractor
Juice extractors use different methods to produce juice from the produce. There are two common juice extractors you will find in the market that includes –
- Centrifugal, and
- Masticating or Cold press
Centrifugal Juicer
A centrifugal juicer has fast-spinning blades or a cutting disk that helps to tear and shred the ingredients to release juice. Its centrifugal force pulls the extracted juice to the edge of the disk, which has a mesh wrapped around it.
It’s a quick process to make juice.
Cold-press Juicer
Masticating or cold-press juicers work by crushing the fruits/veggies with the help of an auger and squeezing the liquid from the pulp through a strainer. It is a slow process that operates at about 40 to 100 rpm.
It takes a comparatively long time to extract the juice and is labor-intensive. As it uses a slow press, heat generation is therefore minimal. Also, cold-press juicers cause less oxidation to occur in your produce.
This mechanism produces high nutritious juice compared to centrifugal juicers.
The Right Tool for the Right Situation
You can make juice in various ways with different mechanisms. The crucial part here is what procedure is the right one that fits your juicing requirements.
Steam Juicer
When it comes to steam juicing, it’s best suited in situations when you want to preserve your juice for a long time. It’s because steam juicers produce pasteurized juice that has a longer shelf-life.
Heating causes pasteurization that kills germs, and the shelf-life further extends compared to freshly pressed juice. You can also use this method to make jellies and cook vegetables.
Steam juicing doesn’t include any pulp, so you are getting a clear-looking juice ready for use. If you don’t like cloudy juice and want to extract in high quantities to preserve it for longer, then a steam juicer is the perfect option for you.
Juice Extractor
Juice extractors like masticating, cold-press, or centrifugal make highly nutritious juice. Though, the produce will have lower-shelf life as no pasteurization occurs through a juice extractor.
If you are into a detox diet or juice cleansing, then traditional juice extractors are the ones you should rely on. It produces fresh juice with lots of nutrients still intact, which is good for your health.
The fibers in your fruit and vegetables work well for weight loss and digestion. Juice extractors have options to include dietary fibers into your juice while in use. In other words, it blends whole foods, so all the nutrients remain in the same place.
Juice extractors will do a better job when it comes to having the most health-effective outcomes from your juicing.
Steam Juicer vs. Juice Extractor – The Goods and the Bads
| Steam Juicer | Juice Extractor | |
| The Goods | The Bads | |
| Product-life | Extracts juice that has higher shelf-life | Produces fresh juice with lower shelf-life |
| Quantity | You can make juice in large quantities at once. For example, a steam juicer has a capacity of about 7 to 11 Quarts. | You can’t make juice in large quantities at once. It basically depends on the size of the feeder chute, which lies between 3 to 3.5 inches |
| versatility | Ideal for making homemade jams and jellies | juice extractors can’t cook veggies or make jams |
| Price | Comparatively inexpensive method. It costs around 50$ to 120$ | A bit more expensive. The is cost around 150$ to 350$ |
| Clean and care | The steam juicer is easy to clean | Juice extractors are a bit difficult to clean |
| Ease of use | Not a labor-intensive juicing method | sometimes labor-intensive. |
| The Bads | The Goods | |
| Nutritious | Steam juicing kills healthy nutrients and enzymes from your juice. | Healthy nutrients, minerals, and vitamins remain intact in your juice |
| Storage efficiency | It occupies a lot of storage space | Most of the juice extractors are space efficient |
| Types of fruit | It doesn’t work well on hard fruits | Works well on any fruit |
| Fiber inclusion | Steam juicing excludes dietary fibers from fruits | It includes nutrient-rich dietary fiber in your juice |
The Bottom Line
Juicing is a healthy way to gain the necessary nutrients, vitamins, and minerals in your body. There are methods to extract fresh juice, including steam juicing and juice extractors.
Both these methods operate differently, though the result is quite the same. In the end, when it comes to efficiency, quantity, and quality, it’s better to go for juicing methods that suit your requirements the most.