Why Juice?
Juicing has become a major trend among diet and health enthusiasts, and for good reason. Drinking fresh pressed juice, especially those that incorporate vegetables and leafy greens, floods the body with essential nutrients and vitamins.
The health benefits of going on a juice diet, or simply adding juice to your current lifestyle, are immense and range from weight loss and increased energy to prevention of inflammatory diseases and better brain health. (source)
While it’s simple to see the benefits of adding a green-based juice to your life, it can get confusing when you start looking into the various techniques and tools involved in making the change. To help you out, I’ve rounded up five of the top juicers on the market to help you choose the best juicer for leafy greens and other hard-to-juice fruits and vegetables.
- LOW SPEED MINIMAL OXIDATION MASTICATING JUICER - Compared with juice from centrifugal juicers, our juice is much more...
- 3" INCHES (76MM) BIG MOUTH WIDE CHUTE - Can easily accommodate large produce items; has more resistances to clogging; greatly...
- HIGH JUICE YIELD WITH LITTLE OXIDATION - High juice yields (Orange 85-90%, Pear 78-83%, Apple 65-75%, Celery 65-70%, Carrot...
- Bio-ceramic Magnetic Twin Gears produce the freshest, highest quality juices possible from any cold press juicer by...
- Masticating juicer extracts maximum juice yield from soft fruits and vegetables
- Ultra quiet 240-watt motor
- Direction control ensures fruit or vegetables can be dislodged from juicing screw
- SLOW 47 RPM - Slow, cold press juice extraction results in the best, fresh juices with minimal oxidation compared with juice...
- DUO-BLADE AUGER - Makes juicing faster and easier for both juicing beginners and experienced users who want to spend less...
- INCLUDED MINCING ATTACHMENT - Increase the versatility of the Slowstar by turning it into a food homogenizer, great for...
- Omega Nutrition Center Juicer
- 80 RPM, single auger
Things to Know Before Buying a Juicer
If you’re considering adopting a juicing lifestyle, it’s important to remember to include leafy greens. These dark vegetables are low in sugar and contain important nutrients such as beta-carotene and vitamin K that are hard to find elsewhere. (source)
If you’re worried about the taste of pulverized spinach and kale, fear not! There are plenty of delicious green-based juice recipes out there. The products I will be reviewing are all low speed, masticating and triturating juicers perfect for juicing leafy greens.
So, why a masticating/triturating juicer over a centrifugal? Masticating juicers, also referred to as cold-press juicers, crush and squeeze fruits and vegetables rather than shredding them. This process helps break down all the components of the plant, releasing the maximum amount of nutrients into your juice.
Masticating juicers also reduce oxidation during the juicing process, which eliminates unpleasant foam and helps give your juices a longer shelf life.
Triturating juicers use a similar technique. They are considered the most efficient at extracting dry pulp because they have two gears instead of one, giving them more power. However, this feature also makes them harder to clean.
Centrifugal juicers do not have the power to properly extract juice from leafy greens and their high speeds cause nutrient loss due to heat.
To learn more about the differences between masticating and centrifugal juicers check out this video:
Overall power and torque are especially important when looking for a leafy green juicer. Since these types of vegetables tend to be harder and more fibrous, higher powered juicers are needed in order to prevent clogging or stalling.
Questions to Ask Before Choosing a Juicer
Everyone has different lifestyles, goals, and preferences, and it’s important to take that into account when looking at different juicing products. What works for one person might not be best for you, and vice versa. Here are a few key questions to ask yourself:
How Much Juicing Time Do You Have?
Be honest with yourself. Are you planning on spending hours alone with your juicer or are you trying to squeeze juicing in between meetings, yoga, and picking up the kids from school? If you’re like me and are constantly running from one activity to the next, you’ll probably want to look for a juicer that minimizes preparation work and is quick to clean up.
What you need to look for is a masticating juicer with a large chute opening so you don’t spend as much time chopping. Look for features that minimize clogging and a product that is easy to assemble and disassemble. If you have a bit more time to devote to the juicing process, you might want to try out a triturating juicer.
How Frequently Do You Plan on Juicing?
Are you doing a 30-day juice cleanse or just substituting a meal a day? Do you plan on juicing for the next 5 years or 50? If you’re in it for the long haul, it’s worth your time and money to invest in a juicer made of a more durable material such as steel, rather than plastic.
In addition, make sure you check out the warranty details. Some warranties last up to 10-15 years, while others are much shorter and don’t cover all the pieces included in the juicer.
If you’re just looking to try out juicing every now and then without making any long term commitments, it makes sense to save some money by going with plastic. If you are a beginner juicer, you might also want to look for juicers that are straightforward to assemble and easy to learn how to use.
What Do You Want to Make with Your Juicer?
This seems like a pretty simple answer: juice, right? If juice is all you’re looking for then don’t waste your time or money on products that come with a full range of attachments. However, if you’re like me and enjoy making homemade nut butters, ice creams, and sorbets, then you might want to take a second look.
Many juicers now have the option of adding attachments to turn your juicer into a multi-tool kitchen accessory. You can make tofu, pasta, sorbets, grind coffee, mince herbs, and juice all with one machine, cutting down on kitchen clutter and hassle.
Overall…
There are a huge range of products out there built to meet your personal needs. Take your time when choosing a juicer and when you find the right one for you, take the time to understand it. Each juicer works a little differently and you’ll have a much better juicing experience if you get to know your product before using it. Now that you know the basics, here are five of the best juicers for leafy greens
SKG
SKG New Generation Wide Chute Anti-Oxidative Slow Masticating Juicer The SKG New Generation Anti-Oxidative Slow Masticating Juicer has a three inch feed chute that facilitates juicing larger items and cuts down preparation time. By juicing larger items and incorporating a sealed juicing space, the SKG New Generation minimizes oxidation. This slow masticating juicer is made of all stainless steel and eco-friendly TRITAN anti-oxidative material, and is certified by the FDA
Tribest
Tribest Green Star Elite GSE-5000 Jumbo Twin Gear Juice Extractor The Tribest Green Star Elite GSE-5000 Jumbo Twin Gear Juice Extractor is a triturating juicer that uses Exclusive Jumbo Twin Gear technology and 110 RPM to ensure concentrations of calcium, iron, and zinc are 50%-200% higher than other leading juicers. The juicer uses magnets to move water particles and grab hold of important vitamins and minerals to extract them into your juice. The Pressure Adjustment Mechanism prevents clogging by making it easy to adjust the power of pulp elimination based on the types of fruits and vegetables you are juicing.
Breville
Breville BJS600XL Fountain Crush Masticating Slow Juicer This masticating, single auger juicer from Breville uses slow juicing techniques to produce smooth juice with pulp. This juicer crushes and then grinds fruits and vegetables, rather than shredding to maximize the amount of juice extracted. Additional features such as the Auto Purifying Filter Basket and the included filter cleaning brush make it possible to easily clean the Breville BJS600XL Fountain Crush without full disassembly.
Tribest
Tribest SW-2000-B Slowstar Vertical Slow Juicer and Mincer The Tribest SW-2000-B Slowstar Vertical Slow Juicer and Mincer uses 3-stage speed reduction gears and a 200 Watt motor to prevent clogging by employing a torque force 2-4 times that of most other slow juicers. The Slowstar juices at 47 RPM to ensure quality, while minimizing loss of active enzymes to heat or friction. The Juice Cap and mincing attachments prevent leakage, while giving the Slowstar multi-purpose value. The Duoblade double-edged Ultem auger feature gives the Tribest SW-2000-B Slowstar Vertical Slow Juicer twice the power of single edged augers. Its Ultem design makes it up to eight times stronger than the plastic used in other juicers.
Omega
Omega J8006 Nutrition Center Juicer This is a low speed masticating juicer which uses a dual stage process to maximize vitamins and nutrients that end up in your final juice. Fruits and vegetables are squeezed initially to extract pulp, then the pulp itself is juiced to ensure efficiency and nutrition. Multiple attachment options make it possible to customize the Omega J8006 Nutrition Center Juicer to your needs. 
our #1 rated
Pros
Large self-feeding chute minimizes clogging and preparation time
Included cleaning tool simplifies the cleaning process
Cons
First time assembly can be tricky
Pulp can become clogged and end up in juice
our #2 rated
Pros
Multiple screens makes it easy to customize the amount of pulp per juice
Easy to assemble/disassemble and transport
Cons
Highly customizable settings can make it difficult to learn how to use
Large design takes up a lot of counter space
our #3 rated
Pros
Low speed and Ultra Quiet 240 Watt Motor ensure that no nutritious enzymes are lost to heat
Vertical design creates a very small counter footprint, making it easy to store
Cons
Plastic design is not BPA free
Lower wattage motor causes frequent clogs, even with softer items
our #4 rated
Pros
Features 100% BPA-free housing and casing and a nearly BPA free auger and screen
Quiet construction, even when juicing tougher leafy greens and other fibrous vegetables
Cons
Difficult to disassemble
Frozen or hard foods can damage structure of the auger
our #5 rated
Pros
Low speed ensures no foam or juice separation after storage
Highly efficient and very quiet
Cons
Doesn't do well with soft fruits or vegetables as with leafy greens
Longer preparation due to small feed tube
Conclusion
The clear winner of the leafy green juicer round up is the SKG New Generation Wide Chute Anti-Oxidative Slow Masticating Juicer. This juicer contains all the basic features of a good leafy green juicer. Its slow speed maximizes the amount of nutrients that make it into the final juice, while its high power minimizes the number of clogs from fibrous vegetables.
It does have its drawbacks, such as limited color options, tall size, and difficulty with first-time assembly, but these negatives pale in comparison to its long list of benefits. Its wide feed chute reduces oxidation and makes preparation quick and simple, its design is durable, eco-friendly, and food safe, and it comes with attachments that turn this juicer into a multi-functioning kitchen tool.
Its comparative low price combined with its durability make it the best juicer for leafy greens.
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