How to make cucumber juice

Content

Ingredients
For plain juice
For sweetened juice
Servings
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Simple Cucumber Juice
Method 2 of 2: Sweetened Cucumber Juice
Tips
What do you need

Cucumber juice is a very healthy and versatile drink. Cucumbers are high in water and contain remarkable amounts of potassium, silicon dioxide, vitamins A and C, folate and chlorophyll, among other nutrients.Many people add cucumber juice to their diet to improve the condition of their skin, nails and hair, and if consumed regularly, the drink can help lower high blood pressure and remove stones and kidney stones. Cucumber juice can be made with cucumbers only, or mixed with sweeteners and other juices for added flavor.

Ingredients

For plain juice

3 medium cucumbers

For sweetened juice

1 medium cucumber
2 cups (500 ml) water
2 tbsp. l. (28.3 grams) sugar
2 tbsp. l. (30 ml) honey
salt to taste

Servings

About 2 glasses

Steps

Method 1 of 2: Simple Cucumber Juice

1 Peel the cucumbers. The peel of the cucumber is coated with a protective wax. While you can eat the cucumber with the peel without any problem, the wax can distort the texture of the cucumber juice. You can deal with this problem by using a potato peeler or a sharp, smooth-bladed knife.
2 Cut off the ends of the cucumbers with a sharp knife. The top and bottom ends are hard and inedible, so don't try to grind them into juice.
3 Cut the cucumbers into large pieces. Pieces can be up to 1 inch (2.54 cm) high, wide and deep. Small pieces will work too, but you should avoid using pieces that are too large.
4 Place the cucumber slices in a food processor or blender. You should leave a couple of inches (5 cm) between the top of the cucumber slices and the top edge of the device. Do not fill the food processor all the way to the top.
5 Stir the cucumber slices on medium to high speed. Turn on the device for about 2 minutes. You should have a meaty consistency, but not necessarily smooth.
6 Place a strainer over a large bowl. The strainer should be small enough to fit into the opening of the bowl, but it is best to use a strainer with a rim wide enough to rest on the edge of the bowl. If the strainer is on the top of the bowl, you will have both hands free.
7 Place the cheesecloth inside the sieve. The fabric will allow you to drain more of the cucumber puree. You can also use a coffee filter to create the same effect.
8 Gradually squeeze the chopped cucumbers through a sieve. Pour as much cucumber puree into the strainer as possible, being careful not to overfill.
9 Stir the puree with a rubber spatula or metal spoon, periodically pressing it into a cheesecloth or sieve. As you stir the cucumbers, you allow the juice to seep through the strainer and into the bowl. Continue stirring and pressing until you have squeezed out every last drop.
10 Pour cucumber juice into glasses and serve chilled. You can also store fresh cucumber juice in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Method 2 of 2: Sweetened Cucumber Juice

1 Peel, slice and chop the cucumbers. Use a vegetable peeler to remove the waxy skin and a knife to cut off the ends. Cut the cucumbers into cubes for easier handling.
2 Rub the cucumber cubes into small pieces. You can use either a hand grater or a square grater, whichever is easiest for you to work with. Rub the cucumbers into a bowl so you don't lose a single bite.
3 Pour in 2 cups (500 ml) water and add 2 tbsp. l. (28.3 grams) sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring sugar and water to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. When the water boils, the sugar should settle at the bottom and make the water a little thicker.
4 Add the grated cucumber to boiling sugar water. Reduce heat to medium-low to medium and simmer mixture for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Steaming cucumbers in sweetened water mixes the flavors better than stirring them in cold water.
5 Remove the cucumber mixture from the heat. Let it cool a little, at least until it stops bubbling and the steam comes off.
6 Place the cucumber mixture in a blender and add 2 tbsp. l. (30 ml) honey. Blend it on high speed until the mixture looks like a puree with subtle remaining cucumber pieces. With the help of stirring, the rest of the juice is squeezed out of the remaining cucumbers.
7 Place cheesecloth in a large glass bowl. The cheesecloth should be large enough to hang over the sides of the bowl.
8 Gently pour the mixed cucumbers onto cheesecloth. Do this slowly to prevent the gauze from slipping into the cucumber puree.
9 Once the puree is on the cheesecloth, gather the two ends of the cheesecloth together and make a tight bunch. Tie the ends of the fabric in a knot or tie with something to hold the ends in place.
10 Allow the cucumber juice to drain from the cheesecloth into a glass bowl. As soon as the juice stops dripping by itself, squeeze the gauze bag well to squeeze out the excess. When there is nothing to squeeze out, remove the gauze and throw it away or leave it if you like.
11 Add salt to the cucumber juice to taste. Stir. Salt removes the bitter taste that is usually inherent in cucumber juice, but the bitterness may be less noticeable due to sweeteners.
12 Serve chilled or iced cucumber juice in glasses. You can store some juice in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Tips

You can save the leftover pulp and use it for other purposes. Both the plain pulp and the sweetened pulp can be frozen and used in dishes such as Granita or cucumber porridge, and the plain pulp can also be used to make a moisturizing face mask.
Cucumber juice has a versatile flavor that can be mixed with other flavors. You can try adding mint or ginger for a cool and refreshing taste, or you can mix it with other juices such as apple or watermelon for a thicker flavor.