What is the best way to store fresh juice?

It’s always a good idea to drink your freshly squeezed juice then & there.

But you might be faced with other scenarios. You’ve squeezed all the produce in bulk & now you can’t consume it all at once right now.

Or it might be intentional. Let’s face it, juicing takes time. So, you don’t want to juice each & every day but definitely want to drink your juice daily.

Either way, you want to store your juice. And you obviously want that in an optimal fashion to reap the best benefit from daily juicing. You’ve come to the right place, my friend!

Store your juice – in the most optimal way:

Nutrient degradation is the prime enemy of fresh juices. Follow these few steps & increase the shelf life of fresh-squeezed juice!

1. Add citrus element or mint in the juice:

Mix in or add citruses such as grapefruit, lime, or lemon in your juice. That contains antioxidants (among many other vitamins & nutrients, i. e. citric acid & vitamin C).

Mint works fine as an apt alternative. Moreover, it provides a fresh invigorating smell which is an added plus.

What’s all that big fuss about antioxidants?

Antioxidants prevent the oxidation process in the juice. And thus, your juice remains fresh – far away from slow degradation. Don’t worry – adding a sprinkle of citrus won’t make your juice taste like ordinary lemon juice. The overall flavor will remain intact.

2. Use Cold Press Juicer for juicing (if possible):

Cold press juicer doesn’t generate too much heat while juicing. On the other hand, an ordinary juicer or different brands of centrifugal juicer does produce sufficient heat. The heat increases the oxidation process. In turn, your juice goes haywire in no time.

If you don’t have a masticating juicer/cold press juicer, that’s OK too! You still can pull this off. Follow this nifty little trick below.

Put sufficient cold water or small ice cubes in the mix before turning the switch on in your juicer. That will absorb the excessive heat. And the oxidation process will slow down to a large extent. In addition, you could refrigerate your produce beforehand to keep it cold during the juicing process.

Try to use a cold press masticating juicer instead of a centrifugal juicer. Drink cold-pressed juice to reap much more health benefits out of your juicing regime.

3. Store your juice in a glass container or use BPA-free, food-grade plastic bottles:

Hands down, glass containers are the best option. On the other hand, a good-quality food-grade, BPA-free plastic container can work as well.

What is BPA?: Bisphenol A, or BPA (in short), works as a common building block in some types of plastics & resins. It’s an “endocrine-disrupting compound” in our body. This chemical tends to derange regular hormonal functioning inside our internal system.

Learn more about BPA here & also here. So, it’s always a good idea to use BPA-free plastic utensils in your kitchen.

Don’t ever use ordinary plastic jars/bottles. You don’t want your juice to gather toxic chemicals from low-end plastic containers. Check out our collection of glass bottles here.

Always make sure that your mason jar/bottle/container is airtight. It’s one crucial thing to keep in mind. Air exposure for a certain period makes things worse. Because it accelerates oxidation, so, you can’t have room for negligence here. Use an airtight container as a first choice.

4. Don’t leave too much vacuum / free space inside the juice container:

Try to fill the container in such a way that only one-tenth of the space remains empty inside. Use this measurement as a general rule of thumb.

The reasoning behind that is quite straightforward. Less space means less air inside the bottle. Less air leads to a minimal/non-existent scope of oxidation in the fresh juices that you’re going to store.

You may be tempted to fill in the entire bottle! Don’t ever do that. After storing the bottle inside the refrigerator, the volume will increase. You have to leave room inside the airtight container to adjust to that.

5. Store your juice as early as possible:

If you’re planning to drink your juice now, then it’s OK to keep your juice out in the open for another 20 to 30 minutes. You can drink it within this time. No harm done!

But, in case you intend to store your juice, don’t even wait for that much longer. Again the reasoning is simple – once the freshly squeezed juice is exposed to the open air, the process of oxidation starts to kick in.

So, always keep this in the back of your mind while juicing. What you should do is quite simple – prepare & arrange the storage container beforehand; & then start juicing. Once you’re done with the juicing, go & store within 5 minutes. The sooner the better!

6. Use single-serving bottles/containers:

Don’t put all the juices in a large glass jar! Just give it a thought. You’ve to pull out this single jar every time you need to drink your juice.

Each time you open up the lid, that juice will come in contact with the open air. As you already know – oxidation will increase the chance of spoiling the juice. You don’t want that!

Instead, follow this smart move – take up multiple single-serving bottles/jars; fill them & store them. Once your hankering for a glass of juice kicks in – grab a single bottle out of those & enjoy the moment. It’s that simple!

7. Put a label on the container & write down the date:

It’s always a good idea to put a label on your storage bottles. Especially when you’re planning to store different types of concoctions or fruit juices at once.

Write down the preparation date & all the main ingredients you used to make that batch of juice. You don’t have to put down all the details there, duh! Just the shorthand notation will do fine.

8. Use Insulated Thermos Containers or Ice-blankets/packs while traveling:

The main idea here is to retain the storage temperature while you’re on the move. The choice is yours. Depending on your convenience & traveling time, you’re free to choose from different options.

I use a portable drink cooler – a neat choice to stay tension-free with all the drinks & juices!

Some might prefer triple or double-insulated thermos containers. Ice blankets also work during a shorter span of travel.

You can also try out simple hacks. For example, surround the jar with ice packs & then tightly cover the whole thing with a thick towel & keep it inside the car. That also works!

FAQ

Conclusion

You have to be mindful of the “oxidation process through the contact of air” while you make & store your juice. Minimize oxygen exposure to your juice at all costs. At the same time, just follow those simple steps we discussed here for storing all the juices you want.

Want to share your storing methods & storage experience with us? Please do so – we’re eager to hear from you!