Juicing fruits and vegetables to make drinks is a trend that has taken the health-conscious community by storm over the last decade. One juice that is renowned for its ability to heal and protect the body is celery juice.
Most nutritionists and health experts agree that celery juice is best when it is consumed fresh. If you can’t drink all of your celery juice portions after you have just made it, you can store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
Celery juice can be frozen in the freezer if you need to preserve it for longer; however, you will lose some of the nutritional value of the juice when it thaws. Ultimately, you can freeze celery juice, but its nutritional content won’t be as potent compared to when it is fresh.
Is Celery Juice Good For You?
Claims have been made that celery juice is miracle medicine. Most notably, Anthony Williams in his book ‘Medical Medium Celery Juice: The Most Powerful Medicine Of Our Time Healing Millions Worldwide’, claims that celery juice is a remedy to heal chronic illnesses, allergies, autoimmune diseases, help with weight loss, and improve skin, among other things. While there is little evidence to back up these claims, it is true that celery juice is good for you.
It is a nutrient-dense drink that contains a higher proportion of nutrients compared with eating celery sticks since the juice has the fiber of the celery removed, and the nutrients are compounded into a more concentrated drink. Celery juice is high in vitamin K, and has a broad range of other essential nutrients in it. It is also low in sugar and low in calories, which can help to maintain a healthy weight.
Nutritional information
An 8-ounce or 240ml serving of pure celery juice contains:
- 5 calories
- 4 grams of fiber
- 5 grams of carbohydrates
- 2 grams of protein
- 215 milligrams of sodium
- 5 grams of sugar
- 0 grams of fat
- 0 grams of cholesterol
- 8% of the recommended daily value of calcium
- 7% of the recommended daily value of vitamin A
- 16% of the recommended daily value of vitamin C
- 7% of the recommended daily value of magnesium
- 5% of the recommended daily value of phosphorous
- 14% of the recommended daily value of potassium
- 9% of the recommended daily value of sodium
- 74% of the recommended daily value of vitamin K
Health Benefits
Although claims for celery juice being a miracle medicine lack evidence, there are numerous health benefits to this simple drink. Since celery juice is predominantly water, it is a very hydrating drink. Most people don’t drink the recommended amount of water each day, so incorporating celery juice into your diet will help to increase your water intake, keeping you hydrated.
Proper hydration aids with kidney function, brain function, and blood pressure. Celery juice also has anti-inflammatory properties, including plant compounds that operate as antioxidants. Since celery juice is low in sugar and calories, it is a much better alternative to sweetened drinks such as soda.
There is some debate about the effects of celery juice on gut health. While the nutrients in celery juice are believed to lower inflammation in the gut, which could have positive effects, they do contain a high degree of fermentable starches (also known as FODMAPs), which can irritate the digestive system to cause pain or bloating for some people.
Most juicers remove all of the fiber from celery when creating celery juice, and fiber is important for gut health. If your aim is to improve gut health with celery juice, you may have better results if you leave some of the fiber in the drink, for example, by not straining the juice or using a smoothie maker instead of a juicer.
How to Make Celery Juice
Celery juice is made from nothing but celery. You can use any type of celery to make this drink, though some people favor organic celery. To make pure celery juice in your juicer, trim off the root ends of the celery and insert all of the celery into the machine. Around half a bunch of celery will make an 8-ounce glass of juice, or use a whole bunch for a larger 16-ounce serving.
Some experts recommend that to enjoy the full benefits of celery juice, you should be drinking it in its pure state; however, others claim you can add different fruits to the recipe to make it more palatable. To give the drink a milder taste, add cucumber to your recipe, or for a sweeter flavor, add apple. If you want your celery juice to last longer, add a splash of lemon or lime juice, which will work as a natural preservative.
You can also make celery juice using a blender or smoothie maker. Simply add your ingredients to the mixer along with a cup of water, and then strain your mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove the fiber.
How to Store Celery Juice
Celery juice is best consumed fresh. Ideally, if you want to have celery juice for breakfast, you need to be making your celery juice first thing in the morning and drinking it right away. However, not everyone has a lot of time in the mornings, so in some instances, you might want to store your celery juice to drink later. If you plan to drink your celery juice within the next 24 hours, then it is best to store it in the refrigerator.
For example, if you have inadvertently made too much celery juice at breakfast time, you could set a glass in the refrigerator and drink it when you get home from work that evening.
Alternatively, if you know you’re always too busy in the morning to use your juicer, you could prepare a glass of celery juice the evening before and store it in the refrigerator so it is cooled and ready to enjoy at breakfast time the following morning. You can keep celery juice in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, but it will start to oxidize during this time which can alter the flavor and the nutrient profile.
If you want to preserve your celery juice for longer than a day or two, then storing it in the freezer is the best method to use. Decant your celery juice into mason jars and secure the lids tightly. Label the jars and set them in the freezer. Mason jars are the best containers to use for freezing celery juice because they do not allow any air to penetrate the juice like plastic cans, and the lids are designed to maintain pressure.
Celery juice stored in the freezer can last for around six months. It will lose some of the nutrient content when frozen and thawed; however, it will maintain the flavor and most of the health benefits. You will need to thaw frozen celery juice before you can consume it. To do this, remove the mason jars of juice from the freezer and leave them in the refrigerator for 24 to 48 hours.
Alternatively, you can thaw celery juice at room temperature if you want to consume it more quickly. Removing the lid from the mason jar will speed up the thawing process.
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