You would love a glass of fresh juice, won’t you? The juice is one such drink that can comply with your hunger while surpassing the nutritional value. Although you might want to choose between a glass of fresh juice or a packed, preserved one. You might know the expiry date of a packaged box of juice but a natural fresh juice goes bad soon. Fresh juice may last good for about a day or two only if refrigerated.
Vegetable juices should be consumed as soon as they are prepared to avoid their spoilage. To keep them for more than a day tries adding half a lemon as it makes up for the missing acid preservative.
Fruit juices can be stored for more than a day as fruits contain acid which lowers the pH and fructose which imparts sweetness. Citrus fruit juices are organically acidic so they don’t bother by getting spoiled easily. Let’s find out more about the shelf life of the juice.
Which fresh juices last the longest?
The most preferred fresh juices are from the citrus family; orange, sweet lime and lemon. The longevity of any juice can be gained by decreasing its pH. Luckily citrus fruits contain their citric acid that avoids the juice from getting spoiled. Other than citrus fruit juice, the apple juice also stays fresh for 2-3 days.
As for vegetable juices which are least preferred, they stay safe for 1-2 days. However, the addition of lime juice and a dash of salt will help it to last a couple of hours extra. It is best to consume the vegetable juice within 2-3 hours of its extraction. Some favoured veggie juices are tomato, bottle gourd, beetroot, bitter gourd or a mixed one having all of these.
You might want to add garlic to the mixed vegetable juice to upgrade the nutritive value and pour in some preservation.
Are packaged juices good for health?
People often go for a glass of juice rather than soda or soft drinks assuming that is the healthy alternative. But they are quite under the rock, as they are of no good like the carbonated drinks. Packaged juices contain chemical preservatives to keep them safe for drinking.
Packaged juices are low on fibre content and high on the sugar (fructose) quantity. Drinking these juices every day isn’t a healthy idea. The juices go through processes like pasteurization and de oxygen. These treatments dissipate all its vitamins and decrease the quality.
Packed juices lack nutrition and show the presence of patulin registering that an inferior variety of fruits have been utilised to make them. They also contain corn syrup and artificial sweetener which is of no good use for the body. An elevated level of calories is recorded in a glass of packed juice being compared to the home-made fresh juice.
Juice manufacturing companies always showcase juices with added pulp in it. The pulp comprises of fibre, but the ingredient list mentions 0% fibre. Can drinking expired juice make you sick? This indicates it is completely off the healthy hook!
Effect on homemade juice within a day
Like we know, freshly prepared homemade juices are quite perishable so they have to be consumed in a few hours. However, if you leave it unattended for more than 24 hours, the homemade juice may turn bad.
Bacteria and oxidation are the two foes of the fresh juice. Oxidation is a result of the air, heat and light on the fresh juice to shrink its shelf life. It transforms the sweet taste to a sour one.
A fabulous tip to ward off the oxidation is the addition of citrus, which is rich in antioxidants. Moreover, a slice of orange or lemon can make up for the missing power in the juice.
Organic fruits are ideal for consumption but not everyone can obtain it. The best idea will be to buy the most pristine and high-quality products which are affordable. Fresh fruit or vegetable will provide more nutrients because as time passes by the nutrient value decreases. More freshness equals to more nutrition. But there exists an indirect variation between freshness and the rise in harmful bacteria. These bacteria induce decay in fruits and vegetables and eventually spoils them. To eliminate bad bacteria remember to thoroughly wash all the edibles.
Which juicer helps the juice to last long?
The juicer you use to make the juice makes quite a difference. There are three kinds of juicers, masticating, twin gear juicers, and the centrifugal juicer. Both the formers are slow in performance which results in insignificant heat production.
On the other hand, centrifugal juicer possesses swift rotating blades which generate more heat and eventually lead to oxidation. According to this masticating juicer will hold a more lasting shelf-life
Steps for storage of juice
To maintain optimum shelf-life follow the following steps:
- Eliminate oxidation and air touch.
- Refrigerate it at very low temperature
- Do not open and close the storage bottle/ frequently.
How do you know if fresh juice is bad?
If the juice shows some color change, growth of moulds or smell, the taste of the juice changes. The odour change may not happen but the taste would be enough to recognise that the juice has gone bad.
How do you preserve fruit juice for a year?
After the process of juicing the fruits, the most important step is storage. But if you want to keep it for a prolonged period than adding some preservatives is important. One cannot juice every day, as it seems to be quite a tedious process.
To begin with, store the vegetable or fruit juice in a seal packed dark coloured container which will lessen the disclosure to light and oxygen. To keep it for a couple of months use the freezer to store the juices. In these ways, you can store the juices for as long as possible. To lengthen the shelf life, pasteurization is suggested.
Which juice is good for you?
As per the recent study of US national health library, scientists found that the most amount of fibre is present in Oranges. The intake of these fruits helps in a reduced risk of any heart ailment. The fruit is found effective against both a budding disease and a fatal one.
It is now suggested that high consumption of oranges significantly lower the occurrence and fatality of the disease.
Are juice diets healthy?
Juices are considered to be healthy breakfast options. But to your surprise, not only are packed juices inappropriate but the fresh juice is also not a healthy option.
For example, to prepare a glass of juice in the kitchen, you probably want to strain 4-5 fresh fruits. The calorie count of a glass of juice is more than the number of fruits used to make the juice. Also straining the juice gets rid of all the fibre and roughage and increases the sugar content.
Ripped fresh fruits contain a high amount of Vitamin C and flavonoids that are essential for the body. However fresh and packed juices lack these important minerals.
A glass of apple juice carries 120 calories and 1 fresh apple offers just 78 calories. Therefore, consuming fruits directly will always be a better option.
How long does fresh juice last in the fridge?
As we’ve discussed earlier, the shelf life of a juice depends on the juicer type and completely airtight bottle.
The following table shows the storage time of fresh juice in a refrigerator as per the juicer used:
| Juicer | Shelf Life |
| Centrifugal | 2-3 hours |
| Masticating | 2-3 days |
| Twin gear | 4-5 days |
After the juice is prepared, immediately store it in a vacuum-sealed bottle before any bacteria get in. There are a few containers that can be used to store the juice properly
- Glass bottles
- Mason jars
- Insulated Thermosteel bottles (for travelling purposes)
- Stainless steel flasks
- Glass jugs
Note: Do not use plastic containers to store juices they are not eco-friendly and will react with the juice, too.
Here are some bonus recipes for you that you might want to try in your home kitchen.
Immunity booster juice
Ingredients
- 2 carrots
- ½ inch peeled ginger
- 1 peeled and deseeded orange
Juice for Glowing Skin
Ingredients
- 1/2 beetroot
- 1 orange
- 1 carrot
- 1 green apple
- 1/2 cucumber
- 1/2 celery stick
Detox Juice
Ingredients
- Mint
- An inch of ginger
- Water
- Lemon Slices(without seeds)
- Chia seeds
Endnotes
You have to decide for yourself whether you drink fresh homemade juice or the packaged juice from the tetra pack. But even doctors suggest eating the wholesome fruit for better nutrition and roughage. Eating fruits would also help to avoid any bowel disorders like constipation. Keep a check on the daily intake of your juice and try to make it healthy!
With this, you can now decide how long your juice will stay proper in the fridge or outside.
https://brazenkitchen.com/how-long-does-juice-last/
