Juicing vs. Blending? Which is better? It depends on your needs and what you’re trying to achieve.
Juice or smoothie? Which do you prefer? Personally, I love both. But I’ve been making a hybrid lately since my current needs require the two step approach to get the nutrients I need these days. More on that later.
You can google the difference between the two ways of making drinks from veggies and fruits and you’ll get consistent answers about the pros and cons. There is no arguing that there are benefits to drinking green drinks but the differences between the two are definitive. And my conclusion of which is better is, ‘it depends’ on what you are trying to achieve. I know that’s a cop out but which one you should drink really depends on what your health goal is.
I make smoothies and rice milk in my blender (affiliate) and green drinks too. It’s easy – just throw everything in the blender and blend away. A smoothie is hearty and it fills me up until lunch. I can also blend seeds, nuts, add frozen berries and even make frozen slushes or ice cream. Clean up is much MUCH easier with a blender than the million parts of a juicer. Just watch the sharp blades at the bottom of the blender (trust me. I’ve had my fingers nicked and sliced more than I want to admit) and you are done! A juicer is such a pain in the butt to clean!
But when my kids were on the GAPS diet for food allergies and Eczema and I needed to give them the nutrients that they need but make it gentler on their GI system so that they can digest easier. I didn’t want to give them all that fibrous bulk from veggies and all the foam filled with air that smoothies create. They love it better and I don’t have to chase them down to make sure they finish their veggie drinks.
So blending and juicing serve different purposes. But if you are still asking which better, read on.
Juicing vs. Blending? Which is better?
I had a serendipitous encounter on Twitter with the green juicing diva Crazy Sexy Wellness diva Kris Carr. She is my “shero” when it comes to green drinks. She is thriving from a rare cancer she has and her green juicing/blending has something to do with her phenomenal health. She let me use her pretty and informative infographic about the differences between juicing and blending and I am tickled green! She is the green drink ninjadiva. She has a cookbook too so check it out.
If you are trying to get the most nutrients in a little cup of powerhouse, you should juice. If you want “a meal” type of a drink that’s more filling, then, go for the smoothie. Both are packed with nutrients but smoothie will take you longer to digest with all the fiber you are drinking. But if you have digestive issues, then, you need to drink juice and not the smoothie. It’ll be gentler on your stomach.
What to juice and blend?
In general, you can juice or blend any veggies and fruits BUT there are better vegetables for juicing and blending. Some veggies don’t juice well. Stay with vegetables with high water content like cucumbers, tomatoes, celery, even broccoli for juicing. Obviously, hard root vegetables like potatoes and sweet potatoes don’t juice OR even blend well. So skip those. Beets are ok when you blend but you have to have a high power blender to blend. I love beets in my green drinks but the difficulty of juicing it was one of reasons why I started making the hybrid “smoothjuice”. Also, I can add seeds or nuts to my drinks too if I make smoothjuice.
Here is my latest smoothjuice recipe. Obviously, you can substitute with any veggies you’d like. But the important thing to remember is to vary the veggies. You shouldn’t drink kale or spinach everyday. Just like everything in food, everything in moderation AND add variety.
Clean all veggies well and scrub gently with a brush but don’t peel them if you don’t have to. Of course, check for dirty dozen and buy organic fruits and veggies if they are on the dirty list.
Karen’s Daily Green Smooth-juice
Ingredients
- 2 large carrots scrubbed or cleaned
- 1 celery stalk
- 1 kirby cucumber
- 1 med tomato
- 1/2 sweet pepper - red or yellow or orange
- 1 fruit i.e kiwi, orange, 1/2 cup of pineapple or 1/2 apple etc. Don't add if you don't want any sugar.
- 2 large dark leafy greens i.e. kale, broccoli, swiss chard, spinach, etc
Instructions
- Juice all the veggies and fruits (if using).
- Then, pour the juice into the blender, add seeds or nuts or any frozen fruits you want to add in the blender. I buy organic frozen berries from Costco in the winter but now with fresh berries in season, I probably will juice the berries.
- I also add any oils at this point, like coconut oil, omega-3 fish oil, fermented cod liver oil, etc.
I love the idea of “smoothjuice”! I never juiced before going on GAPS; I only did smoothies, so I appreciate this comparison.
@Recipes to Nourish when I make smoothies, i try to use veggies with high water content to make it less thick. I love lettuce and cukes for making the base for a smoothie. I also add coconut water too! Thx for reading!
[email protected] Talk I did try to juice sweet potato once since it’s sweet and “juicy”. I ended up getting about 2 tbsp for a small one. Lesson learned. And it makes a very thick smoothie. Not recommended for blending or juicing.
natfitfoodie blending is great if you can tolerate all the fiber. It is more nutritious in some ways. But juicing can provide concentrated nutrition too without all the bulk. So that’s why I do smoothjuice! Thx for reading! 🙂
Megan Stevens I love doing both! It takes time and washing all the components are a hassle but so worth it at the end!
ReneeKohley Raw veggies can be harsh, especially, if you have gut issues. But start with juicing milder veggies like cukes, lettuce, carrots…and drink small amounts for a week or so to see if you can tolerate it. Then, add one new veggie at a time. It’s definitely great for cleansing if you do it right. Glad it was helpful!
Carol Studio Botanica You are welcome Carol! Glad it was helpful!
AnnaLishman20 If you can tolerate all the fiber, then, blending whole veggies is definitely more nutritious!
Great post. I personally prefer to blend my veg and fruit to take the full advantage of the pulp’s and skin’s amazing nutrients 🙂
What a super article. I do both… and learned lots. Thanks Karen!
This is a great reference. I am actually in the market for a juicer and think it has a time and place for purpose. I am very much in a post healed state where I feel I could handle the juicing now – raw veg and me used to not get along well – not in smoothies or juicing. But as I have healed my gut and tolerate more food I would like to juice in the spring for cleansing purposes…I am also post partim baby 3 in the last 5 years so I just have a lot of healing/replenishing to do….
I agree with your conclusion and love them both for different reasons. 🙂
There was some talk about that blending was better than juicing because you retain the fiber when you blend. This puts it into perspective. Thanks or sharing!
Thanks for clarifying blending versus juicing. I would never think to juice a sweet potato.
Great post! I love both or different reasons, but since my juicer broke, I only use the blender now.
Great info Karen. I mainly blend, but love a good green juice too.
I blend. I don’t own a juicer so I don’t have the option to juice. Great post. Thanks for sharing.
@Linda Spiker Isn’t she a hoot? So glad she personally allowed me to use it and gave me the link! Glad you liked the post Linda. 🙂
@Susanne Thanks Susanne! There is a difference and each serve difference purpose. Glad you found it helpful! Thx!
Great post! And love that Kris Carr!
ConveyAwareness I have a Breville too. Don’t know the model number but it seems to work still….just not sure about the BPA containers. I have to contact the company. Is Omega better brand? Thx for reading and sharing! 🙂
Hi Karen,
This is a great post. I have noticed when I see clients, that very few people know the difference between juicing and blending. Thanks for explaining it so well. I will be sharing this on my page.
I’m a fan of both. Each serves a purpose. I do need to update my juicer though. I’ve had my Breville since 2000 and she’s starting to show her age. On the wish list: an Omega! Great article. Pinned! =)