Apple Juice with Lemon (Blended, Not Juiced)

Name: Apple Juice with Lemon
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 3 apples (cored; leave the skin on for colour); 1 small lemon (the juice; it slows the browning); Sugar or honey, to taste; 3 ice cubes (one per glass); 3 glasses water

Three apples blended with water and lemon, then strained. Five minutes, no cooking, and the lemon is there to stop it browning as much as for the taste.

Total: 5

JUMP TO RECIPE

Apples blended with water and lemon and put through a sieve. No juicer needed, five minutes, and it tastes nothing like the carton.

It will turn brown, and that is normal

Cut apple oxidises within minutes. By the time it has been blended and strained the juice will already be turning beige, and it keeps going from there.

The lemon slows it down considerably, which is its main job here even though it also improves the taste. Drinking it straight away is the other half of the answer. Nothing makes blended apple juice stay pale for an hour.

Blending is not juicing

A juicer separates liquid from fibre mechanically. A blender pulverises everything together, which is why this recipe strains afterwards.

Without straining you get a thick, gritty purée rather than juice, because apple flesh does not break down smoothly the way citrus does. Push it through a sieve with the back of a spoon and expect to leave a good amount of pulp behind.

Leave the skins on

They carry colour and a good part of the flavour, and the sieve takes them out anyway. Coring is worth doing: apple pips are bitter and there is no reason to blend them.

Three glasses of water

Roughly 600 ml, which is what the recipe means. It is an imprecise measure and everyone's glass is different, so treat it as a starting point and adjust: less water for something closer to a smoothie, more for something lighter.

More juices

Pineapple juice — also strained, for the fibre.
Carrot juice — the other sweet one.
Blackberry juice — in water or in milk.
Colombian fruit — how juice is drunk there.

Apple Juice FAQ

Why does my apple juice turn brown?

Because cut apple oxidises within minutes, and blending exposes all of it to air at once. The lemon juice slows it considerably, which is its main purpose in the recipe. Drink it fresh: nothing keeps blended apple juice pale for long.

Do I need a juicer?

No. This recipe blends the apples with water and strains the result, which gets you to the same place with a blender and a sieve. Skipping the straining leaves you with a gritty purée rather than juice.

Should I peel the apples?

No. The skins carry colour and flavour and the sieve removes them anyway. Do core them, though: the pips are bitter.

How much is three glasses of water?

Around 600 ml. It is an imprecise measure and worth treating as a starting point: less water gives something closer to a smoothie, more gives a lighter juice.

Can I make it ahead?

Not really. It browns and it separates, so it is a drink to make and pour. If you must, keep it covered in the fridge with extra lemon and stir before serving.

📖 Recipe