Pomegranate is a complex fruit, and it has thick red skin and a miniature crown that houses hundreds of arils or those tiny edible seeds that are juicy and has a brilliant-red pulp. These arils are separated into clusters by a membrane and have a sweet-tart flavor. Pomegranates are known for being packed with antioxidants, vitamins C and K, as well as folate and dietary fiber. This is why it is one best fruit that you can mix and blend with other vegetables or fruits. This is why in this article, we will teach you how to juice pomegranate seeds so that you can add them to your daily juicing menu.
Benefits of Pomegranate Juice
Pomegranate juice has several health benefits, such as high levels of antioxidants. However, there are several advantages if you make your own pomegranate juice at home. For starters, it’s fresher. You can buy pomegranates when they are in season and at their peak instead of purchasing pomegranate juice made from concentrate.
When you’re juicing pomegranates on your own, chances are you will end up with a purer flavor because most bottled fruit juices often have added sweeteners in them. Pomegranates can be juiced and consumed on their own. However, most people like to blend it with other fruits to create fruit juice cocktails to end up with a sweeter and mellower taste.
Pomegranate juice is not only limited to drinking. It is also perfect for cooking because you can use it for marinades, smoothies, salad dressings, syrups, or if you want to add a splash of color and sweet-tart flavor to your baked goods. Homemade pomegranate juice is very versatile.
Picking the Right Pomegranates to Juice
When you’re looking for a pomegranate to juice, pick the ones that feel heavy because those are the ones who tend to have more juice. Ripe pomegranates have glossy and smooth skins, but make sure that they are not soft and they do not have bruised spots. Please note that pomegranate skin colors may vary and do not necessarily dictate its ripeness.
Ripe pomegranates have flat and angular sides because of the juicy seeds pressing against their skin. If you notice that the pomegranate has a perfectly round shape, it means that it’s still not ripe, and the arils inside have not matured yet.
Cutting and Removing the Seeds of a Pomegranate
Before you remove the seeds of a pomegranate, keep in mind that its juice stains. That is why if you do not want your kitchen to look like there’s blood smeared all over the counter, make sure that you’re wearing and using the right materials. We suggest using wooden cutting boards because plastic cutting boards might get stained. If things get pink and messy, you can clean up your wooden cutting board with lemon juice or vinegar.
You can follow these deseeding techniques to help keep your kitchen mess to a minimum.
- Under running water, wash your pomegranates, then cut its crown, which is the top portion of the pomegranate.
- After that, cut down the bottom part of the fruit just like how you cut the crown. This helps loosen the pomegranate’s rind because it loses strength on both parts.
- Remove the top part of the pomegranate by cutting an angled and shallow circle around the crown. Wiggle it until it’s loose and discarded. Then, make four shallow cuts all the way down the bottom of the fruit.
- After making four shallow cuts, hold two of the parts in each of your hands and gently pull them in order to separate them. Make sure that you divide the fruit into four parts.
- Separate each part.
- Deseed to a large bowl.
- Get rid of all the white and yellow membranes
Making Pomegranate Juice in a Blender
1. When you’re making pomegranate juice in a blender, you first need to add the arils into the blender.
2. After that, add a pinch of salt and lemon juice if you want.
3. Put the lid of your blender and pulse briefly – 10 to 15 seconds, depending on the strength of your blender. Make sure that the pomegranate seeds are still intact, but the seeds’ juice is released. If you want to crush the seeds, you will need to filter the juice in a fine strainer to avoid having a gritty pomegranate juice. If you wish for extra nutritional values such as fiber, punicic acid, and vitamin E, we suggest that you crush the seeds.
4. Once all the arils are compressed, you can pour the juices through a fine-mesh to separate the pulps and seeds from the juice. Make sure that you use a fine filter if you’re not into drinking gritty juice.
5. Press the pulp against the strainer using the back of a spatula or spoon so that you can adequately squeeze out every drop of fresh juice.
6. If you decide to crush the seeds, your will end up with a pomegranate juice that looks frothy. That is why if you want clear juice, you might want to strain it again using a thin cheesecloth or a fine strainer.
Make sure that you consume your freshly juiced pomegranate as soon as possible before it begins to oxidize. You can add ice cubes to help dilute the juice. However, it will also reduce the taste and nutritional values of the fruit.