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How to Use a Juicer to Make Orange Juice

There’s nothing quite like the taste of fresh-squeezed orange juice! I have a juicer and a hand squeezer, but I’ve never really used either to make orange juice. So I wondered how I could use a juicer to make orange juice.

To make orange juice, you can use either a hand squeezer, regular juicer, or citrus juicer. The rind is bitter, so if using an electric juicer, peel them first. The hand squeezer is labor-intensive for large quantities, so if you don’t have a regular juicer, a citrus juicer works better and does not require peeling.

But there’s a lot of other questions that come up, so let’s dive in!

If you’re looking to buy any small kitchen appliance, don’t forget to check out my Recommended Products Page (click to see my page) which breaks down all my best picks by category.

I always hand select items that I either own, have used, or have researched well to ensure they are great items. I also give not only top of the line as well as inexpensive alternatives so my choices work for any budget.

how to use a juicer to make orange juice Kitchen Appliance HQ 2 unpeeled and 1 peeled mandarin oranges

Can you juice oranges in a juicer?

Yes is the short answer.

The juicer I have is a Juiceville Brew Fountain Plus and it’s an outstanding juicer! I juice at least 5 days a week and we’ve had this thing over 6 years with no issues!

The hopper (the long tube you feed the items down) is 3″ in diameter, so some really big oranges might be too big to fit down the tube.

BUT, your juice will also taste less bitter without the peel going into the juicer. So for the best and tastiest juice, peel your oranges first and then just drop the segments down the tube for delicious juice!

How do you juice oranges by hand?

A citrus squeezer is the best way to juice oranges without an electric juicer or citrus juicer. Simply cut the orange in half, place one half inside the citrus squeezer, and press. Then repeat with the other half. It will automatically retain the seeds as you juice.

You’ve seen these things. Typically they make a green one that is lime-sized, a larger yellow one for lemons and an orange one that is more orange-sized.

Personally, I just have one of the bigger ones and use it for all 3, but to each their own.

To squeeze orange juice by hand simply cut your oranges in half and place one half in the squeezer and squeeze away. No need to peel using this method.

However, this is a lot of work on your forearm and hand, so be prepared to put some muscle into it!

How much juice do you get from an orange?

When juicing an orange, expect to get approximately 4 tablespoons (2 oz) of juice per orange. So 4 oranges will yield approximately 1 cup of orange juice.

Of course, the type of orange you get, how ripe it is and even how cold it might be could all affect the yield.

But that’s obviously not a lot of juice per orange when you consider most of the orange juice containers in the grocery store are 52oz.

Thus for your typical container of Simply Orange, you’re going to need about 26 oranges!

How do you make orange juice taste better?

To get the best flavor from fresh-squeezed orange juice start with Valencia oranges, and if using an electric juicer, remove the skin first.

The 2 big factors that affect juice are not juicing the skin in a centrifugal juicer and then using the right kind of orange.

Don’t dilute with water and don’t sweeten your freshly squeezed orange juice.

If you are feeling that one of those is necessary then you probably just don’t like “real” orange juice!

Should you juice orange peel?

You should not juice orange peel if you want the juice to be sweet, as the peel will impart a lot of bitterness. However, the peel contains a lot of nutrients, so if you are drinking it for health benefits, you may want to juice with the peel on.

There are dozens of different types of flavonoids in citrus. Flavonoids are plant compounds that typically have high levels of anti-oxidants.

Because most of these compounds are in the skin more than the juice or the flesh, some people do prefer to juice the peel along with the rest of the orange.

Just know that juicing the whole orange can result in a more bitter juice.

What is the best type of orange for juicing?

Valencia oranges are generally the best type of orange for juicing, but blood oranges and Mandarin oranges also yield very flavorful juice.

But let’s review all the most common ones:

  • Navel Orange – The most common orange you’ll see at the store. A little on the large size with thick skin, but less juicy than the other types
  • Blood Orange – One of the juiciest oranges in the citrus family, the flesh, as the name implies, is a dark red color as is the juice
  • Mandarin Orange – The same citrus family as the tangerine and clementine, so also smaller, sweeter and easier to peel than regular oranges
  • Tangerine – Smaller & sweeter than most oranges with thinner skin making them easier to peel. Satsumas are a type of tangerine but sometimes get called mandarins
  • Clementine – Small and seedless. Sometimes called “Cuties”, these are easy to peel and great for kid’s snacks
  • Valencia – Thick skins, but unlike navels are extremely juicy. They do have seeds though, so if juicing by hand just watch out for them

How do you take the bitterness out of orange juice?

To make orange juice less bitter, avoid juicing the skin and seeds. Limonin is an antioxidant found in most types of citrus, particularly in the skin or seeds. When limonin comes in contact with air, the enzymes change and become extremely bitter, resulting in very sour juice.

Navel oranges have limonin in the skin, thus if you juice the entire orange, it starts turning bitter very quickly.

In Valencia oranges, the limonin is not in the skin but in the seeds. Thus it is not exposed to as much air, resulting in a fresher, less bitter juice.

Not juicing the skin and the seeds give you the best result, but for sure avoid juicing navel oranges.

But if you’re juicing by hand or with a citrus juicer and not a regular juicer, you’ll naturally avoid both skin and seeds.

Can we add honey to orange juice?

Honey is not needed in orange juice if you are starting with a sweet and flavorful orange such as a Valencia and making sure to not juice the skin or seeds which can turn it bitter.

But the short answer is you can add anything you like to your orange juice.

But WHY would you?

If you’re starting with great fruit and have selected Valencia, mandarins, cuties or something other than a navel orange, and especially if you’ve peeled them before juicing there really should be no reason to add additional sweeteners.

That being said, many people like to take local honey to help manage allergy symptoms, so if you’re in an allergy-prone area (like I am in Austin), you’d be just fine to mix in a little local honey into your OJ, but I wouldn’t do it just to add sweetness.

Can you mix orange juice and milk?

Yes, you can mix orange juice and milk together for a creamy, sweet beverage. However, to avoid curdling the milk, make sure that both the milk and orange juice are at the same temperature when mixing; either refrigerated or room temperature.

You can mix just about anything.

That being said, that doesn’t mean you should. However, people have been mixing milk and orange juice for a long time.

Despite that, you do see a lot of people asking if you can mix orange juice and milk and others who have concerns about it curdling the milk.

In truth, in your stomach, milk naturally curdles whether combined with orange juice or not.

Orange juice is naturally very acidic. Thus it is best digested quickly. Milk, by contrast, contains high levels of protein. Protein is naturally harder to digest and is a longer process.

So those who claim to have gotten sick from mixing the two probably just reacted to the acidity and the length of time it took everything to digest.

How do you mix milk and orange juice?

To mix orange juice and milk start by ensuring both are the same temperature; ideally right out of the refrigerator. Add 1.25 parts orange juice to 2 parts milk slowly, stirring constantly. Then consume the beverage immediately to avoid the 2 ingredients separating.

As a kid, I still remember seeing the fast food place Orange Julius everywhere. Orange Julius stores are still around but are pretty few and far between compared to when I was a kid.

Their signature drink blended orange juice, milk, powdered egg whites, vanilla, and sugar. That doesn’t sound appealing to me, so maybe that’s why there aren’t as many of them now.

But lots of other cultures enjoy this mix too.

In the Dominican Republic they enjoy a drink called Morir Soñando. Like the Orange Julius, it is a sweet drink prepared as follows:

  • 4 cups of evaporated milk
  • 3/4 cup of sugar 
  • 1 tbsp clear vanilla extract
  • 2 cup of ice cubes or crushed ice
  • 2 1/2 cups fresh orange juice

So yes, the ultimate answer is you can mix milk and orange juice and be just fine, so if that sounds good to you, drink away.

Final Thoughts

In this article, we took a look at the world of orange juice, simple yes, but something that can get surprisingly complicated.

We looked at which oranges are naturally sweeter, how much juice you can get from 1 orange, whether an electric juicer or hand juicer gets better results and some of the ways you can use your fresh squeezed orange juice.

Ultimately, we broke down exactly how to use a juicer to make orange juice.

Do you juice your own or buy store-bought OJ?

If you’re looking to buy any small kitchen appliance, don’t forget to check out my Recommended Products Page (click to see my page) which breaks down all my best picks by category.

I always hand select items that I either own, have used, or have researched well to ensure they are great items. I also give not only top of the line as well as inexpensive alternatives so my choices work for any budget.

Jeff Campbell