The Best Juicer For Harder Produce Like Carrots, Beets, And Radishes

In this guide we’ll evaluate the best juicers for juicing harder produce like:-

  • Carrots
  • Beets
  • Ginger
  • Rutabagas
  • Radishes
  • Most other root vegetables

Yield

Slow (cold press) juicers – vertical/horizontal masticating and twin gear juicers

Out of juicer yield

Our testing showed that slow juicers extract about 7 to 8 oz. of juice from 16 oz. (1 lb.) of hard fruits and vegetables like carrots. Note that this is a raw juice containing a mixture of liquid juice, foam, and pulp.

Three notable outliers were the Tribest Solostar 4, the Tribest GSE, and Kuvings NJE. The Solostar was able to extract 7.7 oz. of juice – the most of any vertical or horizontal masticating juicer. The GSE was able extract 8.1 oz. – more than any other slow juicer (the GSE is a twin gear slow juicer). On the negative side of things the Kuvings NJE was the worst performer in the category. It only extracted 6 oz. of juice.

Again, most other slow juicers extracted in the 7 to 8 oz. range. In terms of percentages, this equates to a percent yield just under 50% – not an impressive percentage by any means.

With these numbers in mind it shouldn’t be surprising that it’s common knowledge in the juicer world that slow juicers struggle with hard vegetables and fruits more than any other type of produce. The typical slow juicer can extract close to 11 oz. of juice from the average soft fruit or vegetable with a starting weight of 16 oz. Many can extract in the 9 to 10 oz. range from leafy greens (again, with a starting weight of 16 oz.). This equates to a percent yield well over 50%.

Hard fruits and vegetables present a unique challenge to slow juicers because of the mechanism by which they extract juice. Slow juicers grind and crush produce to extract juice from it. This works very well for many fruits and vegetables and even leafy greens but not so much for especially hard produce like carrots.

As we’ll show in just a bit, centrifugal juicers have the strong upper hand juicing this type of produce – not surprisingly, because of the juicing mechanism involved in a centrifugal juicer. Centrifugal juicers have a fast rotating blade to cut into hard fruits and vegetables. This is a much more effective mechanism for extracting juice from this type of produce than crushing or grinding it.

After sieve yield

The raw juice extracted by any juicer usually contains some amount of pulp and foam (in addition to the liquid juice). The second half of our performance testing involved pouring the initial raw juice (containing pulp and foam) through a fine sieve. This resulted in what we call the “after sieve yield”.

The slow juicer after sieve yield for hard produce like carrots was in the 6 to 7 oz. range – about 1 oz. less than the 7 to 8 oz. range for raw juice yield.

Here, again, the percent yield is well under 50%. A yield of 6 to 7 oz. equates to a percent yield of roughly 40%. Again, for slow juicers this is well below the average compared to the yield garnered when juicing other types of fruits and vegetables and it’s also well below the average yield extracted by centrifugal juicers.

Centrifugal juicers

Centrifugal juicers excel in juicing this type of produce. However, there is still quite a bit of variance in yield and overall performance comparing individual model centrifugal juicers.

Our testing showed that the bottom end of the range for yield centered around 9 oz. The upper end of the range was around 11 oz. Lower end budget model centrifugal juicers tended to yield about 9 to 10 oz. of juice while higher end (mostly Breville) models yielded in the 10 to 11 oz. range.

The Jamba 67901 was the best performing centrifugal juicer we tested with an out of juicer (raw juice) yield of 11.3 oz. This is approx. 3 oz. more juice than the best performing slow juicer was able to extract (recall the Tribest GSE yielded 8.1 oz.). The worst performing centrifugal juicer was the Jason Vale Fusion juicer with a yield of 8.7 oz. Note that while this was the worst yield recorded for a centrifugal juicer it was still more than the best yield recorded for a slow juicer.

Moving our evaluation to after sieve yield we see a dramatic drop in performance for budget models compared to higher end (mostly Breville) models. For example, the Jamba 67901 saw its overall yield drop from 11.3 oz. (raw yield) down to 8.5 oz. after putting that initial yield through a sieve. This means that close to 3 oz. (11.3 minus 8.5 equals approx. 3 oz.) of the raw initial yield was some combination of foam and pulp.

Compare this result to the Breville Juice Fountain Compact. Its initial yield was equal to its after sieve yield – both yields were measured at 10.5 oz. This means that the Compact’s initial raw yield essentially contained no pulp or foam. The Breville Juice Fountain Plus garnered an out of juicer yield of 10.5 oz. also but an after sieve yield of 10.3 oz. – a difference of 0.2 oz. This means that the Juice Fountain Plus’s initial raw juice yield contains no more than 0.2 oz. of pulp and foam. Again, the cheaper Jamba 67901’s initial yield contained close to 3 oz. of pulp and foam.

So, in summary, centrifugal juicers, in general, extract more juice than slow juicers from hard fruits and vegetables like carrots and beets. However, not all centrifugal juicers perform equally well juicing this type of produce. Higher end (mostly Breville) models extract an essentially pulp free and foam free juice. Lower end models tend to extract a juice with substantially more pulp and foam.

Prep Time

Preparation – cutting before juicing – of hard fruits and vegetables differs depending on juicer type (centrifugal vs. slow) and subtype (twin gear vs. horizontal masticating vs. vertical masticating).

Most centrifugal juicers have 3 in. wide feeding chutes. Most hard fruits and vegetables have less than a 3 in. diameter and so they fit whole into such feeding chutes – no cutting required. Note that longer produce like carrots fit in whole regardless of their length. It’s perfectly acceptable for part of the carrot to stick up out of the top of the feeding chute as you push it down into the juicer. As long as the fruit or vegetable’s width is 3 inches or less it will fit into a 3 in. centrifugal juicer feeding chute just fine. Once it enters the juicer it’s very easily processed by the rotating cutting blades of the juicer’s filter basket.

Slow juicers, as a whole, tend to have smaller feeding chutes. The Tribest GSE, for example, has a 1.5 in. x 1.5 in. square feeding chute. The Solostar 4 has a 1.25 in. round feeding chute. These juicers require that produce, in general, be cut into smaller pieces before it can be pushed down into the juicer. It doesn’t matter if it’s a hard vegetable like a carrot or a soft fruit like an orange. If it’s too large for the feeding chute it has to be cut into smaller pieces.

When it comes to juicing especially hard fruits and vegetables like carrots, certain slow juicers – namely horizontal masticating and twin gear juicers – require that this type of produce be cut into smaller pieces even beyond the feeding chute limitation we just described – that produce has to be cut small enough to fit into the juicer’s feeding chute. This is because of the mechanism by which these juicers extract juice.

In horizontal masticating juicers, specifically, a slowly rotating auger crushes and grinds produce through a strainer. This process takes place at an angle completely perpendicular to the direction in which the produce is first pushed into the juicer. This requires that the produce be cut into very small pieces for the juicer to be able to process it effectively.

Most vertical masticating juicers don’t have this same requirement. Even the Omega VSJ843QS, a juicer with a 1.375 x 2.5 in. feeding chute, was able to juice carrots whole during our testing. Most other vertical masticating juicers we tested were able to juice carrots whole as well.

So, in summary, centrifugal juicers require virtually no preparation – i.e. no cutting of produce – for juicing. Carrots fit whole into almost all centrifugal juicers.

The same is true for some slow juicers. Most vertical masticating juicers can also accept hard fruits and vegetables whole.

The same isn’t true for horizontal masticating and twin gear juicers. They require that hard fruits and veggies like carrots be cut into smaller pieces (usually no longer than 2 in.) before they can be properly processed by the juicer, regardless of whether longer uncut pieces would theoretically fit into their feeding chutes.

So, if you’re looking for a juicer for harder fruits and veggies and want a juicer that requires the least work possible before you can start juicing you have two options:

  • Centrifugal juicers
  • Vertical masticating juicers

Horizontal masticating and twin gear juicers require considerably more prep work.

Other Considerations

You may be looking for a juicer that’s especially good for juicing harder fruits and veggies like carrots, but that doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be above average in all other aspects as well. Before you buy any particular model it’s important that you also consider things like

  • Cleaning difficulty
  • Overall ase of use
  • Durability and
  • Value

We take all of these things into account as we make specific model recommendations below.

Recommended Models

#1 – Breville Juice Fountain Compact

The Compact is our #1 recommendation if you’re looking for a juicer specifically to juice hard produce like carrots and beets. It had the best after sieve yield juicing carrots of any of the juicers we tested at 10.5 oz. With a starting weight of 16 oz. (1 lb.) this equates to a percent yield over 65%. For comparison, most slow juicers had a percent yield of approx. 40%.

The Compact is also a very good juicer otherwise. It’s very easy to clean, it’s very easy to use, it’s highly durable and it’s a great value, retailing for right around $100.

#2 – Tribest Solostar 4

The Solostar 4 garnered a higher yield juicing carrots than all but one of the 14 slow juicers we tested. It had a raw juice (out of juicer) yield of 7.7 oz. and an after sieve yield of 7 oz. The one slow juicer that did better, the Tribest GSE, garnered yields of 8.1 and 7.6 oz., respectively. But it’s also more than twice as expensive as the Solostar 4.

The Solostar 4 is a horizontal masticating juicer so it will require that you cut produce – including hard produce – before you can juice it. But we think this extra time spent is well worth the extra yield this juicer produces.

#3 – Jamba 67901

If you don’t mind your juice having a little bit of extra foam and pulp, the Jamba 67901 is a great option. It garnered the highest raw juice (out of juicer) yield for juicing carrots of any juicer we tested (centrifugal and slow) at 11.3 oz.

Note that it’s after sieve yield is much less. So, if you prefer your juice with less pulp and less foam this model is not recommended.

Carrot Juice Yield For All Tested Models

Legend 
Raw Out of Juicer YieldRAW
Pulp Free After Sieve YieldNOPULP
*Each numeric value listed below is a final juice weight in ounces after a starting produce weight of 1 lb. (16 oz.)
Slow JuicersRAWNOPULP
GSE8.17.6
Champion11.19
NC8006.76.5
NJE-3580U65.6
Solostar 47.77
HB 67950A5.85.6
J8004/J80066.96.5
BJS600XL6.35.9
Slowstar6.76
VSJ843QS6.46.1
HU-1006.86.2
B6000S6.46.1
SKG7.26.2
VRT35076.7
Centrifugal JuicersRAWNOPULP
JE98XL Plus10.510.3
BJE820XL Duo119.6
800JEXL Elite10.310
BJE510XL M-Speed9.16
BJE200XL Compact10.510.6
Cuisinart CJE-10009.28.2
Jamba 6790111.38.5
HB Big Mouth Pro9.98.7
Dash10.19.1
Big Boss9.28.3
Bella9.98.7
VonShef9.17.3
Juiceman JM4009.48.4
Juiceman JM25097.2
B+D JE2200B97.7
Jack Lalanne9.97.7
Jason Vale Fusion8.78.3

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