Hand-held citrus juicers

[Marlene]

And even non blender drinks like the Shirley Temple or Rob Roy for boys.

[Fat Guy]

I think I'm posting on the wrong thread. Woops.

[andiesenji]

Dave,

If you come across another one of these juicers, hang onto it. They are great for juicing lots of things. Before I got a duck press, I used to use this one to squeeze the juice out of meats.

[slkinsey]

. . . and, let me tell you Dave, if you've never had a duck blood Mojito, you haven't lived.

[Fat Guy]

Sam, is yours the Amco brand?

Yep. The hinge snapped in half maybe the third time I used it. Now there are a few chips in the enamel around the holes as well.

←

Okay, you know you're supposed to squeeze it with your hand, not sit on it, right?

[slkinsey]

You are? D'oh!

[trillium]

I've burned through 3 of the yellow ones (keep returning them to Sur la Table) before I gave up and used the nail to hold it together. They break really easily, even when you trim the bumpy part off of the end of the lemon.

regards,

trillium

[shelora]

Here are the three hand held juicers I own. The one on the left is new and was purchased solely for the cute factor - it really doesn't work as good as the classic orange plastic shown - which I've put to good use over the years. Surprisingly it has never come apart.

Finally the one on the right is an old aluminum juicer manufactured by Wear Ever (forerunner of whatever!), if you see one of these in a thrift store, buy it, they are brilliant, extracting every bit of juice with no seeds and a handy little pouring spout on the side. This one is great for fresh orange juice. It looks like a smaller version of the long-legged version shown in an earlier post.

The orange hand held is my favorite, working its magic for summer margaritas for many years now. Viva Mexico!

[Fat Guy]

What's the brand name on the orange one?

[andiesenji]

Regarding the hand-held "bumpy" juicers, you can also find wooden ones at many Mexican markets. I don't know what kind of wood they use, but they are obviously hand made. Somewhere in my stuff is one I bought in Mexico about 30 years ago. I just remembered it this morning when I made a brief stop at a Vallarta Supermercado to pick up some Mexican crema (and some lovely ripe peaches) and saw some on a shelf where the other "Made in Mexico" gadgets are displayed, chocolate mixers, wooden spoons, etc.

Edited June 22, 2005 by andiesenji (log)

[shelora]

What's the brand name on the orange one?

Besides, Hecho en Mexico, the orange juicer also has the brand Plasticos Terrones printed on it.

[slkinsey]

"Plastic Lumps?"

[shelora]

Well it does make sense.

[Smithy]

I swear, if my house were on fire, this is the first thing I'd grab out of the kitchen. I have an electric reamer that's good for juicing oranges, a plastic-bumpy lid (that I never use) that fits on a Pyrex measuring cup, and another strange handheld juicer that's pretty good - I should post a photo later - but the Wearever (a family heirloom) gets almost daily use juicing lemons and limes. It works reasonably well for pomegranates too, although the juice is a bit cloudy if you don't bother to peel the pomegranate first. This particular Wearever juicer has made gallons of lemon juice for lemonade and lemon meringue pie in my family, beginning in WWII when my mother rescued it from the trash of a navy wife who didn't know a treasure when she had one.

I don't think it's very good for orange juice, however; too much of the peel oils get into the juice and turn it bitter.

I agree, 100%, with the postings above: if you see one at a garage sale, buy it. And for heaven's sake, if you see one in your grandmother's house, don't throw it away.

[maggiethecat]

That's the one my mother has. Mine is from a different and anonymous maker, but very, very close. I agree with you about not using it for orange juice, but then again, the old Pyrex bumpy thing does a fine job with oranges.

I swear, if my house were on fire, this is the first thing I'd grab out of the kitchen.  I have an electric reamer that's good for juicing oranges, a plastic-bumpy lid (that I never use) that fits on a Pyrex measuring cup, and another strange handheld juicer that's pretty good - I should post a photo later - but the Wearever (a family heirloom) gets almost daily use juicing lemons and limes.  It works reasonably well for pomegranates too, although the juice is a bit cloudy if you don't bother to peel the pomegranate first.  This particular Wearever juicer has made gallons of lemon juice for lemonade and lemon meringue pie in my family, beginning in WWII when my mother rescued it from the trash of a navy wife who didn't know a treasure when she had one.

I don't think it's very good for orange juice, however; too much of the peel oils get into the juice and turn it bitter.

I agree, 100%, with the postings above: if you see one at a garage sale, buy it.  And for heaven's sake, if you see one in your grandmother's house, don't throw it away.

←

[Priscilla]

I have gone through many types of juicers, and keep on hand now only the old wooden hand-held reamer and a relatively new capitulation, an inexpensive electric bought two years ago when we set out to make perfect margaritas at home after our margarita haven, the Mexican roadhouse within walking distance, was undergoing some sort of mysterious hardly-ever-open reorganization.

The electric one, which might be a Black & Decker but I ferget, cost something like $14.95. Prior to that I'd been through so many types, from my grandmother's enameled cast iron and aluminum Mighty OJ to a regulation Pyrex one-piece to the plastic one that fits on the glass receptacle.

The electric one is the best of the lot by a huge margin. It ain't romantic, nor even good-looking, but juicing is one of those jobs for me to get over and done.

Edited in: Course it lacks the "hand-held" part of the "Hand-held citrus juicers" topic.

Edited June 22, 2005 by Priscilla (log)

[hathor]

Why is it so hard to make a decent juicer?? Not electric, the hand squisher kind. I've been through 3 already and the current one spits out a thin stream of juice at eye level.

[andiesenji]

I never had a problem with them when I was able to use one. I have arthritis in my right hand, base of the thumb, severe and can't grip tightly.

If you have the citrus half position correctly, the juice can only exit through the holes.

You have to put the cut side down, against the holes and when you squeeze, it turns the fruit inside-out.

[slkinsey]

What kind of "hand squisher" juicer are you talking about? A citrus reamer/juicer like this? A citrus hand press like this? Or a lever-action citrus press like the Ra Chand or Orange-X? There's a big difference.

[OliverB]

I have one of those gigantic garlic press like things, actually works for lime with a small press and lemon with the large part.

for just one lemon or lime I either just squeeze it or use a wooden reamer (if I don't care about the seeds, like in a marinade etc)

[weinoo]

Since hathor refers to it as a hand squisher type, I'd bet she's referring to that Amco two-handled press that Sam linked above. They're OK, especially for juicing right into a jigger or small measure, but I do prefer my OXO reamer/juicer for small quantities.

There is nothing like the real deal ones (Orange-X or Ra Chand) that Sam links to for large quantities of juice.

[andiesenji]

I have one like this which is difficult for me to grip.

That is the type that most people operate incorrectly if they have not seen one in use. They put the cut side of the lemon or lime up and not only is less juice extracted, it does squirt out the sides.

I bought this one which is a little easier to use because the handles are longer but it still bothers me and I've long had one like this stand type like this works okay but is a pain to clean and not handy for just one or two fruits.

I have two or three electric reamers that really haven't been up to my standards so I recently bought this cute little juicer from Tribest - I was ordering yogurt supplies and an extra 2 quart container anyway. And I really love it. It works much better than the Cuisinart and to me is certainly worth the extra cost.

I can juice one fruit or several and it is super easy to clean.

[janeer]

I have an aluminum hand juicer that fits over a measuring cup that I just love--I hardly ever take out my electric juicer unless I am doing a ton of lemons. I can't find a picture online, I will take one this weekend and post. It is primitive but unbelievably effective.

[natasha1270]

I have the wooden reamer, press & juicer but 8 times out of 10 for small amounts I can't be bothered and just fork the lemon or lime.

[andiesenji]

I still don't understand the problems you folks are having with the lemon squeezer.

So, I'm sacrificing my hands and enduring a little pain for this set of instructional photos.

Here's the way I do it and the juice does not come out of the sides - in the next to last picture you can see that the rim is dry.

All the juice went into the bowl (except for the tiny puddle from when I cut the lemon)

Edited April 20, 2011 by andiesenji (log)