Fruit juices have always been favourite among people and one of them is certainly orange juice.
In this text we will talk about orange juice and we will answer all important questions related to this juice.
You can make orange juice on your own or you can simply buy it somewhere. Of course, it is much healthier when you squeeze oranges and make a juice on your own.
But, you have to know that orange juice cannot last too long. If you have prepared orange juice, you should drink it as soon as possible, because otherwise it can go bad for a short time.
In this text we are going to answer a very common question among all the lovers of orange juice. Can we freeze it? Yes, we can freeze orange juice.
This way you will extend its shelf life and you will have the opportunity to enjoy your orange drink later.
In this text we are going to tell you many interesting things about freezing your orange juice and we are sure that this text will be useful for you.
How to Make Orange Juice?
You can buy orange juice, but you can also prepare it at home.
As we have already said at the beginning of this text, orange juice that you make at home is healthier than the juice that you can buy in a store.
If you decide to prepare orange juice on your own, the first thing that you should do is to prepare oranges.
There are many different types of oranges, but we recommend you to use navel or common oranges, blood oranges or Valencia oranges.
All these types of oranges are great for making a juice. Apart from these orange types, in order to make orange juice, you can also use clementines or tangerines.
When you have prepared oranges for your juice, we can start with its preparation.
You just need to take a couple of fresh oranges and to squeeze them. Of course, you have to decide if you will make a juice with pulp or not.
If you don’t want to have pulp in your orange juice, you can simply strain it and remove the pulp.
If you have a juicer, you can also use it to make orange juice. But, you have to peel oranges first and then chop the oranges.
Put the chopped oranges in the juicer and you will make your juice easily.
Also, you can choose a method of manual juicing. If you have the handheld juicer, it will be very easy to make orange juice.
You just need to chop oranges in half and press them down on the juicer.
Rotate oranges and squeeze them. This is the most common way of making orange juice and it doesn’t require any expensive devices.
Another way to make orange juice is to use a blender. You need to peel the fruits and to remove all the seeds from them. You should place oranges in a blender and add some water in it.
If you want to prepare orange juice at home, it would be the healthiest choice that you could make. Oranges are usually sweet enough, so you don’t need to add sugar.
Because if that it is considered that the orange juice that we make at home is healthier than the orange juice that we can buy.
When we buy orange or any other fruit juice, we should know that it will probably contain a lot of sugar or some artificial sweeteners.
Because of that it is much better to make orange juice on your own.
Now when you know how you can prepare orange juice at home, it is time to tell you something more about the health benefits of this juice.
Health Benefits of Orange Juice
When we are talking about the health benefits of orange juice, it refers to the juice that we have made at home.
First of all it is important to know that oranges are full of vitamins, particularly of vitamin C.
Studies have shown that only one cup of this juice can provide us a daily recommended amount of this vitamin.
Due to high amounts of vitamin C in orange juice, it is not a secret that this juice will boost your immune system.
Orange juice will certainly prevent the cold or at least reduce its symptoms.
Apart from vitamin C, there is also vitamin A and many other vitamins hidden in oranges.
Oranges are very healthy fruit and they are particularly beneficial during the season of colds and flu.
But, you have to be careful if you have a sore throat.
Many people are consuming orange juice when they have a sore throat, but it is wrong.
In this case orange juice can irritate throat even more because of its acidity, so we recommend you not to take orange juice if you have a sore throat.
When it comes to minerals, we have to mention iron and calcium first.
Also, there are big amounts of potassium in oranges and because of that orange juice can be a good prevention for heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases.
Some studies have even shown that regular consumption of orange juice can reduce the risk of stroke as well.
Orange juice can have positive influence on the health of your kidneys, too.
Also, it is proved that orange juice can reduce high blood pressure.
Oranges are rich in antioxidants, which means that orange juice can be very effective against inflammations and it can prevent many chronic diseases.
Due to big amounts of folate in oranges, orange juice is also recommended to pregnant women.
It is believed that if orange juice is consumed regularly, it can prevent many defects on birth.
As you could see, orange juice is very healthy and it can improve many health conditions.
If you drink this juice regularly, you are going to feel its health benefits very soon.
Can We Freeze Orange Juice?
As we have already told you, the answer is yes. We can safely freeze orange juice.
It is interesting that you can freeze not only the orange juice that you have bought in a store, but also the juice that you have made on your own.
If you have too much orange juice and you will not drink it all at once, then a good idea is to freeze it for some time.
It is a great idea if you want to save your orange juice for later.
But, before you freeze your orange juice you have to be sure that it has not already gone bad.
You have to taste it and to be sure that it is still fresh before placing it into the freezer.
But, if your orange juice already was in the fridge for a couple of days and you want to freeze it now, then we recommend you not to do that. In this case it would be best to throw it away.
You should not freeze orange juice that has already changed its consistency and flavour.
Freezing is a good option but only when you have fresh orange juice.
When you freeze orange juice, it will stay fresh, but not forever, of course.
It is recommended to use frozen orange juice within 4 months.
Now when you know that you can freeze orange juice that you have prepared or bought, we are going to tell you how to do it.
How to Freeze Orange Juice?
The first thing that you should do if you want to freeze orange juice is to choose appropriate container for it.
It could be a big jar or a plastic airtight container.
You can also take a glass bottle or you can freeze orange juice in the tray for ice cubes.
You should decide which option of freezing is the most suitable for you and what you are going to use this orange juice for.
When you have chosen a container that you are going to use for your orange juice, it is time to pour orange juice in it.
The most important thing is not to fill the container or the bottle to the top with orange juice, because it is known that liquids expand when they are in the freezer.
The same will happen with your orange juice.
When it is frozen, it will expand to the top of the bottle and that’s why you should always leave a little headspace in the container with orange juice.
When you have filled a glass or a container with orange juice, it is time to place it in the freezer.
We have told you that there are a couple of ways in which you can freeze orange juice, but the most common way to freeze it is to use ice cubes tray.
When the juice is already frozen, you can simply transfer the cubes of orange juice in another container or in a freezer bag.
This way your ice cube tray will be empty and you can use it for freezing something else.
But, if you don’t need ice cubes tray, then your orange juice can stay in it until you decide to use it.
Another important thing when it comes to freezing orange juice is to be careful because there may be too much pulp in the juice.
In this case it will be necessary to strain the juice before you freeze it.
If orange juice is too pulpy, then it may become very thick and dry when we freeze it.
That’s why it is recommendable to strain orange juice if you are planning to freeze it.
Now when your orange juice is frozen, it is time to thaw it and to use it.
But how can you thaw orange juice? You will find out below.
How to Thaw Orange Juice?
After freezing your orange juice, the next step is to thaw it. It is a very easy thing and we are going to tell you some useful tips.
In order to thaw your orange juice, you can simply place it in the fridge and let it stay this way over the night.
This option of defrosting orange juice is completely safe, but as you can see, it takes a long time and you will have to wait.
As we have said, frozen orange juice will have to stay in the fridge the whole night.
But, the next day you will have the opportunity to enjoy your orange juice or to use it for preparing something else.
There is also another way to defrost your orange juice. You can simply use lukewarm water and put your juice in it.
This way your juice will be defrosted faster and you will not have to wait so long, but you will also need to be patient, because it will take a couple of hours as well.
When you defrost orange juice, you may notice a slight difference.
Actually, the colour of the orange juice that you have thawed will change a little.
Also, the orange juice that was in the freezer will separate when it is thawed.
You will notice that on the bottom of the glass the juice will be darker, because the pulp of the juice will go to the bottom.
On the top of the glass you will see that it has watery consistence.
When it comes to the flavour of the orange juice that we have thawed, there is a little difference from fresh orange juice, but there are also many people who don’t notice a difference at all.
As you could see, you can defrost orange juice in different ways.
But, it is interesting to know that sometimes you don’t even need to defrost it, because you may need it frozen.
For example, if you are making a smoothie and you need ice cubes, you can simply add ice cubes of orange juice in your smoothie.
Can We Refreeze Orange Juice?
Now when we have defrosted orange juice, there can be a question what if we don’t use the whole amount of the juice that we have defrosted.
Can we freeze the leftovers of orange juice again or it is not recommended? Actually, you can do that.
It is safe to refreeze orange juice, so you don’t have to worry if you defrosted too much of orange juice.
However, you should know that after refreezing orange juice, its quality will not be the same.
Orange juice will not go bad if you refreeze it, but its quality will change. Because of that it is better not to refreeze orange juice.
Even though it is safe, we recommend you not to do that.
How to Use Orange Juice that is Frozen or Thawed?
There are many ways to use orange juice after placing it in the freezer and also after thawing it.
We have already mentioned that you can use the frozen cubes of orange juice instead of usual ice cubes.
You can use them to make smoothies, cocktails and many other drinks.
For making a cocktail you can also use defrosted orange juice.
If you want to prepare the dough, you can use thawed orange juice.
You have seen in this text that you can freeze orange juice and we have told you how to do that.
Also, we have given you important tips how to make orange juice on your own.
We are sure that you will try it at home and that you will enjoy your drink.
If you include orange juice in your daily diet, we are sure that you will stay healthy and you will be full of energy.
You should always have on mind that orange juice is very healthy and you should drink it whenever you can.
As we have told you, the best option is always fresh orange juice that you can prepare at home or squeezed orange juice that you can drink when you go out but make sure that there is no added sugar.
Read also: Do Oranges Have Seeds? / What Does Mango Taste Like?
