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Citrus fruits lift the mood - and not just when looking at them
Photo: Volanthevist / Getty Images
The longer and darker the lockdown eats through the winter, the more important it becomes - for the mood as well as for the body's own defenses - to have a sufficient supply of vitamins.
If possible, not synthesized as lifestyle capsules, but the real substance.
Freshly squeezed from the juicy pulp of oranges, limes, grapefruit or lemons.
The kitchen appliances used for this have basically looked equally boring for many decades - if you consider Alessi Juicy Salif, styled like an alien spaceship with three legs, which was an integral part of any advertising agency tea kitchen in the 1990s, as what it is to this day: a wrong path in the evolution of design.
Basically there are - besides Arnold Schwarzenegger's handshake - only two functioning principles to wrest the citrus fruit halves their coveted juice without (as with juicers) squeezing out the peel.
Either you press it with leverage onto a suitable press cone, or you perform a rotary movement under load.
The latter is done by a motor in electric presses.
In the best case scenario, a device combines the leverage with the cone rotation, as in my long-time favorite gastroback press.
As a friend of the sustainable use of ingredients, squeezing the juice out as completely as possible is more important to me than a chic design.
In favor of purely manual devices, however, is that we can do the morning exercise while preparing the morning orange juice vitamin injection.
Squeezing a sack of oranges like this into juice for the family or a flat share is a pain in the ass.
GASTROBACK 41150 Citrus Juicer Advanced Pro S
Actually, I wanted to recommend my good, old, indestructible electric citrus press Gastroback 41149 at this point.
But that you have been using a kitchen appliance for a very long time - in my case it must have been ten years - you often only notice when there is a successor model for a long time.
And that has the designation 41150.
I recently recommended the device to a friend after the third juicer with plastic attachments had flown around his ears.
Fortunately, the Gastroback is still rock solid.
The device doesn't move a millimeter during pressing, the motor is super powerful and the accessories are completely dishwasher-safe.
Above all, however, the two parts that come into direct contact with the fruit are still made of ultra-strong, rust-free stainless steel: the two sieve inserts for juices with or without pulp and, above all, the perfectly constructed press cone.
It is so pointed at the top that it can also squeeze small limes without leaving any residue.
The same can be achieved with lemons, oranges and grapefruits of almost any size thanks to the slightly sharp-edged ridges.
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GASTROBACK 41150 Citrus juicer Advanced Pro S, 100 watt, cast aluminum, automatic start, stainless steel sieve inserts, plastic, silver, black
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Thanks to the practical lever, injuries are almost impossible, and the leverage supports the pressing process, which does not turn into an upper arm workout.
The only downer compared to the previous model: The juice bowl is no longer made of stainless steel, but of transparent Plexiglas.
Fortunately, the engine continues to start only when you press the citrus half onto the cone.
After lifting the lever, it stops again immediately.
This makes the Gastroback one of the few citrus presses that you don't have to fumble through half the kitchen after using it.
What is it?
One of the most solid motorized citrus presses.
Who needs it
Anyone who wants to quickly squeeze limes, lemons, oranges and grapefruit several times a week.
What does this cost?
approx. 115 euros.
Optimum-Aqualotus lever press
For decades I wondered why the lever presses found at many hotel breakfast buffets work so well, while comparable things among friends usually end up in the attic or basement after three or four attempts.
The problem: They always tip forward when the oranges are squeezed or even fall over if you don't hold them with the other hand.
I found the solution when a female guest in a hotel in Turkey, who had come under the press about the room card, asked me to lift the thing up for a moment.
Thunderstorm, the device from the Turkish manufacturer Ar Yildiz probably weighed ten kilos - no wonder it had such a firm footing.
With very frequent use, not only the lifting but also the actuation of the press lever has a positive effect on the arm muscles.
A principle that not only finds friends because of the effort involved.
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Optimum-Aqualotus PROFESSIONAL HAND JUICE PRESS CITRUS PRESS ORANGE Pomegranate hammer finish lacquered
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The Aqualotus also weighs almost eight kilos and could also have come from the Ar Yildiz factory.
This is also indicated by the excellent suitability of the device for pressing pomegranates - a Levantine juice that deserves significantly more attention in this country.
The construction is otherwise flawless, all add-on parts can be put in the dishwasher, fruit and juice only come into contact with items made of stainless steel.
This is quite important with lever presses, because cheaper versions are often provided with an inferior and poorly primed powder coating.
This can jump off when the fruit acid and mechanical stress interact and fall into the juice in the form of microfine, razor-sharp lacquer splinters.
The areas that are not made of stainless steel on the Optima were fortunately coated with an acid-resistant hammer finish.
Such a bolide never dies, even in families or shared apartments with notorious juice sacks.
What is it?
One of the most stable lever presses on the juicer market.
Who needs it
Anyone who wants to produce fresh juice over many years without wear and tear - including pomegranates.
What does this cost?
Lever presses are available from around 50 euros, the optimum is around 150 euros.
Rösle citrus press stainless steel 18/10
While no one needs an electric and a manual lever machine at the same time in the household, a small additional hand press is actually indispensable.
Who wants to build up the big oschis when you just need the juice of half a lemon, orange or lime for a vinaigrette or to season sauces and soups?
There are presses like this every now and then in a "1 euro each piece" sales display - but who wants to have to buy something like this every year because the cheap plastic has broken?
It's not sustainable.
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RÖSLE lemon squeezer, high-quality squeezer for citrus fruits, stainless steel 18/10, dishwasher-safe
From € 27.35
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The nice thing about the Rösle press is not only its acid-proof and hardly dentable stainless steel design, which makes it dishwasher-safe, odorless and tasteless, but also its press head.
Because, unlike many similar parts, it is big enough for normal oranges.
But it is not enough for particularly large grapefruits.
The ribs are slightly ridged so that no juice remains in the citrus fruits at the end.
The volume scale, which is etched into the 0.5 liter juice cup, which is comparatively large, is also practical, especially for recipes with milliliters.
The lid lies flat on the cup and does not wobble even when you press it hard.
It also has a drip-free pouring rim all around.
The only disadvantage: The Rösle is not quite as funky as the »Angie lemon squeezer made of cast resin« with a clearly recognizable Merkel bust as a pressing head.
On the other hand, the squeezing is more in the core competence of the finance minister.
What is it?
A comparatively large and well thought-out hand press for quick use in between.
Who needs it
If you only squeeze lemons now and then or make a glass of orange juice for one person, you don't need a more complex system.
Otherwise a perfect second press.
What does this cost?
Smaller and also in usable stainless steel quality from around 10 euros, the Rösle is around 25 euros.
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