Tomato juice is a savory, sour yet flavorful drink that has plenty of health benefits. It is popular because it is easy to find in stores and you can easily make it at home too. If you enjoy drinking tomato juice, you will be encouraged to know that it is easy to make them at home so you could make your own recipe for fresh tomato juice. Skip the can and make your own!
Benefits of drinking tomato juice
Tomatoes are vitamin-filled fruit that is very versatile when it comes to including it in recipes. We find tomatoes in almost everything we eat, pasta, pizza, ketchup, and even bloody mary’s! It is a fun ingredient to play around the kitchen and will greatly benefit your body with daily consumption. It is packed with Vitamin C and Vitamin A and drinking a cup of tomato juice will cover most of your body’s need for vitamins. These vitamins are important to maintain your body’s well being and prevent unwanted disease. Tomatoes are also full of antioxidants that will help protect your cells caused by free radicals, meaning it is vital to the anti-aging process and prevents chronic diseases.
Aside from that tomatoes also contain magnesium, potassium, B vitamins, vitamin B6, which helps keep your heart healthy and your metabolism in great shape.
Some studies show that drinking tomato juice on a regular basis will help women reduce their cholesterol as well as help with weight loss. Tomato juice significantly helps reduce inflammation in the body because of the lycopene found in tomatoes.
If you are already suffering from chronic diseases, tomato juice can help you maintain your blood levels.
Disadvantages
Although tomato juice is generally very healthy, if bought in cans, it may contain high levels of sodium. This is to preserve the tomato juice in the can as well as to improve the flavor. Also, they may contain other ingredients other than tomatoes so be sure to read the label. That being said, it is best to make your own tomato juice at home so you know what is going in your drink.
Another precaution is for people who are suffering from acid reflux or GERD. Tomatoes are highly acidic and it may trigger your acid problem so either drink in small amounts or avoid tomato juice totally.
Tomato juice is very healthy when done right that is why we encourage you to try making homemade tomato juice with our recipe. There are plenty of ways to make tomato juice and you can play with its flavors. You can make it spicy, sweet, or savory.
You could try it with pure tomatoes and add some seasoning to amp up the flavor.
Ingredients:
- 4 kilos washed, quartered, and cored tomatoes
- 6 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Seasonings recommended:
- Salt, Black pepper, Paprika, Onion powder, Cayenne, Chili powder, Celery salt
Directions:
- Simmer the tomatoes in a pan for 30 minutes.
- Place soften tomatoes in a strainer or sieve and separate the juice from the chunks, seeds, and skin.
- Place the juice back to the pan and season with your preferred seasoning.
- Boil up to 5 minutes. Do not over boil your juice.
- Allow the juice to cool and serve with ice or keep in the fridge.
