Best Masticating Juicer

Juicing wheatgrass efficiently requires a special system

Masticating juicers -- which use either a spinning auger or twin gears to crush the juice out of just about anything -- are said to maintain vital plant enzymes that would be destroyed by a centrifugal juicer's high-speed processing. Whether or not this is actually true (or ultimately matters) is a hotly contested point, so we instead focused strictly on how well two masticating models perform under pressure: the twin-gear Green Star GS-2000 (*Est. $490) and the auger-drive Omega J8005 (*Est. $260).

Both models are very quiet, but also very slow when compared to juicers that use centrifugal force to separate juice and pulp. One owner, posting on Viewpoints.com, estimates that it takes 25 to 30 minutes to juice a glass or two then clean up his Omega J8005. But others warn that the Green Star GS-2000 takes even longer to clean. The small-diameter feed chutes on both models also require chopping fruits and vegetables before juicing.

Both juicers handle greens very well, but users are distressed by the GS-2000's tendency to create a lot of foam when juicing greens and soft fruits like cucumbers. The J8005, by comparison, receives raves for its ability to juice greens completely and with less foaming.

The Omega J8005 and GS-2000 can both be used for a variety of food processing applications, like making baby food or nut butter. The Omega J8005 comes out ahead with lots of user praise, while the GS-2000 draws criticism for making "nut dough" instead of nut butter. The Omega J8005 draws a few scattered concerns about durability, but reviewers say it should last for years of steady use. Overall, it offers better performance at almost half the price of the GS-2000.