Jugo Verde – This Mexican green juice is famous for its health benefits. It’s anti-inflammatory, detoxifying, and sold at markets, juice shops, and restaurants across Mexico.
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This is one of my favorite recipes to support a healthy lifestyle.
A simple blend of fruit, cactus, and leafy greens. Plus, it’s vegan and gluten-free.
Drink this in the morning, mid afternoon, or boosts energy levels for when you’re feeling a bit under the weather.
Here, I’m sharing a basic recipe, and it can be customized to your taste.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Cactus Paddle is said to support blood sugar levels.
- Celery stalk has at least 12 kinds of antioxidant nutrients in a single stalk.
- Spinach contains iron, potassium, magnesium, and helps to support heart health.
- Green Apple adds sweetness and a great way to help the kiddos “eat” their veggies. Wink.
- Pineapple is known to help with digestion, immune system, inflammation and has an abundance of other beneficial properties.
Other commonly used ingredients:
Parsley, fresh orange juice, cucumbers, lime juice, fresh mint, beets, kale, and more.
For parents:
For those of you with kiddos, add more fruits to start off with until they get used to drinking the juice. Then gradually add more vegetables over time. They will soon begin to think of this as a treat.
Use my recipe below as a guide. Experiment with all these ingredients until you find one that suits you and your family’s taste.
- Wash, rinse, and peel the ingredients.
- To make it easier for your blender, dice ingredients into small pieces.
Cactus paddle (or nopales) might not be something you normally add in your juices or green smoothie, but it is a common ingredient in this juice.
Nopales is an important ingredient in Mexican cuisine, and often found in recipes such as:
Pro Tip:
Removing the thorns is a pain and labor intensive. Look for cactus paddles that already have the thorns removed or are already diced and ready to go. You’ll find them in the refrigerated area of latin supermarkets.
Weight Loss:
Many people in Mexico claim that this drink helps them to lose weight. What it does is – it supports healthy metabolism to make it easier to burn fat.
Drinking this juice alone will not help you to shed unwanted pounds. However, drinking this juice INSTEAD of sugary drinks will definitely assist in losing weight.
Instructions
- Place ingredients inside the blender.
- Add water.
- Blend until smooth.
This juice is slightly thicker since it was made in the blender.
Straining removes some of the fiber, but this really comes down to preference.
If you prefer a smoother juice, strain away.
How to Store:
The juice will store well in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the fridge.
Remember: Fresh is best! If that’s not possible, you can freeze it. Pour into a sealable plastic freezer bag, remove as much air as possible. It keeps well in the freezer for up to 5 months.
Jugo Verde is a best way to start the day. Some people will suggest to drink it the first thing in the morning. That way, you can get those nutrients into your system more quickly.
Personally, I love drinking it with Mexican breakfasts like:
Really, though, there’s no wrong time of the day to drink this juice. Serve cold or over ice and enjoy!
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Jugo Verde
Ingredients
- 1 cactus paddle (thorns removed and diced)
- 1 cup spinach rough chopped
- 1 celery stalk rough chopped
- ½ cup pineapple diced
- 1 apple diced
- 1 ½ cup water
Instructions
- Add everything to a blender.
- Blend until smooth.
- Serve cold or over ice.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Maggie Unzueta is the writer/blogger, photographer, recipe developer, videographer, and creator of In Mama Maggie's Kitchen. She has been developing easy and authentic Mexican food, Mexican-inspired recipes, and traveling tips since 2010. From family recipes to her extensive travels throughout Mexico, she brings traditional Mexican flavors from South of the Border and into your kitchen. Maggie has been featured in notable culinary websites and other media outlets. For more details, check out her About page.
Cactus was a fun new ingredient I’ve never tried in a juice before but I really like it! The pineapple added nice sweetness.
Yes and yes. It’s the perfect combination of ingredients.
I have never tried to make this drink recipe. I am going to make this at home to taste it.
Hope you do. I know you’ll enjoy it.
Maggie, I made this green juice but without the nopal. It was delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
Use this recipe as a starting point and make this drink your own. Glad you liked it even without the nopal.
I love this as an alternative to plain water and as a way to get lots of nutrients into my diet. The cactus paddle without thorns was a little hard to find but eventually I found it at as global market in the fridge section (as you stated). It’s worth looking for because the drink was delicious!
Yay! Glad you found the cactus at the global market.
I love discovering new recipes from other countries. This juice looks absolutely delicious. Will give it a try as soon as I can find nopales.
Hope you do. It’s a great juice!
This Jugo Verde smoothie was so tasty and refreshing. I love the health benefits. I will be keeping this on my juice and smoothie rotations. It is a great way to start the day.
I love the health benefits too.
I am in love with this green juice. So healthy and makes me feel so vibrant when I drink it. Thanks.
Me too. I am love with it too 🙂
Jugo Verde is a new favorite! They are very refreshing and flavorful. Highly recommended!
Yay! I’m glad you liked it.
This is surely a healthy and delicious combination. Would love to have it with my Breakfast for a healthy start of the day.
It’s the best combination!
I’m excited to make this healthy smoothie. It looks delicious so I’m on the hunt for cactus paddle!
Try them. They have a unique taste and 100% delicious!