Turmeric
What is turmeric juice?
Turmeric juice is exactly what it sounds like: the juice pressed from fresh turmeric root. Here's what's in it, what it tastes like and how a cold-pressed shot differs from powder or the shop-bought stuff.
What turmeric juice actually is
Turmeric juice is the liquid pressed straight from fresh turmeric root, the same knobbly orange root you'll find in the veg aisle. Press enough of it and you get an intense, deep gold juice that's far too strong and earthy to drink on its own, which is why it almost always comes mixed with other things. It isn't powder stirred into water and it isn't a supplement. It's the raw ingredient in liquid form.
Because neat turmeric juice is so punchy, what most people actually drink is a turmeric shot: a small measure of the juice balanced with citrus, a little fruit and black pepper. Our Turmeric Shots are pressed from 40g of raw root per 60ml, so you're getting a proper hit of the juice in a form that's actually drinkable.
Cold-pressed, not powdered
There are two honest ways to get turmeric into a drink. You can stir dried powder into liquid, or you can press the fresh root. They're not the same thing. Powder has been dried and milled and often sat in a cupboard for months. Pressing raw root keeps the juice closer to the ingredient as it comes out of the ground.
Cold-pressing is the method that matters here. Instead of a fast spinning blade that heats the juice, a cold press slowly crushes the root to squeeze the liquid out without warming it. We then freeze it rather than pasteurise it, which is how you keep a raw juice raw without a shelf-stable bottle sitting at room temperature for months. If you want the full comparison, we go into it in turmeric shot benefits.
What goes into a turmeric shot
Neat turmeric juice is the base, but a good shot is a short, deliberate list around it. Ours is turmeric root, pineapple, orange, lemon and black pepper and that's the lot. No added sugar, no powder, no filler. The citrus balances the earthiness of the turmeric and makes the shot a source of vitamin C and the black pepper is there because turmeric and pepper have always gone together.
| Ingredient | What it is | Why it's in the juice |
|---|---|---|
| Turmeric root | 40g raw, cold-pressed per shot | The base and the reason it's turmeric juice at all |
| Orange and lemon | Citrus juice | Balances the earthy turmeric and adds vitamin C |
| Pineapple | Fruit juice | Natural sweetness so it's drinkable, no added sugar |
| Black pepper | Contains piperine | The traditional pairing with turmeric, in every good shot |
What turmeric juice tastes like
Warm, earthy and a little peppery, with a bitterness that the citrus and pineapple are there to round off. Neat turmeric juice is genuinely intense, closer to a spice than a fruit, so a balanced shot is where most people find it drinkable. It's meant to be knocked back in one rather than sipped like a smoothie.
One practical heads-up, because everyone learns this the hard way. Turmeric stains. It'll happily colour a chopping board, a light worktop or a white shirt, so treat it with the same respect you'd give beetroot. Drink it straight down and rinse the glass promptly and you'll have no trouble.
It's a food, not a supplement
Turmeric juice is a nice way to get raw turmeric into your day and that's how to think about it. It's a food, not a supplement and not a medicine. The research you'll have seen studied curcumin, the compound in turmeric, usually as a concentrated extract at doses well above a drink, so read that as the science behind the ingredient rather than a claim about a juice. If you're on medication, pregnant or managing a condition, turmeric can interact with some medicines, so have a word with your GP before making it a daily habit.
Turmeric juice, ready to drink
If you'd rather not press your own, here's turmeric juice done for you. All cold-pressed from whole root and delivered frozen, or browse the full cold-pressed shots range.
Frequently Asked
What is turmeric juice made from?
Fresh turmeric root, pressed to release its juice. Because neat turmeric juice is very intense and earthy, it's usually mixed with citrus, a little fruit and black pepper to make it drinkable. Ours is turmeric, pineapple, orange, lemon and black pepper, with nothing else added.
Is turmeric juice the same as a turmeric shot?
Close, but not quite. Turmeric juice is the pressed liquid from the root. A turmeric shot is that juice in a small, balanced measure with citrus and black pepper so you can actually drink it. When people say they have a turmeric shot, they mean the drinkable version of turmeric juice.
Can you make turmeric juice at home?
You can, if you've got a juicer and plenty of fresh root. Be warned that it's messy, it stains everything it touches and neat turmeric juice is intense enough that you'll want citrus and pepper to balance it. A ready-pressed shot saves the faff and the orange fingers.
What does turmeric juice taste like?
Warm, earthy and peppery with a bitter edge, closer to a spice than a fruit juice. The citrus and pineapple in a good shot round that off. It's designed to be knocked back in one rather than sipped slowly.
Is fresh turmeric juice better than powder?
They're different things rather than better or worse. Powder is dried and milled and keeps for ages. Fresh juice is the raw root pressed and kept cold, so it's closer to the ingredient as it comes. If you want raw, go for cold-pressed and frozen over anything powdered or shelf-stable.
Why is there black pepper in turmeric juice?
Turmeric and black pepper have gone together in cooking for a very long time and the pairing carries into the shot. Piperine, the compound in pepper, is the thing researchers have looked at in relation to how curcumin is absorbed. We cover that properly in turmeric shot benefits.
The bottom line
Turmeric juice is simply the juice pressed from fresh turmeric root and because it's so intense on its own, what you actually drink is a balanced shot of it with citrus and black pepper. Cold-pressed and frozen keeps it raw, powder doesn't. Treat it as a food you enjoy rather than a supplement and you've got the whole idea.
Ready to try it, our Turmeric Shots are the straightforward place to start and the wider turmeric hub has the rest.
Where to buy
Browse the full cold-pressed juice shots range, or go straight to a favourite: Turmeric Shots, Ginger Turmeric, the Ginger & Turmeric Bundle or the Juice Shot Variety Box.
Related reading
- Curcumin and turmeric: what the research looks at
- How much turmeric is in a shot
- Turmeric and black pepper
- Turmeric and ginger: the pairing
- Fresh turmeric vs turmeric powder
- How to take a turmeric shot
- When to take a turmeric shot
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