This cucumber pineapple ginger lemon detox drink tastes like a grown-up lemonade: sweet from the pineapple, cool from the cucumber, sharp from the lemon and a little spicy from the ginger. It takes five minutes and one blender.
We’ve dropped the old promises about “rapid weight loss” and “alkalizing” your body. The reason to make it is simpler. It’s a fresh, fruity drink without added sugar, and that makes it a good stand-in for soda or sweetened juice. The American Heart Association names sugary drinks as the number one source of added sugars in our diet.
Why these four ingredients work together
- Pineapple brings the sweetness, so you don’t need sugar.
- Cucumber stretches the drink and makes it lighter and more refreshing.
- Lemon cuts the sweetness and keeps the color bright.
- Ginger adds heat. The NIH’s complementary health center says research suggests ginger may help with nausea in pregnancy, while evidence for other types of nausea is weak or mixed. It can also cause heartburn or an upset stomach in some people, so start small.
Cucumber Pineapple Ginger Lemon Drink Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cucumber medium
- 1 cup of pineapple chunks ( 1/3 pineapple)
- 1 inch (2 to 3 cm) fresh ginger
- juice of 1 lemon
- honey to taste (optional)
- 1 cup cold water or ice
How to make the cucumber pineapple ginger lemon detox drink
- Wash the cucumber, lemon and ginger. Scrub the cucumber with a brush under running water.
- Peel the cucumber if the skin is waxy or bitter. Otherwise leave it on.
- Peel the ginger and slice it thin.
- Add the cucumber, pineapple, ginger, lemon juice and water to a blender.
- Blend until smooth, about 60 seconds.
- Taste. Add honey if it’s too sharp, more water if it’s too thick, more ginger if you want more kick.
To strain or not to strain?
Leave it unstrained if you like a thicker, smoothie-style drink. You keep the pulp and fiber. Strain it through a fine sieve if you want a clear juice.
Storage
It’s best fresh, as it separates and loses its color after a few hours. If you make it ahead, keep it in a closed glass jar in the fridge, shake it before pouring, and don’t leave it out for more than two hours.
Make it your way
- Less sweet: use half a cup of pineapple and add more cucumber.
- Mint version: add a handful of mint leaves before blending.
- No blender? Slice everything thin and make it as infused water instead. Here’s our pineapple infused water recipe with 4 variations.
A note from Dr. Angela
Fresh homemade drinks are a great swap for soda, but they’re not a replacement for whole fruit and vegetables. If you’re pregnant, ginger in food amounts is generally considered safe and may ease morning sickness. Still, wash produce well and drink fresh blends the same day.
More easy drinks: Pineapple Mint Infused Water · Lemon Ginger Morning Drink · Apple Ginger Lemon Drink