lets be friends :)

[katieb163]

hello everyone, i'm new to this forum & to raw.

i've been vegan for a while and i just decided that i'm ready to go raw.

buut, i'm a poor college student and i can't afford to buy all the different appliances and such all at once. can anyone recommend some basics that i should get right away? i know i want a juicer, so i think i'll get that and some food tomorrow.

i'd love any tips, advice or recommendations!

xoxo
Kat

[luckitri]

You don't need equipment. You don't need to do recipes. A blender and juicer is nice. . . but none is necessary. You can go to Freecycle and ask if anyone has any of it lying around and you can go to thrift store if you must have it. Just try raw, get some probiotics of good quality to help ease stomach transition. (Some of us get bloated starting out.) Make sure you have fill you up foods like bananas and avocados and just do it. Welcome!

[emily]

My advice is not to buy a juicer first but a blender (unless you really like carrot juice). Juicing removes the fiber of the fruits and vegetables but blending doesn't. It can also take a lot of produce to get a decent amount of juice - at least that's what I hear. Do you have a juice bar in your area? Maybe it would be cheaper to occasionally buy yourself some fresh-squeezed juice until you can get a juicer from Freecycle or ebay or something.

I think that what's nice to have is a blender, a good knife and cutting board, a citrus reamer (that's not necessary, but if you use a lot of lemon/lime juice, it's neater and gets a lot of the juice out) and a nut milk bag. Actually, for college, I bet having a Magic Bullet would be great. You just put the fruit in the cup, snap the cup on and blend a smoothie or whatever in a small space.

[laurabfig]

I agree with the rec about not getting a juicer but a blender first. If I was going to spend money starting out, it would be for a good blender. I haven't needed a juicer yet, but I use my vitamix every day. Check on craigslist.com in your area...I got one for a steal of a price there. I also use my food processor a lot to make brownies, pates, etc. but you can get by with a cheap food processor, i think.

best wishes!

[Green Life]

I would say that I use my blender more then any other appliance in my kitchen. That is saying alot because I've got them all, LOL.

The blender is a wonderful appliance, I really use my vita mix every day at least once.

The others maybe once or twice a WEEK if they are lucky!


Graciously,
Green

[spicyfull]

I wish you everything you need to be RAW......Welcome to MY World.....

[earthangel]

Hello there.....well welcome to raw and your new life journey......i have been raw since january 24th of this year 100% and is i amazing...i currently only have the blender i had before hand which is the 10 dollar one from target and it is getting the job done so far...i didn't go out and buy anything but a few books....you can do so much without it...but i don't eat any dehydrated foods either so that might be a difference!!!! you can feel free to email me to chat or for support.....my email is sachelle@rawfoods.com!!! good luck to you and have a wonderful day!
love earthangel
xoxoxoxoxoxoxox
p.s. where are you from how old are you? and how did you find out about raw haha

[StarFire]

Aloha from Hawaii and welcome - I'm a newbie too! As far as equipment goes - someone told me - and I'm not sure if it will actually work- but that at first you don't need a dehydrator - that you can actually use your oven on it's lowest setting and keep the door slightly ajar. I haven't tried it - but it sounds logical :confused: Good luck! :D

[Stina]

Hey- you are so on the right path with this! It's a wonderful adventure. Welcome to Raw living.

[Lay-Lay]

2 hands and mouth---enjoy!

Welcome to the forum!