Wheatgrass Juice Recipe: How to Grow, Harvest & Juice at Home
Wheatgrass is one of those health foods that sounds impressive until you taste it. It is intensely grassy, slightly sweet, and has a lingering earthy aftertaste that stays in your mouth for minutes.
But here is the thing — it is also one of the most nutrient-dense juices you can make. A 30 ml shot of wheatgrass juice contains chlorophyll, iron, vitamins A, C, and E, and multiple amino acids. And you can grow it at home on your kitchen windowsill for almost nothing.
This guide covers everything: growing from seed, harvesting, juicing (3 methods), and the critical dosage rules that most beginners ignore.
Medical disclaimer: This article is for information only. Wheatgrass can cause nausea in first-time users. Consult your doctor before making it a daily habit, especially if you have celiac disease or wheat allergies (though wheatgrass itself is gluten-free).
व्हीटग्रास जूस कब पीना चाहिए?
सुबह खाली पेट, नाश्ते से लगभग 20 मिनट पहले। शुरुआत 15 मिली (लगभग एक बड़ा चम्मच) से करें। तीन-चार दिन बाद, अगर उल्टी जैसा न लगे, तो 30 मिली तक बढ़ाएँ। रोज़ाना 60 मिली से ज़्यादा न लें — ज़्यादा लेने से सिरदर्द और पेट की तकलीफ़ हो सकती है। जूस निकालने के तुरंत बाद पी लें, और दूध, दही या छाछ के साथ कम से कम 30 मिनट का अंतर रखें।
In English: drink wheatgrass juice in the morning on an empty stomach, about 20 minutes before breakfast. Start at 15 ml, build up to 30 ml after three or four days, and never exceed 60 ml a day. Drink it immediately after juicing, and keep at least 30 minutes between wheatgrass juice and any milk, curd or buttermilk.
व्हीटग्रास जूस कैसे बनाएं — गेहूं के जवारे का रस बनाने की विधि
गेहूं के दाने 8 से 12 घंटे भिगोएँ। एक चौड़ी ट्रे में 1 इंच मिट्टी बिछाकर भीगे हुए दाने ऊपर फैला दें — दबाएँ, पर मिट्टी में गाड़ें नहीं। पहले 3 दिन गीले कपड़े या अख़बार से ढक दें, फिर हटा दें। रोज़ एक बार स्प्रे से पानी दें; मिट्टी नम रहे, गीली नहीं। 7 से 10 दिन में जब घास 6 इंच की हो जाए, तो कैंची से मिट्टी के ठीक ऊपर से काट लें।
रस निकालने के तीन तरीक़े हैं। कोल्ड प्रेस जूसर सबसे अच्छा है — एक मुट्ठी घास (लगभग 30 ग्राम) से 30 से 40 मिली रस मिलता है। मिक्सर में 2-3 चम्मच पानी डालकर 30-45 सेकंड चलाएँ और मलमल के कपड़े से छान लें। सिल-बट्टे पर कूटकर भी रस निकाला जा सकता है — यह सबसे पुराना तरीक़ा है और एक शॉट जितने रस के लिए ठीक काम करता है।
In English: soak wheat grains for 8-12 hours, spread them on an inch of soil in a wide tray, cover for the first three days, mist once a day, and cut the grass just above the soil at 6 inches on day 7-10. Juice it with a cold press juicer (30-40 ml from a 30 g handful), a blender with 2-3 tablespoons of water and a muslin strain, or a traditional sil-batta.
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How to Grow Wheatgrass at Home
| Step | What to Do | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Soak seeds | Soak ½ cup wheat seeds (gehu ke dane) in water | 8-12 hours (overnight) |
| 2. Prepare tray | Spread 1 inch of potting soil on a shallow tray (baking tray works) | 5 minutes |
| 3. Spread seeds | Drain soaked seeds, spread evenly on soil. Do not bury — just press lightly | 2 minutes |
| 4. Cover | Cover with damp newspaper or cloth for first 3 days (darkness sprouts faster) | - |
| 5. Uncover | Remove cover on day 3-4 when sprouts are 1-2 inches tall | - |
| 6. Water daily | Mist with spray bottle once daily. Do not overwater — soil should be moist, not soggy | 1 minute/day |
| 7. Harvest | Cut when 6 inches tall (day 7-10) | 2 minutes |
Where to keep it: Near a window with indirect sunlight. Direct harsh sunlight dries out the tray too fast. A kitchen windowsill or balcony with morning light is perfect.
Seeds: You do not need special "wheatgrass seeds." Regular wheat grains (gehu ke dane) from any grocery store work perfectly. Just make sure they are not treated with pesticides or fungicides. Organic wheat is ideal.
Soil alternative: You can grow wheatgrass hydroponically (without soil) using just wet paper towels or coir pith. The yield is slightly lower, but there is zero mess. Lay damp paper towels in the tray instead of soil, spread seeds, and follow the same steps.
When & How to Harvest
How to cut: Use clean scissors or a sharp knife. Cut just above the soil line — about 1 cm above the roots. Do not pull — pulling uproots the plant and mixes soil into your grass.
Timing matters: Harvest in the morning for maximum nutrient density. Plants produce chlorophyll during daylight and store it overnight. Morning wheatgrass has the highest chlorophyll concentration.
Second harvest: After cutting, the tray will regrow one more time (takes another 7-10 days). The second harvest is thinner and less sweet. After the second cut, compost the tray and start fresh.
Storage: Fresh wheatgrass stays good in the fridge for 5-7 days if wrapped in a damp cloth inside a ziplock bag. But juice it as soon as possible — nutrient content drops daily after harvest.
3 Ways to Juice Wheatgrass
Method 1: Cold Press Juicer (Best)
Feed wheatgrass into the cold press juicer slowly. The masticating auger crushes the fibrous blades and extracts deep green juice. You will get about 30-40 ml from one large handful (about 30g of grass).
Why cold press is best for wheatgrass: Wheatgrass is extremely fibrous — more fibre per gram than any common vegetable. A centrifugal juicer spins too fast and expels most of the grass un-juiced. A cold press juicer's slow crushing action wrings out far more. In our own kitchen the same 30 g handful gives 30-40 ml through a cold press and barely a splash through a centrifugal machine — that is our measurement, not a published figure, and we have not found a peer-reviewed yield comparison for wheatgrass specifically. What the published work does say is that cold pressing gives you no nutritional advantage: a 2019 study comparing cold-pressed and centrifugal juices found "no significant differences … in terms of the contents of bioactive compounds (ascorbic acid, total phenolic, and total carotenoid) and antioxidant capacity" (Heliyon, 2019). Buy a cold press for the yield on fibrous greens, not for extra vitamins.
Method 2: Blender
Chop wheatgrass into small pieces. Add 2-3 tablespoons of water. Blend on high for 30-45 seconds. Strain through a fine muslin cloth or nut milk bag. Squeeze thoroughly — most of the juice stays in the pulp.
Downside: Lower yield, more oxidation (high-speed blades introduce air), and you lose chlorophyll faster. The juice will also be lighter green compared to cold press.
Method 3: Mortar & Pestle (Traditional)
Chop wheatgrass finely. Place in a mortar (sil-batta). Pound and grind with the pestle, adding a few drops of water. The grass breaks down into a pulpy mash. Squeeze through cloth. This is the most labour-intensive method but requires zero equipment.
This method works surprisingly well for small quantities (one shot). It was how wheatgrass juice was made in Ayurvedic practices before modern juicers existed.
How to Make It Taste Better
| Addition | How Much | Effect on Taste |
|---|---|---|
| Apple | ½ apple, juiced with wheatgrass | Sweetness masks grassy flavour |
| Lemon | ½ lemon squeezed in | Citrus cuts the earthy taste |
| Ginger | ½ inch piece, juiced with | Warming kick distracts from grass |
| Honey | 1 tsp stirred in | Mild sweetness |
| Pineapple | 2-3 chunks, juiced with | Tropical sweetness, very effective |
The shot approach: Most experienced wheatgrass drinkers do not sip it. They pour 30 ml into a small glass, drink it in one swallow, and immediately chase with water or a bite of apple. The taste contact is brief and manageable.
Do not mix with milk or dairy: Chlorophyll and dairy do not combine well — it can cause nausea and stomach upset. Keep wheatgrass juice away from milk, curd, or buttermilk for at least 30 minutes.
Dosage — Start Small
- First-time users: 15 ml (about 1 tablespoon). Your body needs time to adjust to the concentrated chlorophyll and nutrients
- After 3-4 days: Increase to 30 ml (one shot) if no nausea or stomach upset
- Regular users: 30-60 ml per day is the standard dosage. Most health practitioners do not recommend exceeding 60 ml
- Best time: Morning, on an empty stomach, 20 minutes before breakfast
Why nausea happens: Wheatgrass juice is a powerful detoxifier. When you first start, it can cause a "detox reaction" — nausea, mild headache, or loose stools. This is your body adjusting to the concentrated nutrients. It usually passes within 2-3 days. If it persists, reduce the amount or stop.
Mould Risk & Safety
How to spot mould:
- White fuzzy patches at the base of the stems (near soil level)
- Musty or stale smell from the tray
- Slimy texture on the stems
- Dark spots on the grass blades
Prevention:
- Do not overwater — the soil should be moist, not wet. Soggy soil breeds mould fast
- Use a fan or place near a window — air circulation prevents mould growth
- Do not grow in a closed room or cupboard — humidity + darkness = guaranteed mould
- Use clean trays — wash with warm soapy water before each new batch
- Space seeds evenly — overcrowding traps moisture between stems
If in doubt, throw it out. A tray of wheatgrass costs ₹10-15 to grow. Food poisoning costs days of misery and potentially a hospital visit. Never take the risk.
More Juice from Fibrous Greens
A cold press juicer's slow masticating action wrings far more juice out of fibrous wheatgrass than a centrifugal machine, which spins so fast it throws most of the grass out un-juiced.
Browse Cold Press Juicers on Amazon →- Bangera D, Sikalgar FR, Shetty PP, Alva R, Paul Y, Muralidharan S. Therapeutic Potential of Wheatgrass Juice: A Comprehensive Narrative Review. Journal of Pharmacy & Bioallied Sciences 2025;17(Suppl 1):S152-S154, doi:10.4103/jpbs.jpbs_179_25. A narrative review, not a trial — and it says so itself: "most of the evidence supporting WGJ's benefits comes from limited studies, emphasizing the need for more rigorous scientific validation." PMC12156747
- Phytochemical, in silico, and in vitro studies of wheatgrass (Triticum aestivum L.) juice powder. Scientific Reports 2026;16(1):6279, doi:10.1038/s41598-026-36596-x. HPLC-DAD identification of the phenolics in wheatgrass juice powder — catechin, caffeic acid, coumarin, esculetin, quercetin, ellagic acid and apigenin. Cell-line work only; no human outcomes. PMC12905174
- Effect of Wheatgrass Juice on Nutritional Quality of Apple, Carrot, Beet, Orange and Lemon Juice. Foods 2022;11(3):445, doi:10.3390/foods11030445. Measures what adding wheatgrass juice does to the mineral and vitamin C content of five common juices — the evidence behind mixing it with apple or lemon rather than drinking it neat. PMC8833947
- Effect of cold-pressed and normal centrifugal juicing on quality attributes of fresh juices. Heliyon 2019;5(6):e01917, doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e01917. Found no significant nutritional advantage for cold-pressed juice, and found that refrigerated cold-pressed juice held its quality to about day 5 and fell away by day 7. PMC6587058
Rewritten September 2026. The five references previously listed here were bare journal names with no author, year, volume, DOI or link, and none of them could be traced to a real paper; they have been withdrawn and replaced with the four above, each checked live. Growing times, tray costs, yields per handful and taste notes are our own, not published figures.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is wheatgrass juice gluten-free?
Yes. Wheatgrass is harvested before the grain (wheat) forms. At the grass stage, there is no gluten present. However, if you let it grow too long and it starts forming seed heads, gluten may be present. Harvest at 6 inches (day 7-10) and it is gluten-free.
Can I use regular wheat grains to grow wheatgrass?
Yes. Regular wheat grains (gehu ke dane) from any grocery store work perfectly. Just ensure they are whole, unprocessed, and not treated with fungicides. Organic wheat is best. Do not use wheat flour — you need whole grains with the husk intact.
Why do I feel nauseous after drinking wheatgrass juice?
First-time nausea is common. Your body is adjusting to the concentrated nutrients and chlorophyll. Start with 15 ml and gradually increase. Always drink on an empty stomach. If nausea persists beyond 3-4 days, wheatgrass may not suit your body — stop and consult a doctor.
How much wheatgrass juice should I drink daily?
30-60 ml per day is the standard recommendation. Never exceed 60 ml. Start with 15 ml for the first few days and gradually increase. More is not better — excess wheatgrass juice can cause headaches and digestive issues.
Can I store wheatgrass juice?
Ideally, drink it immediately after juicing. If you must store it, refrigerate in a glass bottle and consume within 12 hours. Wheatgrass juice oxidises very quickly — the bright green colour fading to olive green is a sign of nutrient loss. Freeze in ice cube trays for up to 2 weeks as a last resort.
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📖 Read the complete guide: Cold Press Juicer: Complete Guide for Indian Families (2026)
