What’s better than a thick apple juice smoothie on a hot summer’s day? There is not much that gets smoothie lovers going than refreshing, thick smoothies.
We have found that smoothie blending is the one thing you can use your creativity in – try different fruits, milk and recipes. However, the one thing that plagues us all is a drippy and runny smoothie. The question remains: How to make a smoothie thicker?
1. Add Liquid With Caution
The simplest and perhaps the most obvious tip is to add liquid with caution when you are making a smoothie with water. If your recipe requires 250 ml of liquid, then the rule of thumb is to not add all the liquid at once. Emptying the entire contents of the cup into the blender is not a good idea.
2. Frozen Ingredients: Fruits and Vegetables
The most efficient and the most widely trick to make smoothies thicker is to use frozen fruit. It is advised that one should use frozen ingredients when making smoothies. When looking to thicken smoothies, it is best to select fruits with low sugar content, high fiber, and high pectin.
Fiber and pectin help thicken smoothies while low sugar content doesn’t take away regarding a healthy drink option.
The best-frozen fruits and vegetables to use are:
- Bananas: Best in their frozen form, bananas not only thicken smoothies but also add extra fibrous content.
- Pears: High in natural sugar content but also high in pectin, pears work as great smoothie thickeners.
- Berries: Berries are the perfect frozen fruit to thicken smoothies. Low in sugar content and adding a burst of extra flavor, a lot of smoothie lovers swear by berries.
- Avocados: Used primarily with apple juice and kale smoothies, Avocados add an unreal creaminess and fiber to the blend. Moreover, mostly used is green smoothies, the flavor of Avocado can be masked
- Other nutritious options include frozen peas, carrots, kiwis, mangos and broccoli etc.
3. Vegetable Purees
Though a bit strange but adding vegetable puree not only makes smoothies thicker but they add this softness and creaminess to the blend. Some of the most used vegetable purees are Pumpkin, butternut squash, avocado etc.
4. Grains
How to make a creamy smoothie? Flax seeds, chia seeds, nuts, and oats are all used to make smoothies thicker and creamier.
Flax seeds are not only high in fiber and omega – 3s but are also extremely useful when used as a smoothie thickener. One of the best tips on how to make a smoothie thicker is to use the seeds as they are or soaked 10-15 minutes prior to use.
Other grains like rolled oats and quinoa can be added to make breakfast smoothies more fibrous. Quinoa is more suited to lactose intolerant consumers who are looking for ways of how to thicken a smoothies without dairy.
5. Nuts, Nut Butter and Nut Milk
Essentially, nuts contain good fats that are perfect for thickening up smoothies. Nuts like almonds, cashews nuts, hazelnuts are all perfect for making creamy and thick smoothies.
You can also use manuka honey instead of nut butter, Ten Penh have presented some of the best manuka honey reviews on their website. Alternatively, one can also blend these nuts in food processors and use homemade nut butter in smoothies to make them denser.
Moreover, we have seen a recent hike in popularity of nuts milk like almond. Almond milk can be used instead of cow milk to make smoothies more nutritious and give them a creamier, denser texture.
6. Top Notch Blender
A sub-standard blender with a low-quality blade will not be able to churn through frozen fruits and seeds. If you want to learn how to make a thick smoothie, you’ll definitely need a quality blender. Making thick smoothies without ice or with ice is your choice but when using frozen fruits, it is essential that the blender is powerful enough not to heat up when making smoothies.
Moreover, if you are looking to make juice based smoothies, it is important to look for best blender machines and choose one with multiple functionalities.
7. Frozen Milk Ice Cubes
Alternatively, smoothie lovers can also use frozen milk cubes to thicken smoothies. Instead of using dairy milk directly from the container, one should fill ice trays with them and let them set in the freezer. Once frozen, these milk ice cubes can be used to make thick and creamy smoothies.
8. Dairy
The use of dairy products such as cottage cheese has been known to make deliciously thick smoothies. Not only do they enhance the calcium content in the smoothie but also make for extremely creamy drinkables.
Alternatively, smoothie lovers also use yogurt as a base for smoothies. Yogurt based, frozen fruit smoothies are a thing of dreams! Moreover, they are perfect for adding the much-needed density to otherwise runny smoothies.
9. Fruit Jams
People who like fruit juice based smoothies can use fruit jams instead of fruit juice or sugar. Fruit juices might make the consistency of smoothies a bit runny. Therefore, different fruit jams can be used to thicken smoothies and add a bit of fruity flavor.
10. Blending Techniques
For professional quality, thick smoothies there are certain tips and tricks that avid smoothie drinkers swear by. It is recommended that you blend your frozen fruit with a bit of water or milk and turn it into a puree. Then you can add other ingredients and enjoy a deliciously thick smoothie.
Conclusion
Some people enjoy smoothies with a lighter consistency, and some prefer denser, creamier smoothies. Entirely dependent on personal preference these tips can be used as a small guide on how to make a thick smoothie.
Save yourself time on trying to figure out how to make a creamy smoothie and try some of the tips above. You can change the base ingredient, get creative, and enjoy deliciously, creamy smoothies with under layers of flavor!
Let us know how do you like your smoothies? Thick or runny? And what are your special techniques for preparing thick smoothies?
I often make smoothies and your tips are very useful and easy to follow.. thank you.?