Want to make your smoothie ahead of time? Follow the tips in this post to help keep it fresh and prevent the fruits and veggies from going bad.
I did an experiment this week that was inspired by me wanting to bulk-prepare my ultimate green smoothie recipe, because it’s straight-up my favorite smoothie these days. (I’ve started to prefer smoothies packed with veggies versus those with only fruitโbeing an adult is wild.)
One quality that’s always made me sad about smoothies is they just don’t taste the same hours later, let alone a day or two later. But I pretty much never want to make smoothies in the morning because blenders are loud, and I hate loud noises when I’m half asleep. I was thinking about how I’d love to have a green smoothie most mornings, though, which led to me doing some research.
Could there actually be a way for me to make smoothies in bulk ahead of time? (And I’m not just talking about assembling the ingredients in a bag or cup; it’s the blending that I hate in the morning.) I honestly had no hope for this because I didn’t believe it could work out, but as you can see by this post, I was proven wrong!
Due to the limited ingredients on hand, I didn’t quite make my ultimate green smoothie (pictured above), but it was a version of it that was kind of a mix between that and my green juice recipe (though I kept it in smoothie form). To test the methods I found online, I made one big smoothie. I drank half of it, then refrigerated 1/4th of it and froze the last 1/4th of it.
The next day I tested both, and I could not believe how good they still tasted. I very cautiously took my first sip, expecting to taste nasty old green smoothie flavors. But nope! They tasted as good as new, and this leftover smoothie thing is my new favorite discovery that I just had to share.
Here’s a look at the tips I found for keeping a smoothie fresh for later, especially green smoothies, allowing you to make it ahead of time:
1. Add lemon or lime juice to help prevent/slow down oxidation.
This isn’t usually the first tip you’ll find, but in my opinion, none of the others matter if you don’t do this. First of all, lemon is the magical ingredient in veggie-based green smoothies that cut the “earthy” flavor and make them delicious (though any fruit helps). In addition to that benefit, they prevent your ingredients (like spinach, bananas, and apples) from oxidizing as fast and turning brown (which helps preserve the nutrients, as well). So! If you want to save your smoothie for later, I recommend adding the juice of about 1/2 lemon per serving to help preserve the freshness.
2. Refrigerate for only 24 hours, or freeze for 2-3 months.
If you’re going the refrigerator route, you might want to stick to just one extra serving for leftovers. This is because fresh ingredients (like spinach and banana) can start to go bad fast, turning brown and tasting pretty disgusting as they oxidize. OR, to make a bigger batch, only keep one serving in the fridge, and freeze the rest in individual containers (making sure to transfer each one to the fridge the night before to thaw).
3. Use an airtight lid and fill to the brim.
I more so emphasize the first part of this tip, but some people swear by filling the jar all the way to the top to help minimize the amount of oxygen getting to your ingredients. Moral of the story: try to reduce how much air gets to the top of your smoothie. This “fill to the brim” tip only applies to the smoothie you refrigerate, because any you freeze will need extra space to expand as it freezes. I use mason jars with sealing lids to keep mine as fresh as possible.
Keep in mind that “separation is natural,” so you’ll probably have to shake your smoothie up later.
Do you make smoothies ahead of time? How do you keep them fresh?
What are your go-to smoothie ingredients?
Are you more of veggie- or fruit-based smoothie person?
