How to Load Blenders For Smoothies

The appliance market in the United States is booming because sales of several appliances are growing magically in the country over the past few years. The chart above shows the sales of blenders in millions in the United States from 2010 to 2019, and we can see that things have improved greatly from the first year on the chart up until the last year. Arne Holst of Statista is responsible for the information used in creating this chart.

Blenders have grown considerably popular over the past few years, thanks to people’s improved healthy lifestyle and eating habits that have, in turn, improved our overall well-being. The sales of blenders in the country have been on a consistent rise, with 17.9 million units getting sold only in 2010. The numbers increased the following years up until 2014 when 18.4 million, 21.2 million, 24.9 million, and 26.1 million units were sold in 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014 respectively.

Making a smoothie with the wrong combination of ingredients will result in nothing but a not-so-smooth texture you won’t appreciate at the end of the day. Blending ingredients the right way will automatically guarantee you a great smoothie texture as soon as the whole blending process is done. This is why knowing how to load your blender for smoothies is very important, especially if that’s what you wake up to do every time before heading out for work or whatever you have to do for the day.

We know it’s tempting to toss different smoothie ingredients in your blender without setting them up properly, after all, they’ll get a blender regardless. If you’re one of those people that seek the easier route when making smoothies, you’ll not always get the perfect smoothie texture at the end of the day, and it may not be worth wasting your ingredients. Setting up your ingredients in order could make a big difference to help you make the best smoothie you can ever think of.

According to a pro tip given by Consumer Reports, quickly blending your smoothie ingredients at full speed will only create a traffic jam, leaving you with a not-so-smooth texture at the end of the day. You may want to start at low speed until the lower part of the ingredients are blended as you gradually increase the speed as the ingredients continue to consistently blend. It’s also safe to know that you can’t overblend a smoothie if you get the layering right, so there’ll be a time you’ll need to blend at full speed to get the texture you want.

In easy steps, we’ll be exploring how to load a blender for smoothies to help get the best result before we discuss the different smoothie recipes you can try with your blender.

How To Load Blender For Smoothie

Place Your Ingredients Properly

The most important step to take when loading your blender for a smoothie is getting the layering right. Blendtec advises that you load the blender jar with softer, high-moisture ingredients such as liquids, fresh fruits and veggies to get the perfect texture. After filling the blender jar with the soft ingredients, proceed to add the hard, solid ingredients like your frozen fruits, nuts, and veggies to the blender jar, right on top of the softer ones. Even if you’re making a green smoothie with leafy greens, it is advisable to put the leafy greens in the jar before the ice. The goal is to have liquids in the jar before the hard ingredients take the top position. This way, you can get the texture you desire at the end of the process, and you’ll be left with a great smoothie.

Balance The Temperature

Another thing you need to pay attention to when layering smoothies in your Ninja or any other blender is the temperature. The temperature has to be balanced if you’re to take anything good away from the whole process. If the ingredients are too cold, it can result in cavitation, which is bad for every smoothie. Cavitation is when an air pocket appears around the blender blades. Keeping tabs on the temperature means keeping a good balance between the ice or any frozen ingredients you may be using and liquid.

Cut Round Food Objects Into Pieces

If you’re using round food objects to make your smoothie, ensure to cut them in at least halves before putting them in the blender jar. If you’re not using a powerful blender like a Ninja or Vitamix, you may not get the best result as the blender blades will struggle to cut the whole fruit. Even if the blender is a powerful one, the jar may not be large enough to take in the whole fruits, leaving the blade struggling with cutting them as there’s not enough room for those ingredients in the blender jar.

There’s no perfect smoothie without perfect layering which is the most important thing to take note of when you’re making a smoothie. Each layer of the ingredients plays a huge role in the consistency you are left with at the end of every blend process. Below is a step-by-step order of layers (with examples) from the bottom of the blender to the top of the blender.

• Liquids – coconut water, coffee, tea, juice, water, dairy milk, non-dairy milk, etc.
• Powders and sweeteners – maca, dates, cacao powder, honey, etc.
• Greens – kale, chard, spinach, etc.
• Soft ingredients – nut butter, yogurt, silken tofu, etc.
• Fresh fruits – berries, citrus, avocados, nuts, seeds, etc.
• Frozen/hard ingredients – ice or frozen fruits and veggies.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. When making a smoothie, what goes in first?

As we have highlighted in this article, the mistake most people make when making their smoothies is not layering the ingredients right. The liquids are what goes into your blender first when you’re making smoothies. Regardless of the type, ensure that that’s the first thing you’re adding to the blender before anything else. Keeping them at the bottom of your blender helps you create a vortex, which is a state that involves the layer above it being easily absorbed into the liquids for easy cutting by the blades.

2. What button do you press on a blender to make a smoothie?

In personal blenders that are easily affordable (usually blenders whose prices are below $50), there are limited blend settings, so it may be hard to find a button specially meant for creating smoothies). However, when you go higher up in the market and you decide to opt for a high-powered blender like the Ninja Professional Plus Duo, you’ll find a smoothie auto IQ button that helps you blend your smoothies conveniently and without stress.

3. How do you load a single-serve blender?

The same process involved in loading your blender for smoothies goes for a single-serve blender. Although you have to be extra careful with the number of ingredients that go into your single-serve blender because it’s not as large as the other blenders.

4. Do you need a special blender to make smoothies?

If by “special”, you mean powerful, we are more than happy to inform you that you don’t need a thousand-dollar blender to make smoothies. Thankfully, even blenders that are slammed with low price tags have powerful blades that can help crush ice and frozen fruits to help you make the smoothies you want.

5. Why does my blender not blend frozen fruits?

The wrong combination of your smoothie ingredients may cause your blender not to blend the frozen fruits properly. Also, if you pack your blender with too many frozen items (ice, fruits, or veggies), your blender might stall.

Final thoughts

Smoothies are meant to be made in the wink of an eye, but the easy-to-do process may turn into a nightmare for you if you don’t get the layering right. Knowing how to load blenders for smoothies will not only help you get the best smoothie texture at the end of the day. It will also help keep your blender as functional as it can be. We’ve highlighted the important steps for you to take to get the whole process right. It begins with making sure you fill the blender jar with liquids before adding other ingredients to the blender.