The Right Way Of Freezing Greens For Smoothies

The main idea that goes into the making of any smoothie is to make a mix of all those ingredients that you love to have. Green smoothies are a major trend in the health world currently and a huge chunk of people are experimenting with the recipes every day that has given way to the need for freezing greens for smoothies. This is exactly what we are going to deal with in this article alongside telling you how to freeze greens for smoothies in the correct way.

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Why freeze the greens at all?

There are several benefits of having frozen greens at your disposal while making a smoothie or otherwise. Let’s see some of the reasons why you should freeze the greens:

The first reason can be to get ahead with the smoothie making game. We mean that having frozen greens or smoothie packs ready, it becomes very easy to prepare the recipes quickly.
The storage life of greens is not much and they rot very fast even inside the fridge. Freezing makes the greens last longer that can be up to even a month.
The real taste of the greens is also subdued mildly upon freezing and they become close to flavorless. These greens when added to the smoothies make the overall smoothie better.
Frozen greens will give you supplies for your smoothies for a long time as you can mass prepare them. This can be a great idea for the off-season availability of greens. Of course, there are other options that you can consider as an alternative to freezing your greens. For instance, some people enjoy the convenience and ease of using the best super greens powder to create delicious smoothies with minimal hassle and effort.

How to freeze greens for smoothies?

The process is not difficult at all. You just have to take care of the simple steps and the things that you will need for the method. Without any further ado, let’s see how to freeze greens for smoothies:

Washing

This is the first and most important step as any dirt or germ that remains unwashed will remain till the last stage and destroy all the greens in no time. Wash the leaves well with water or add some white vinegar too for removing any bugs. Shake the greens well and then dry them by patting or spinning them in a vegetable dryer.

Chopping the stems

You need only leaves for the frozen packs so removing the stem is the next important thing to do. You can simply cut off the big stems or pluck out all of the leaves by clasping one end of the stem and then running it till the other end.

Prepare the bags

Get the storage bags and label them. Put info like the variety of green, amount, and maybe the date of packing too. All this will help you to use them better and know if they are fresh enough to use or not.

Seal the greens

Now measure the greens and start putting them inside the bags. Make sure that the containers are freezer safe and BPA free. Press out all the air as much as possible and then seal the bag. Finally, pop the green bags inside the freezer for as long as it is right.

Another way of freezing greens

You can also choose to store your greens in a green ice cubes form. For that, blend the greens with a little water and then pour the mix in an ice tray. Freeze the mix now.

Once they set up nicely, take them out, and put them in any sealable bag. Label that bag with the name of the green and date of its packing.

How to freeze the greens for smoothies in a better way?

Here is a list of some tips that will help you to get along the process well and produce nicely stored greens:

Keep checking the freshness status of your greens and it’s better to freeze them while they are still fresh. Don’t wait for them to rot until the last moment as that’s when they become unsuitable.c
If you are freezing blended greens, then first freeze them in the molds and then transfer them into the bag. This because blended greens take longer to freeze.
Make sure to keep the quantity of liquid while making blended greens as low as possible. For keeping the measures right, add liquid gradually as per the requirement of achieving the right consistency. This tip is also important as it will affect the liquid proportion in the final smoothie too.
You can use containers or mold of different shapes for some fun with freezing greens for smoothies.
You can also try mixing several types of greens or even fruits while freezing.

Can you freeze spinach for smoothies?

If you have been wondering that, then the answer is yes. Frozen spinaches are anytime better than raw and fresh spinaches as they don’t become a sludgy mess upon blending. They give a smoother consistency to the green smoothies and also remain wilt-free for longer.

There is no significant nutrient deficiency in the frozen spinaches. They give great texture and a better flavor by not altering the smoothie taste. Baby spinaches are a better choice if you are going with freezing spinach for smoothies.

Method one:

Put spinach leaves and some water into a blender.
Blend them well until the right consistency is achieved.
Pour the mix into molds and freeze.
Store the frozen cubes in a sealed bag.

Method two:

Take whole spinach leaves.
Wash and dry them thoroughly.
Put them in any freezer bag and pop the air out.
Store the bag inside the freezer.

Can you freeze kale for smoothies?

The benefits of freezing kale are just like the ones of freezing other greens. Kale is a densely nutritious veggie that makes its way into most of the smoothies to make them higher energy boosters. Frozen kale is a better option to add in the smoothies as its original flavor might be great for a salad but not that good maybe for a smoothie.

There are two ways of freezing kale for smoothies that you can try as per your preference. You can use either of the flat or curly variety of kale for freezing.

Method one:

Wash the kale thoroughly and dry them out.
Remove the stems, the thicker stems primarily.
Put the leaves in any freezer-safe ziplock bag and then put the bag inside the freezer.
Once frozen, take them out and crush.
Put them back again.

Method two:

Put kale with some water into a blender.
Blend them well until the right consistency is achieved.
Pour the mix into any muffin tray and freeze.
Take out the kale cubes and put them in a freezer zip lock bag.

How to make a smoothie with the frozen greens?

Once you have your greens frozen, you can use them anytime for making a green smoothie. Greens are a great addition to such drinks as they just boost the nutrient level of the food to a great level. The best part is that they are flavorless and won’t alter the original taste of the smoothie at all, thus your kids or anyone is going to love it.

Take out the bag from the freezer and pull out the required amount of frozen greens from it. Blend them with the other ingredients of your smoothie. Your green smoothie is ready to serve.

Watch this video for some amazing green smoothie recipes.

Final words

So this article was all about telling you the right way of freezing greens for smoothies so that you get a creamier and tastier glass of green smoothie whenever you wish to. The frozen greens like kale and spinach are a great addition for different smoothies and freezing kale for smoothies and freezing spinach for smoothies in the right way can give you the best results. Also, make sure to not over-add the greens into your smoothies as they might then actually change the taste of it.

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