Smoothies are easy to prepare and when you use healthy ingredients they are also extremely nutritious. The pity is that smoothies quickly turn brown when you store them. That previously healthy smoothie no longer looks so healthy and tasty.
A trick to keep your smoothie fresh for longer is to add some lemon juice. This means that the brown color stays away. But why does your smoothie actually turn brown? Why does lemon juice help and are there other things you can do to keep your smoothie tasty and healthy?
Why do my smoothies discolour?
When cutting fruit or making a smoothie in a blender, you destroy the cells of the fruit. The same thing happens when you drop fruit, bump it, bite it, etc.
When the cells break down, an oxidation reaction starts. Actually the same as with rusting. The reaction ensures that a number of substances that previously provided those attractive colors or were colorless now turn brown. This happens with both fruit that you have cut and fruit that has been bruised. The bruised spots on apples or bananas are caused by the same oxidation process.
This entire process is a natural defense response of the plant. The substances that are released and react to oxygen are normally there to repel insects and microbes. This process occurs in almost all types of fruit and vegetables, but it is not always clearly visible.
Does a brown smoothie have a lower nutritional value?
Vegetables that have been cut lose their nutritional value faster than uncut products. In cut fruit, the brown color is purely a surface reaction, because only the cells that have been cut will discolour. If you use a blender, the cell structure of the fruit or vegetable will of course be completely severed. That is why a smoothie discolors so quickly.
The cells responsible for the discoloration are not harmful to you at all. The discoloration also does not really affect the taste. It does ensure that your healthy smoothie no longer looks attractive at all. And since we also eat a bit with our eyes, the brown color indirectly influences the way you experience the smoothie.
Prevent your smoothies from turning brown
There are four ways you can normally slow down or even stop the oxidation process altogether.
- To heat
- Limit oxygen
- Add preservatives
- Add acid
We can immediately eliminate heating and the addition of preservatives. With a smoothie, it is of course not the intention to heat the fruit. In the food industry, preservatives are often added to prevent discoloration, such as sulfur dioxide (E220). Of course, that is also not possible for us as a home smoothie maker.
And then there are two options left:
- Add acid
- Limit oxygen
Add acid to smoothie to prevent discoloration
Acid can act as an antioxidant. To slow down the entire process of turning your smoothie brown, you can add some lemon juice. When making a smoothie, the cell structures of the fruit are of course completely destroyed. To prevent brown discoloration, you will therefore have to use a considerable amount of lemon juice. If you prefer sweeter smoothies, you will have to add sugar or another sweetener. That makes your healthy smoothie unhealthy again. Fortunately, there is another option to prevent oxidation of your smoothie.
Vacuum seal smoothie
We have already explained that the brown discoloration of your smoothie is the result of oxidation. Oxygenium is Latin for oxygen and the less your fresh smoothie comes into contact with oxygen, the less it will discolour. Storing your smoothie in a sealed bottle will not do much. As soon as you put the cap on, there is still oxygen in the bottle. So you will really have to remove the air from the smoothie. You can do this by vacuum sealing the smoothie.
Store smoothie and juice in a vacuum cup
When your smoothie comes into contact with air, the quality quickly deteriorates. If you want to keep smoothies tasty and healthy for longer, you can only do so by ensuring that the smoothie does not come into contact with oxygen.
A vacuum cup is the perfect way to ensure that you can keep a homemade smoothie tasty and healthy for longer. After blending, pour the smoothie into the cup. The special lid ensures a leak-free and airtight seal. The only thing that will have to happen now is to remove the air from the cup: vacuuming. To vacuum the smoothie we use a compact vacuum sealer that fits exactly on the special lid. All air present is sucked out of the cup by the vacuum pump , which ensures that your smoothie stays fresh for days.
The vacuum cups are 100% BPA and BPS free. In fact, Tritan plastic contains no bisphenol at all. Normal plastic containers can leak under the influence of the acid present in fruit. Smoothie cups made from Tritan do not leak. The material is as hard as glass, but scratch and fall resistant. These plastic smoothie cups are unbreakable and therefore a much better alternative than the glass mason jars, you know them, those glass jars with lids, sometimes with handles and straw. The vacuum cups are also completely leak-proof, so you can easily take them with you to work, for example. Make sure you keep the smoothies in the refrigerator, because if they get too warm, they will quickly deteriorate in quality.
Store smoothie or juice in the blender jar
The vacuum pump also fits most blenders in our range. This means you can vacuum seal the contents of the blender jar. Handy when you make a very full jug of juice or smoothie in one go. This way you can enjoy fresh homemade smoothies all day long. Just keep the blender jar in the refrigerator.
How do you keep a smoothie good?
As soon as your smoothie comes into contact with oxygen, its quality deteriorates. To keep the drink tasty, you will have to ensure that your smoothie does not come into contact with air too much. Vacuum sealing a smoothie is the only solution. Use a vacuum beaker in combination with a vacuum pump or opt for a blender with a jug that can be vacuum sealed.
