How do I make a good smoothie?

Smoothies go wrong in two directions: too thin because there is too much liquid, or too thick to drink. Using frozen fruit rather than ice gives thickness and cold without dilution, which solves both at once.

What you'll need

• Blender
• Frozen fruit
• Liquid — milk, yoghurt, juice or water
• Freezer bags for pre-portioning (optional)

Step by step

1. Start with roughly one part liquid to two parts fruit.Adjust from there. Less liquid for a thicker result, more if the blender struggles.
2. Put the liquid in the blender first.It gives the blades something to move, which is why blenders sometimes just spin against a solid block.
3. Add soft ingredients next — yoghurt, banana, soft fruit.They blend into the liquid and create the vortex that pulls everything else down.
4. Put frozen and hard ingredients on top.Frozen fruit, oats, seeds and leafy greens go last so they are pulled down into the moving liquid.
5. Use frozen fruit rather than ice for thickness.Ice dilutes as it blends; frozen fruit thickens and adds flavour. Frozen banana is the most effective.
6. Blend in short bursts, stopping to scrape down if needed.Continuous blending heats the mixture, which is why smoothies sometimes come out lukewarm.
7. Taste and adjust — usually more acid or a little sweetness.A squeeze of lemon or lime lifts a flat smoothie more reliably than adding more fruit.
8. For leafy greens, blend them with the liquid first before adding anything else.It breaks them down completely and avoids the fibrous texture that puts people off.

Tips

• Pre-portion smoothie ingredients into freezer bags. Tip a bag into the blender with liquid and it is ready in a minute.
• Frozen overripe bananas are the best use for fruit about to be thrown away, and they are the single most useful thickener.
• Oats, nut butter or yoghurt make a smoothie more substantial and stop it disappearing in two minutes.

Common mistakes

• Putting frozen ingredients in first — The blades spin against a solid block with nothing to move. Liquid first, frozen last.
• Using ice for thickness — It dilutes as it melts and blends. Frozen fruit thickens without watering it down.
• Over-blending — It heats the mixture, and a warm smoothie is unappealing. Short bursts.

Questions people ask