Will Smoothies Keep In The Fridge?

Do you have to drink your smoothie fresh, or will smoothies keep in the fridge? It’s a good question and one that anyone with a blender and who decides to make a smoothie will want to know.

The answer like most things, depends upon what type of smoohtie you are making and also, for what reason.

Let’s dig a big deeper into the question and see if we can figure this out.

How Long Does A Smoothie Last?

The first question that will often come up is how long does a smoohie last. Not how long does it last in the fridge. How long does it last, period?

The reason you will want to know this is that you don’t want to have your smoothie go bad. And not only do you want to prevent it from going bad and tasting sour, but you are also going to want to drink it when it’s still got the most vitamin and nutrients.

Most people will tell you that you should drink a smoothie as soon as you make it. The reason is that when you make a fresh smoothie, there are no preservaties used during the making of it. It’s all fresh fruit or vegetables.

There is a reason that juice and smoothies sold in stores are all pasturized if they are not made to order. These fresh juices simply don’t last for hours and hours. If you do not refridgerate the smoothie, then it will begin to sour and also, the nutrients will begin to disapate.

So, on average, I would suggest not letting a smoothie sit around for more than an hour or so without regridgeration. That means you will be able to take a smoothie from home to work and enjoy it. There’s a bit of leeway when it comes to exactly how long you can leave a smoothie out, but I’d stick to the 1 hr timeframe.

If you’re going to store it in the fridge, then what I’d suggest is that you store it in a glass container. Steer clear of plastic, even if you happen to use a BPA free bledner bottle. Those blender bottles are alright for water, but if you happen to make a smoothie with any sort of acidic fruit or vegetable, then I would definately not store it in any sort of plastic!

If you make a fresh smoothie, you can transfer to a glass container (something such as a ball mason jar). If that’s the case, then you can safely store your smoothie for several hours (up to a day if you don’t taste if beforehand).

Will A Smoothie Keep in The Fridge?

As long as you store your smoothie properly, you will be able to store it safely in the fridge. And what exactly does store safely mean?

In this context, what I mean is that you store your smoothie in one of the aforementioned containers. Use something such as glass, so if you have mason jars, then this is a perfect option.

That smoothie should keep in the fridge for at least 24 hours. However, and it’s very important that you realize this, you should never taste the smoothie and then put it back in the fridge. The bacteria in your mouth is going to spread in the smoothie.

There have been extensive studies that cover how long fruit and vegetables keep their nutrient value after being cut. And from that data you can extrapolate the necessary data regarding a smoothie. Basically, once you’ve peeled or cut into any sort of vegetable or fruit, you start the process wherein the nutrients begin to deteriorate.

Only put a smoothie in the fridge to keep if it’s clean and hasn’t been drank from. Also, make sure to use sanitized glass jars.

My rule of thumb: Don’t Keep a Smoothie for More Than 24 Hours.

What Happens When You Let A Smoothie Sit In The Fridge Too Long?

When you leave a smoothie in the fridge for too long you will end up with a smoothie that has gone bad. It’s just a fact. A smoothie just can’t sit around in the fridge for ages.

If you leave the smoothie to sit in the fridge for too long that you’ll end up with a sour drink. Not only that, but it can begin to ferment, and not in a good way. Basically, you’ll get little to none of the healthy benefits and can actually end up making yourself sick.

How Soon Should You Drink A Smoothie?

So the next question obviously is how soon you should drink a smoothie? Is it something that you should or need to drink right away? Or can you take your time and relax after you’ve made it?

I like to drink my smoothies right away, but that doesn’t mean that you need to gulp it down as soon as you’ve made it.

If you’d like to wash the blender after and make sure that the kitchen is all clean, then by all means do that. I just don’t advocate for letting the smoothie sit around at room temperature for hours and hours.

Not only will your smoothie taste worse the longer it sits out, the more likelihood it will have of spoiling. This is especially true if you happen to be using yogurt or another form of dairy in your smoothie.

Whenever you are using a dairy ingredient in your smoothie, you must be mindful not to let it sit around without being in the fridge. Yogurt and other forms of dairy spoil rather quickly, especially when you add an acidic fruit to the mix.

 

What Temp To Keep Smoothies In The Fridge?

You want to make sure that your smoothies are kept cold in the fridge, but you also don’t want to freeze them!

Some people keep their refrigerators set too high, or too low. There is in fact a common number that most people agree on. 40 Degrees!

You want to make sure that food doesn’t spoil, so that number will work.

However, I also suggest knowing where in the fridge is a good place to not keep certain items. There is a reason why people keep butter and eggs on the door of the fridge and not in the back: the back is the coldest spot.

Have you ever placed something in the rear of the fridge only to take it out and find out that it has spoiled later? Well, that’s because the temp is lower at the back due to the insulation of the door as well as the coolant coming from the rear. So, I would suggest not placing the smoothie near the rear of the fridge.

 

If you’re getting ready to start making smoothies, then make sure to check out my reviews of the best blender for smoothies!

It covers in detail all you need to know to pick out a good design and model and get started!