As an Amazon Associate, I can earn from qualifying purchases. Learn More
Are you a Huel person? Or do you still get a lumpy protein shake even after stirring the mixture hard? If the answer’s a yes, this article covers how to use blender bottle, which not only gives you a lump-free protein shake, but also a delicious one?
Yes, I know it feels like I’m just hyping the item, but it does magic for those of us who have one. Oh, yeah, I do have one that I usually use to make protein shakes for my daily workout routine. And as far as I can say, there’s nothing to hate about it as long you don’t expect it to crush ice or pulverize apple cubes. But then, does that mean you can’t have your favorite Raspberry Colada Smoothie?
A Blender Bottle isn’t exactly a Blend-er
That’s right. Despite the name, a blender bottle isn’t exactly the normal blender for juicing and smoothies. Also known as a shaker bottle, it’s more of a specialty accessory to whip up your powder and liquid ingredients in a richer consistency. Hence, the reason you’ll mostly find it with the gym-goers for protein shakes or else those on Huel diets.
Unlike the normal kitchen blender, a shaker bottle doesn’t have a motor base. However, you can still use the blender for milkshakes and smoothies, but with powder and liquid ingredients as we shall see later.
As there’s no motor base, a blender bottle relies on your arm’s muscles to process the recipe at hand. It has a special wire (wire whisk/ mixer ball) that acts as a “spinning blade” to facilitate effectual mixing and also cut through the stubborn powder lumps. But again, you must arrange your ingredients in the appropriate order to ensure the best results.
What Makes a Blender Bottle Unique
Indeed, a blender bottle has special qualities that enable it to stand out from the others. It’s the same uniqueness that has seen the BlenderBottle Classic Shaker Bottle stay on top of the market, with over 99,000 five-star ratings on Amazon.
In any case, here are some of the beauties of having a good blender bottle:
Mixes Well: thanks to the whisk mixer ball, a blender bottle mixes the protein powders well than when stirring with a spoon. It also breaks down all the crumbs, ensuring you get to enjoy a super-smooth shake without unpleasant chunks.
Low Price-point: At only ten bucks, it’s your choice to have a lumpy or grainy protein shake. If you feel it’s much, you can wait when the sellers have limited-time offers (like I did) and grab two or three pieces.
Compact Size: a shaker bottle is more like a portable blender for travel in size and capacity. You can use it to mix your protein shakes or smoothies on the go or while at home. In fact, the container comes with a secure, leak-proof lid to ensure you can comfortably carry the beverage in the gym bag without a mess.
Flexibility: The container you use to prepare your recipes is the same one to carry and drink. Most of the blender bottles have a convenient flip cap for easier drinking. Some like the Utopia Home 2-Pack Shaker Bottle even have a built-in storage compartment to hold your vitamin supplements.
Easy to clean: the shaker has a setup like that of a Nutribullet Pro and Nutri Ninja Auto iQ personal blenders– compact and fewer components. Hence, effortless and quick to clean.
Ease of use: When drinking your yogurt, you shake the container before pulling off the lid, right? That’s the same idea behind a bottle blender. You shake the loaded container vigorously, again and again, until all the ingredients mix fully and you have a creamier consistency.
How to use Blender Bottle for Shakes and Smoothies
As I’ve just mentioned, there’s no rocket science to using a blender bottle. It just about shaking the bottle of content well until they all dissolve or mix up.
Nonetheless, the way you put your ingredients can, no doubt, impact how your blend comes out. Where have we seen this again? Yes, in the normal kitchen blender. By the way, the arrangement of the ingredients is pretty similar, whereby you start with liquids, then powders, and finally thicker items.
But again, don’t forget to put the wire whisk ball. Also, remember to tightly secure the lid and flip cap of the shaker bottle.
Here’s a highlight of how you can do all that with some of my favorite basic shakes and smoothies.
A Simple Blackberry Chocolate Protein Shake with a Blender Bottle
If you have a special part for sweeties, this combo of milk, chocolate powder, blackberry yogurt, and ripe (mashed) banana, is hard to beat. You just need to toss all the ingredients (in the order they appear) into your favorite blender bottle, secure the lid and cap, then shake it up into a smooth consistency.
A Tropical Raspberry Colada Smoothie with a Blender Bottle
Who said you can’t enjoy a nice tropical taste from your kitchen? If you have a little bit of coconut milk, pineapple juice, raspberry yogurt, mashed ripe raspberries, and grated coconut, just add them into your shaker cup. Then, secure the lid (plus flip cap) and shake the mixture until smooth.
A Matcha Green Tea “Superfood” Protein Shake with a Blender Bottle
If you’re up to maintain your overall wellness, this recipe has the magic for that and at less. It not only quenches your dry throat but also loads your body with antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals for an even fresher body and mind.
To prepare the superfood drink, you need to have oat milk, a sprinkle of matcha green tea powder, vanilla protein, and peanut butter. Once you’ve added everything into the blender, shake well, again and again, until smooth.
A Classic 101 Vanilla Smoothie with a Blender Bottle
This is also a smoothie recipe, but for now, you can use any yogurt flavor of your liking (strawberry’s my favorite). However, the recipe will still need the milk and one serving of vanilla protein powder. Once you’ve added all the ingredients into your shaker bottle, shake it up, and again until rich smooth.
A Chocolate-y Chocolate Collagen Smoothie with a Blender Bottle
If your tongue’s still sweating for something sweet and chocolatey, you can whip up this recipe with your bottle shaker. You just need milk (preferably coconut), a ripe banana (mashed), a sprinkle of cacao powder, Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides, and a stream of almond butter. After you’ve added everything into the shaker cup, shake vigorously until a creamy smooth appearance.
A Strawberry Preserve Milkshake for One with a Blender Bottle
Similarly, it’s not a must you have a fast motor to enjoy a chilled, delicious milkshake. If you have some milk, Vanilla ice cream, plus Strawberry preserve, you can swirl all together into a fresh, yummy milkshake.
Take Care of Your Blender Bottle
Similar to the normal kitchen blender, your shaker bottle needs to be clean all the time, or at least before every use. In doing this, you not only avoid the incidents of food poisoning but also ensures your product serves you well for a longer time.
How To Clean Blender Bottle
As was mentioned earlier, a blender bottle’s very easy to clean since it has fewer components. The mixing cups are also the same to drink, plus you can secure the lid and go with your beverage about anywhere.
In my opinion, cleaning your blender bottle by hand is the best option. You just need warm water and a few drops of dish soap. Alternatively, you can clean some mixing cups on the top rack of a dishwasher.
How To Get Smell Out Of Blender Bottle
If you don’t clean your shakers well, they certainly will retain a stinky odor. The odor will then leak into your smoothie or protein shake, altering the original taste with an undrinkable one.
Regardless, you can remove the foul smell of a blender bottle the same way you clean Vitamix to remove the cloudy film. That means you soak the affected mixing cups in a mixture of baking soda and vinegar overnight. Then, wash it with warm soapy water. Oh, don’t forget cold and running water is the best to rinse.
Common Related Questions:
Can you heat up a Blender Bottle?
First, you should know that the term blender bottle refers to the general class of the shaker bottles- not the BlenderBottle® company. Then, each provider usually makes their products differently and while using varying materials.
For instance, BlenderBottle is against using their bottle shakers with hot or warm liquids. According to them, the secure seal can create and withhold pressure from the steaming air. Hence, causing the flip cap to burst open, splattering the content all over, or worse, results in serious injuries.
Meanwhile, you can put Utopia Home 2-Pack Shaker Bottle with lukewarm water- says the manufacturer. However, your warm liquid should never exceed 40C as it could cause the bottle to “deform and lose its shape, plus design”.
Can you put ice in a Blender Bottle?
When making your favorite shakes, Matcha, or smoothies, you can add ice to give it an extra, chilled taste. If it’s working out, the ice can also help keep your energy boost cool throughout the session.
Final Thoughts:
Well, a blender bottle is an excellent accessory if you’re on protein shakes or meal replacement diets. You can enjoy the true deliciousness of your smoothie or hue or protein shake without feeling any undissolved grains or lumps.
Even better, a blender bottle is so affordable that you can get one even when you have a high-power blender, food processor, and an electric mixer. It’s also very easy to use as we’ve seen in our brief review. You just need to add your ingredients from the lightest to the heaviest, secure the lid well, and shake, again and again, until the desired consistency.