5 Foods You Should Never Put in a Blender

Are you hoping to make delicious, nutrient-packed smoothies with your blender? While a blender is an incredibly useful appliance for making a variety of recipes, certain items should never be put into a blender. Blenders are a great way to make smoothies, sauces, and other delicious concoctions, but not all foods are meant to be blended. Whether it’s the wrong texture, or simply a matter of safety, there are certain ingredients you should never put in a blender. In this post, we’ll share five of the most common foods that should never make their way into your blender and why.

Hard Foods

Blenders are not made to grind hard foods or seeds, such as nuts and rice, into small particles. These ingredients will likely clog up the blades or jam the motor of your blender. Hard vegetables such as carrots and celery should not be put in a blender either, as they can cause damage to the blades and other components of the machine. Instead of putting hard vegetables into a blender, consider grating them by hand or using a food processor or vegetable chopper.

Seeds

For recipes that require ground nuts or seeds, use a nut grinder or food processor instead of a blender. A blender blade will not be able to break down these tough ingredients, and it may end up damaging your machine in the process.

Oils, Sauces, and Condiments

Though it might seem convenient to add oils and sauces directly into your blender during cooking, these ingredients have low viscosity and won’t blend properly with other ingredients in the mixer.

Salad dressings are usually oil-based and should never be blended in a blender because they tend to coat the blades and make it difficult for them to move properly inside the container. Make sure all dressings are added at the end of blending.

Sauces like ketchup or mustard are also not suitable for blenders because they tend to create a sticky mess inside the pitcher, which can damage the blades over time if not thoroughly cleaned afterward.

Hot Ingredients

Hot liquids should never be put into blenders because they can cause serious injury due to steam build-up inside the container while blending. They may melt or liquefy due to friction from the blades spinning at high speeds inside the container.

When adding liquids like soups or stocks to your recipes that require blending, these must always be cooled down before putting them into blenders for safety reasons as well as for better texture results when the blending is finished

Cooked meats should also never be placed inside blenders as their fibrous texture is too thick for the blades to manage effectively, resulting in an unpleasant texture.

Dairy Products

Dairy products such as milk, yogurt, cheese, and cream should also never be blended inside blenders because they produce an uncomfortable chunky consistency when blended, which can ruin any recipe requiring a creamy texture.

Cheese is also unsuitable for blenders due to its hardness and strong odor, which can overpower any other flavors that may have been added.

Heavy cream has similar issues with milk and yogurt, where its thickness does not allow for proper breakdown inside blenders. The blades have to spin at high speeds over an extended time, which produces chunky results.

Conclusion

With the right ingredients, a blended drink can taste great. If you try to put the wrong foods inside, you could end up with a mess, or a broken blender. Avoid putting hot foods, dairy products, and sauces in your blender to keep your blender safe. With these tips, you are well on your way to making a great blended beverage.