Following on from my earlier post - 'Experiences of Buying a NutriBullet', here's an update on what it's like to use. I'm using the NutriBullet 600 which has a 600W motor capable of blitzing fruit and vegetables into smithereens in a matter of seconds. I’ve had my NutriBullet in action for a couple of months now, and I’ve been experimenting with all sorts of fruity, veggie combinations.
Some are a success, others, not so much.
They start out looking all fresh, nutritious and wholesome, piled up inside the cup. Then, once the blender gets to work, the colour starts changing. Depending on the ingredients, it may start off as a beautiful rosy red or vibrant green, only to end up looking like dark green pond sludge. Don't let it put you off though! Some of the murkiest concoctions have been the tastiest.
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| NutriBullet 900 from the US |
It’s a breeze to use. I follow the instructions and use half greens, followed by half fruit and topped with some sort of nutty seedy combination. You simply pile the ingredients into the tall cup and screw on the blade section. Turn it upside down and press it onto the power base. Turn it right for a pulse or left and it stays in place for blending. It only takes around 30-45 seconds to blitz the contents. It is quite noisy but because it blends so quickly, it’s not on for long.
One of the reasons I wanted the NutriBullet was to infuse more greenery into my children. And I have to say, it’s worked a treat. They’ve had kale, spinach, broccoli, Swiss chard (something I’d never heard of before, but it’s got this unusual, almost sweet flavour), beetroot and ginger.
I’ve also added chia seeds, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, almonds, maca powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. The Linwoods seeds packets come in useful here too. My NutriBullet came with the packet of superfood blend shown below. This is a mix of chia, goji, cacao and maca.
Fruits I've used have included banana, apple, orange, lemon, lime, pineapple, blueberries, raspberries, (a bit expensive right now though), strawberries, peaches, avocado, cherries and kiwi fruit.
Bad Seeds: Some seeds mustn't go into the NutriBullet as they contain a chemical that releases cyanide into the body upon ingestion.
These seeds are: Apple seeds, cherry stones, apricot stones, plum stones and peach stones.
Once all the fruit, veggies and superfood ingredients are in the cup, you must add water no higher than the max fill line to prevent leakages. However, other liquids such as coconut water or nut milks are fine too. It’s really up to you.
I love my NutriBullet. It looks elegant standing on my worktop and takes up hardly any room. My family are getting fruit and veggies inside them that they wouldn’t touch if they were presented on a plate. Drinks are quick and easy to prepare and we’ve all loved the results. Well, nearly all. It’s a bit trial and error sometimes as I tend to use whatever’s in the fridge to make own concoctions.
I made a delicious ‘ice cream’ the other night after watching one of those infomercials on a shopping channel. I never watch these programmes normally, but I was channel hopping while in the kitchen and the NutriBullet name appeared as a programme.
Anyway, they made this ice cream from frozen mango, pineapple and unsweetened almond milk. So I did the same, but I also added a bit of desiccated coconut and some shelled hemp seeds. It took a while to blend as I had to keep adding more milk to enable the blades to do their job properly.
By the time it was thoroughly blended, the consistency was at that ‘just about to melt’ stage. Too melty for an ice cream cone but OK in a bowl. A nice healthy dessert, though quite high on the natural sugar front. And best of all, everyone loved it.
I sprinkled a few hazelnuts on top and this is what it looked like.
When I’m using fresh, as opposed to frozen fruit, I’ve been adding coconut water ice cubes just to give it more of a slushy consistency. The blades crush the ice completely.
Is it like juice?
The NutriBullet drinks are more of a smoothie consistency because they still contain all of the vegetable and fruit fibres. The more veg and fruit you put in, the thicker it becomes. It's even thicker still if you use part frozen fruit. Everything is blended very finely and it does it fast. However, there are still ‘bits’. For example, raspberry seeds are still crunchy.
To me, NutriBullet shakes are more of a meal. I usually cram a lot of veg into mine, so the liquid is almost 'chewable'. I have one for lunch and it takes me a good 15 minutes of sipping my way through it. I can easily get through a tall cup on my own and it’s very filling. And you just can’t help but feel healthy after drinking one.
Cleaning
To clean, you simply rinse the blade part under water. It's best to do this right away while the food particles are still wet. With regards to the cups and accessories, they can all go in the dishwasher. However, I'd recommend rinsing out the cup as soon as it's empty. My dishwasher has struggled with removing all the dried particles from inside the cup (when it's been left for a while to dry out).
However, when reading through the User Guide and Recipe Book I noticed under the 'Stubborn Cleanup' section, that dried bits can be easily cleaned by filling the cup with warm water and dish washing liquid and putting it on to blend! Seems obvious. Why didn't I think of that?
Problems
After blitzing whatever concoction I've done, I always have a taste test to see whether it needs anything adding. This entails unscrewing the base. No problem there. However, the next time I come to unscrew it, I find it's extremely difficult to undo. Of course, this may be just me!
However, it did cause an overflow incident. I obviously hadn't redone it up tight enough, so that when I put it on to blend again, it all came pouring out of the bottom of the cup and straight into the base!
I understand this is what can happen if you fill the cup past the 'max' line, but this wasn't the case with me. I tipped the base upside down to drain as much liquid out as possible, but it kept leaking out the base for some time afterwards.
The following day I tentatively had another go at blending, praying it would work. And thank goodness it burst back to life and has carried on since.
Where to buy
In the UK, the colours to choose from are red, black or slate grey.You can buy the NutriBullet 600 from various outlets including Amazon, Robert Dyas, Argos, eBay, Currys and IdealworldTV. Most are around the £99 mark though you can find them cheaper at eBay.
NutriBullet at Amazon
© Diets and Calories
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