Protein smoothies can be an excellent method to provide your body with the added protein it requires. Protein is essential for bodybuilders since it is transformed into muscle.
The issue with protein shakes is that they don’t always taste as good as their name suggests. Fortunately, there are several easy ways for making protein shakes taste delicious.
Make It Sweeter
If your protein drink lacks sweetness, adding some could be beneficial, and it is one of the easiest methods to increase its general palatability. There are numerous healthier options to refined sugar that will improve the flavor of the whey protein.
If you’re watching your calorie consumption, you can use artificial sweetener powder or monk fruit extract. If you’re worried about not getting enough calories, use agave syrup, date syrup, or even honey.
If you’ve been drinking your protein drink before or shortly after working out, you’ll need a lot more calories. So you need those calories right away.
Add Some Juice
Orange juice can definitely come in handy. If you don’t really like the flavor of your protein powder and struggle to get it down without wincing, use OJ instead of water to conceal it.
The orange juice flavor will dominate the protein powder flavor, letting you forget about it and get on with your day. And if the nasty flavor persists, the solution is to toss in even more juice.
If you’re not a huge fan of OJ, you’re in luck. It isn’t the only type of juice you can get away with in your protein shake. Theoretically, you can use any flavor of fruit juice you choose.
What distinguishes orange juice is that it complements a wide range of flavors. If the protein powder has a vanilla flavor, it will work well with the orange juice.
The same is true for strawberry, raspberry, and even some chocolatey flavors.
Throw In Some Fruit
Strong-flavored fruits should be avoided since they will mask the flavor of the whey protein that you despise. Orange, strawberries, bananas, and other fruits may be suitable depending on your preferences.
Alternatively, select the fruit that you enjoy the best. This way, you’ll have no trouble sipping the smoothie. You could even include some strong-flavored spices to hide the powder’s true taste and flavor.
Among those we recommend are:
- Cinnamon
- Mint
- Nutmeg
- Grated lemon rind
- Fenugreek
Make It A Milkshake
Not every flavor goes well with a milk base. Sour flavors such as lemon, citrus, and certain berries, for example, are best to be avoided. Other flavors, though, are likely to work great; essentially, it’s a matter of personal opinion.
So, you’ll need milk or substitute milk (almond or soya milk are typically the most nutritionally beneficial options available) and a toss in a handful of ice cubes. Shake the whole thing together in a smoothie maker or blender.
Opt For A Smoothie
If none of the earlier suggestions have yielded a remedy, perhaps it’s time to try them all at once. Using a blender, combine the sugar, juice or milk, fruits, and seasoning.
You can even include nuts to enhance the flavor. Using chia is also a wonderful idea, not for the flavor of the smoothie, but rather to make it more gelatinous.
A smoothie like this will not only make it easier to absorb protein powder but will also increase the nutritious content. Just a few hazelnuts provide 5-6 grams of protein, which would be a big improvement when compared to a typical protein powder dose of 25 grams.
Preparing a smoothie, on the other hand, will increase the protein level by 20%.
Put It In A Cake
Who said drinking protein powder was the only way to consume it? It can be eaten in the style of a delicious cake.
You can essentially make any kind of cake you want and it can be as simple or as complicated as you like. The key here is to substitute protein powder for 1/3 of the flour listed on the recipe.
Alternatively, you can use solely protein powder and baking powder. Really, that is the only alteration you need to consider; the remainder of the cake recipe remains unchanged.
Protein powder can also be used to make pancakes. The best part is that they are quite simple to create. Want to find out how? Here’s a quick recipe:
- Gather your ingredients; 2 servings of protein powder, 1 tbsp baking powder, half a cup of milk or milk substitute, and 1 large egg.
- Blend all the ingredients together using a whisk or blender
- Warm a pan over medium heat and add a little oil
- Slowly add the batter to the pan
- Cook until you see bubbles, then flip
- Cook for a further minute or until golden brown
- Add some fresh fruit, peanut butter, or syrup, and dig in!
Combine Multiple Powders
The very worst thing one can do with some protein powder that they don’t like is tossing it away. Protein powder isn’t always cheap, and being wasteful is never great.
There’s no reason to cease using the ‘nasty’ one if you purchase a new one with the flavor you prefer. Rather, why not try to combine them?
Still, if you’re worried that the flavor of the bad powder will overpower the flavor of the new powder, try using a different amount. Rather than 1⁄2 serving from each, use a 2:1 ratio.
Use two-thirds of the protein you prefer and one-third of the protein you don’t.
Distract Yourself
We don’t taste with just our tongues, but also with our minds. So our brain can be hacked quite easily at times. There seem to be techniques for making food taste considerably better than it is.
Audio, for example, has been shown to enhance the dining experience. Use this information to your advantage by playing your favorite music in the background while sipping the shake.
Using garnish as a brain hack is yet another smart option. If the beverage looks appealing, your mind will make it taste more appealing as well.
If that doesn’t do the trick, why not try distracting yourself as you sip? Some people swear by their method of watching TV while gulping or even playing their favorite video game.
If your mind is distracted by another activity, you’re far less likely to focus on how bad your protein shake tastes.
