ClimbGuy

I make a smoothie about every day. I never really thought about it until now, but should I wash the frozen fruit?

ILuvParis

I've never thought about it either. I don't and don't plan to.

falconea

I wouldn't unless I thought they might be gritty.

Any nasties generally can't survive more than a month in the deep freeze.

Audrey

indianwells

I don't even wash fresh fruit.

sfo

I am not sure how one would wash frozen fruit. If you pour water on the frozen fruit the water whether cold or warm would tend to stick to the already frozen fruit.

b1513

I never heard of freezing fruit. What kind of fruit would you freeze and why?

milepig

Grocery stores have entire freezer cases filled with frozen fruit of various types. I assume this is what the OP is talking about, since this is what is typically used in smoothies. You add it frozen and it serves as both the fruit and ice components.

It would never occur to me to wash it before using.

ILuvParis

The very first post answers your question, at least as to the "why."

Frozen grapes are one of the great treats - I buy fresh ones, wash and freeze them and snack on them later. They have an interesting consistency and they are very refreshing.

Costco sells a 4 lb. bag of frozen blueberries, blackberries and raspberries. They're great, as described above, for smoothies. They are also great for baking. I nuke them briefly and enjoy them on cereal if don't have fresh berries handy. I also throw them in fruity drinks - better than ice cubes. You can also thaw them with (or without) a little sugar and use as a great sundae topping.

My mother used to freeze fruit (especially apples and peaches - washed, peeled and sliced) for later use in pies.

b1513

I did read the first post but didn't know that you needed to freeze the fruit. But, now I see what the OP is talking about.
Funny you should mention grapes because I freeze them too but totally forgot about that. I was picturing freezing a fresh peach, fresh pineapple, etc.

sfo

I make great tasting smoothies out of those Costco 4lb bags of fruit and also let some thaw overnight and use them in my yogurt. It is their own brand Kirkland. Also, rinse under cold water, let dry and then freeze fresh blueberries for winter use,

ILuvParis

You don't need to freeze the fruit for a smoothie, but you can use frozen fruit in addition to, or instead of ice, to make it really icy - if you like them that way.

thegeneral

That depends on the fresh fruit I guess. The only reason you'd really need to do that is to wash off pesticides. That likely depends on the kind of fruit, whether or not it is organic and if it has been washed already.

nerd

No, never. Because a) Why would you need to? and b) It's hard to wash sshit that's frozen. @:-)

Gaucho100K

Never heard of the need to wash frozen fruit..... and yes, I agree that whenever possible one should avoid frozen foods, not just frozen fruit.

happy2traveler202

I figure freezing does something to kill germs. I have started washing things like cantaloupe after reading that by cutting through the rind you're introducing all sorts of bacteria etc into the fruit itself, so I wash the outside rind before cutting cantaloupe or watermelon.,