Matcha Smoothie Green Tea Smoothie

Love drinks like a matcha latte or iced matcha latte? Then you’ll love this Matcha Smoothie: a puree of green tea and sweet fruits! Blend up this green tea powder with banana and pineapple, and it’s lightly sweet with a delicate bitter matcha undertone. It’s a great way to get all the benefits of green tea while drinking a fruity puree! Here’s how we like to make a matcha smoothie.

What is matcha?

Matcha is a fine powder made of ground green tea leaves that originated in East Asia. It’s consumed as part of traditional Japanese tea ceremonies, and plays an integral part in Japanese culture. There’s a complex set of ceremonial intricacies to the tea ceremony (read more here). Matcha tastes grassy and earthy. It can be consumed as a cup of tea, or as a latte like matcha latte or iced matcha latte. It’s also a popular flavor for ice cream, cakes, cookies, and more. Watch out: matcha does contain caffeine: more than typical green tea, but less than coffee!

Ingredients in a matcha smoothie

This matcha smoothie pairs sweet fruity flavors with the bitter, grassy flavor of green tea. It’s simple to whip up with a short ingredient list. Here’s what you’ll need for this matcha smoothie:

Frozen pineappleBananaMatchaVanilla extractGreek yogurt (or additional milk)Milk of choice (dairy, oat or coconut)IceMaple syrup or honey (optional; or vanilla protein powder)

Blend it up and give it a taste: and we hope you’ll be surprised by the sweet, fruity puree! You can blend it up without sweetener and taste to see if you’d like to add it. The bitterness of matcha can vary based on the type you use (see below), so you can adjust the sweetener to taste. Or, add vanilla protein powder instead: it gives a hit of protein and sweetness at the same time!

A note on types of matcha

There are three grades of matcha that correspond to quality. We recommend using ceremonial grade or latte grade here (we used ceremonial). Why? The difference in color and flavor is very noticeable! The ceremonial grade makes the most brilliant color and tastes much better than the other grades. Here’s an overview of the matcha types:

Ceremonial grade matcha is the highest grade and fit for tea ceremonies; it has the brightest green color and smoothest flavor (buy it!)Latte grade matcha is slightly less bright green and has more bitter flavor (buy it!)Cooking grade matcha is greenish brown in color and fairly bitter

Vegan variation

Want a dairy-free matcha smoothie? Omit the Greek yogurt and simply use your favorite non-dairy milk. Oat milk is our favorite non dairy milk for smoothies, with its creamy texture and neutral flavor. Coconut milk would also work well here! You may need to add a bit extra liquid since you’ll be substituting for the Greek yogurt. We’d also recommend adding protein since you’re losing that with the Greek yogurt. This is especially important if you’re using this smoothie as a meal replacement! Try vanilla protein powder or 1 to 2 tablespoons chia seeds.

Can you make it ahead?

This matcha smoothie doesn’t separate in the refrigerator! So it’s great if you want to blend it up and save half for later. We did notice that the matcha flavor becomes more bitter as it sits: so you may want to stir in a bit of extra sweetener if desired.