If you’ve been exploring Pinterest or hanging out on Facebook, you’ve likely seen people putting everything from salads to smoothies in Mason jars.
While cute, Mason jars are also extremely practical, especially for carrying around your smoothies and juices. So, if you’ve joined the health revolution of juicing and green smoothies or are looking to start, now is the time!
When you’re immersed in the world of healthy smoothie recipes and eating well, the container in which you put your drink is not always at the forefront of your mind. But, it should be. You see, the quality of container can impact the quality of your juice.
A Quick Comparison of Mason Jars
Last update on 2024-11-02 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
What are Mason Jars?
Mason jars are canning jars that were first made and produced in the 1800s and early 1900s. They’re characterized by a threaded lid with a rubber ring for sealing, and they’re still very popular today.
Mason jars come in all sizes nowadays — from half-pint to half-gallon — and we use mason jars for all sorts of things, including smoothies and juices. But not all mason jars are created equal.
Cuppow’s Mason Jars website (a leader in curating the right mason jars for different needs) states that typical mason jars have “a very thin, weak polyethylene coating” that can break down or melt when exposed to high heat. So if you’re using the appropriate temperature to kill harmful bacteria, you’re also killing the beneficial probiotic bacteria that your body needs. Cuppow states that they tested glass jars of various thicknesses and found that a thicker jar was “best for hot-holding or microwaving.”
Mason jars are great for storage because their wide mouth makes them easy to fill and clean. Plus, they come in many sizes and shapes, which makes them easy to stack. That said, not all mason jars are appropriate for food storage; some aren’t safe for the dishwasher or microwave.
Got some leftover juice pulp? It’s got so much nutritional value. Don’t toss it.
Instead, check out what you can do with it instead of trashing it.
Why Mason Jars?
Perhaps you’re wondering why Mason jars are good option or why using a Mason jar is somehow better than throwing your drink into what you already have and saving money.
Chemicals
One of the key reasons Mason jars are a good option is because glass is toxin free. BPA or bisphenol A is found in many plastics and it has been linked to some pretty serious health disorders including various forms of cancer.
In addition to that the BPA has been known to mimic the hormone estrogen which small children can be especially sensitive to. Even adults can have issues with weight gain and hormone imbalances.
Even BPA-free plastics have some pretty bad chemicals in them that can leach into your food. In fact, many companies that use the BPA-free label have replaced the BPA for other chemicals that act in much the same way.
This means that your food, or in this case smoothies, could still have a high chemical content that is effecting your health.
In addition to BPA, many plastics have Phthalates. Phthalates are used to make plastics flexible and are used so frequently that they can be difficult, if not impossible to avoid.
However they can cause many reproductive health issues, including stunting the growth of the testis in little boys. In addition to this, they cause damage to the lungs, kidneys, liver and impair the immune system.
Money
If health reasons aren’t enough, Mason jars are also a fairly cheap option for preparing smoothies or juices in bulk.
One of the cheapest ways to prepare smoothies and juices, is to buy the produce in bulk and prepare ahead of time.
Food saving containers can be fairly expensive, especially if you need to find containers that allow you to freeze and thaw them.
Since freezing saves most of the nutrients in food, one of the most time and money saving options with juices and smoothies is to find recipes that you can prep ahead of time.
Mason jars can be frozen and thawed with ease and they are extremely durable as far as glass containers go. In fact, at the end of the day, your Mason jar is sturdy enough you can simply pop it into the dishwasher for easy clean up.
Going Green
A lot of people have talked about the all different ways and benefits of going green. Some of those eco-friendly tips seem a little unrealistic in application to a normal family.
Using Reusable glass containers however, really is one of the ways you can do your part and keep plastic out of landfills. Remember that plastics can take up to 1000 years to biodegrade and the chemicals in the plastics end up in the soil, which ultimately ends up in our food and water supply.
Mason Jar Sizes: What size mason jar for smoothies?
Now that you’re sold on using Mason jars, you’ll need to pick out the right sizes for you and your family.
Mason jars come in a variety of sizes. The most common sizes are pint (16 ounces) and quart (32 ounces) jars. You can also easily get them in 8 ounces and 12 ounces. Which is perfect for kids, or if you’re making a potent juice shot that you don’t need a large far for.
It’s also possible to find sizes clear up to a gallon and a half or even weird in-between sizes like 10 ounces. These options are a little harder to find, but if you specifically need a certain size. They’re definitely out there.
Let’s Talk About The Mouth
In addition the general size of the jar, you also will need to decide if you want a regular mouth or a wide mouth on your jar. The wide mouth jars have an opening the same width as the rest of the jar whereas the regular mouth jars have a smaller opening. There aren’t specific benefits with either, it just comes down to preference.
The major advantage of a wide mouth jar is that is slightly easier to clean. While it’s possible to find wide mouth jars of any size, 8 ounce and 12 ounce jars are most commonly sold with the regular sized mouth. 16 ounce and 32 ounce jars are readily available in both regular and wide mouth.
I’m sure you’ve deducted by now, that there are a ton of options available for Mason jars, so if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed I’ve included a quick comparison to help you see the primary jar types.
Verdict
The winner for us is the pint sized wide mouth jar because it’s the perfect size to take to work and have for lunch!
As you can see, using mason jars for juices and smoothies is the way to go! Mason jars provide you with a variety of size options, are cheaper than other food storage option, and the best option for your health.
We’ve shown you many of the benefits of using Mason jars, so now you can go out and shop confidently knowing the best options for storing juices and smoothies.