Canned Lychee Belongs In Your Smoothies

Smoothies appeal to nearly everyone, and making smoothies at home offers a format to experiment with unique and unexpected flavors, like canned lychee. The tropical lychee fruit, produced primarily in China, India, and other parts of Southeast Asia, is readily available to consumers when packed in its sweet syrup. This canned alternative will deliver a delicious — and accessible — add-in to your next smoothie.

While fresh lychee has a naturally juicy and grape-like flavor, the sugar added to lychee during the canning process enhances its overall sweetness. The floral taste of the canned lychee also pairs nicely with other tropical fruits, as well as with fresh flavors like spinach and mint. This makes for a sweet and tasty addition to any type of smoothie. For those who add protein powder to their smoothies for health benefits but struggle with the taste of the powder, canned lychee can serve as your antidote. The canned fruit's sweetness may mask the protein powder's taste making your smoothie both beneficial and enjoyable.

Beyond their sweet profile, lychees also deliver some health benefits that provide an additional reason to add canned lychee to your smoothies. The lychee fruit is full of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, including vitamin C, copper, and potassium. Thanks to rutin and epicatechin, compounds called flavanols found in both fresh and canned lychee, the fruit has also been shown to help protect against certain chronic diseases and even cancer. By consuming canned lychees, you can tap into all the health benefits without the worry of unripe or raw lychees, which can induce low blood sugar or hypoglycemia.

Canned lychee may quickly become the hero ingredient in your next breakfast, dessert, or all-day smoothie. Luckily, there is no shortage of canned options, and unlike the short ripeness window of fresh lychee, the cans will stay preserved in your pantry. While canned lychee is available at most Asian groceries or in a supermarket's international grocery section, it can also be purchased online from Amazon, Walmart, and other major retailers for easy delivery.

The next time you're craving something sweet and creamy, let canned lychee be your smoothie inspiration.