Nothing is simpler than an ube smoothie for starting the day well: a few minutes, a blender, a spoonful of purple powder, and you have a drink with a spectacular colour and a delicate taste. Ube brings a vanilla sweetness that goes with almost any fruit, and its natural colour visually transforms any ordinary bowl. At Ubedia, our powder comes from the Kinampay variety grown in the Visayas, in the Philippines, a tuber with a subtle aroma that never overpowers the other flavours but gives your preparations a magnificent purple. In this article we share 5 ube smoothie recipes that are tried and tested, indulgent and easy to make. Balanced versions for the morning, richer recipes for the afternoon, and a plant-based smoothie bowl for weekends. All of them can be made in under ten minutes.
The ingredient for this recipe: Natural Ube Powder 200 g — 16.90 € (≈50 drinks), 100% Kinampay purple yam, no additives and no added sugar, packed in Aix-en-Provence and shipped within 72 h.
The basics of the ube smoothie
Before the recipes, a few simple principles. A good ube smoothie rests on three elements:
- A liquid base: plant milk (oat, almond, coconut), cow's milk, kefir or drinking yoghurt.
- A creamy ingredient: frozen banana, avocado, Greek yoghurt or fromage blanc for a silky texture.
- Ube powder: about one teaspoon per 300 ml of preparation, one tablespoon for a thick smoothie bowl.
You can add fruit, seeds and a little honey as you please.
Recipe 1: the classic ube banana smoothie
This is our signature recipe, the one that pleases everyone. For 1 large glass (300 ml):
- 1 very ripe banana (ideally frozen)
- 250 ml oat or almond milk
- 1 teaspoon of natural ube powder
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
- Optional: 1 tablespoon chia seeds
Blend everything together for 30 seconds until smooth. Serve immediately.
Recipe 2: the tropical ube mango smoothie
An exotic break with two stars of the tropics. For 1 large glass:
- 150 g frozen mango chunks
- 1/2 frozen banana
- 200 ml coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon of mango ube powder (or natural if you would rather let the fresh mango do the talking)
- 1 teaspoon honey
- The juice of half a lime
Blend until thick and creamy. This smoothie has a lovely graded mauve shade. Drink it or serve it as a bowl.
Recipe 3: the creamy ube coconut smoothie
Wonderfully indulgent, ideal as an afternoon treat or a liquid dessert. For 1 large glass:
- 1 frozen banana
- 200 ml coconut milk (tinned)
- 2 tablespoons coconut yoghurt
- 1 teaspoon of coconut ube powder
- 1 teaspoon agave syrup
- Coconut flakes to decorate
Blend, pour, decorate with the coconut flakes. This recipe gives the true sensation of an Asian dessert.
Recipe 4: the antioxidant ube red berry smoothie
Ideal for an athlete's breakfast or after a training session. For 1 large glass:
- 100 g frozen mixed red berries (blueberries, raspberries, strawberries)
- 1/2 banana
- 250 ml plant milk or kefir
- 1 teaspoon natural ube powder
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1 teaspoon honey
Blend. The final colour is a very dark purple, almost crimson, rich in anthocyanins.
Recipe 5: the plant-based ube smoothie bowl
Thick, to be eaten with a spoon, with toppings. For 1 bowl (350 g):
- 1 frozen banana in slices
- 50 g avocado (about 1/4 of an avocado)
- 100 g frozen mango
- 100 ml plant milk (less than for a liquid smoothie)
- 1 tablespoon natural ube powder
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
Blend gradually, adding the milk in small amounts: the mixture should stay very thick, almost like soft-serve ice cream. Pour it into a bowl and decorate with banana slices, blueberries, coconut flakes, granola and a few seeds. An almost indecent breakfast.
Tips for a successful ube smoothie
A few useful tricks:
- Freeze your bananas. They replace ice cubes and give a silky texture without diluting the smoothie.
- Add the ube powder last. It blends in better once the liquid is already moving in the blender.
- Adjust the texture. Too thick? Add milk. Too thin? Add fromage blanc, a frozen banana or a spoonful of oats.
- Use a powerful blender. For very thick smoothie bowls, a high-end blender makes the difference.
- Do not blend for too long. 30 to 45 seconds is enough. Beyond that, the mixture warms up and turns frothy.
Topping ideas for a smoothie bowl
For your purple smoothie bowls, here are the best decorating options:
- Coconut flakes
- Banana and kiwi slices
- Fresh red berries
- Homemade granola
- Chia, pumpkin or sunflower seeds
- A drizzle of peanut or almond butter
- A light extra dusting of ube powder
Can you make an ube smoothie the day before?
Ideally, a smoothie is drunk fresh. But if you are short of time, make it the day before in an airtight bottle and shake it before drinking. The colour stays acceptable for 24 hours in the fridge. Avoid leaving it at room temperature for more than two hours.
Can you compare ube and açai in a smoothie?
Yes, these are the two purple powders most used for smoothie bowls. Ube is gentler and more vanilla-like, açai is tarter and more intense. Some people combine them for a spectacular effect. Discover our full ube vs açai comparison.
Where can you buy ube powder?
For genuinely purple smoothies, you need a concentrated, pure powder. At Ubedia, our powder comes from the Kinampay variety grown in the Visayas, in the Philippines, with no additives. Discover our mango ube powder 100 g for tropical smoothies or our natural powder 100 g for every recipe. Want to discover all the flavours? Head to our shop. To carry on with another recipe, try our ube pancakes recipe.
Going further
Explore all our ube recipes. Follow up with the ube latte or the ube cake. To multiply the purple bowls, the 200 g ube powder is ideal.
