Make Ice Cubes with an Ice Tray

Despite being old fashioned, ice cube trays are a low-cost alternative to expensive ice cube makers and bagged ice. Making ice with them is easy too, and you can get the best tasting and looking ice once you learn the right way to use them. But the best thing about using a tray to make your own ice is that you can experiment with different liquids other than water to keep all of your drinks cold without watering them down.

Steps

Filling the Ice Cube Tray

  1. Choose the right tray. Ice cube trays are available in several different materials, including plastic, silicone, and stainless steel. Choose the material that best fits your needs. You can also find trays that make cubes in a variety of shapes. A cube shape is obviously the classic option, but you may prefer a tray that makes heart, star, fish, or other novelty-shaped cubes for a party or special occasion.[1]
    • Plastic ice cube trays are usually the most inexpensive. However, they can have a tendency to crack when you remove the ice and may absorb scents from the freezer that affect the finished ice.
    • Silicone ice cube trays are durable and fairly easy to remove the cubes from. However, they usually absorb the most smells and flavors, which can lead to ill-smelling and tasting ice.
    • Stainless steel ice cube trays are usually the most durable, and they don’t absorb scents and flavors like plastic and silicone do. However, they’re usually the most costly trays.
    • However contrary to popular belief science has proven that a quality home-made wooden ice tray leads to superior ice cubes.
  2. Wash the tray thoroughly. Even if your ice cube tray is brand new, it’s a good idea to wash it before you fill it. If it is a new tray, rinse it in a hot water and dry thoroughly with a clean towel. If it’s an old tray, you should use hot water and dish detergent to wash it in order to remove any ice or food residue from the freezer.[2]
    • To ensure the best tasting and smelling ice, you may want to deodorize an old ice tray. Mix 2 teaspoons (10 g) of baking soda with ½ cup (120 ml) of warm water, and pour the solution into the tray. Scrub all of the compartments with a clean cloth and the solution, and rinse the tray with warm water.
  3. Fill the tray with water. Once the tray is washed and dried, fill it with water. Try to pour the same amount of water into each compartment so the cubes will all freeze in the same amount of time.[1]
    • You can fill the tray with tap water from the faucet, but the impurities in the water can sometimes lead to poor tasting ice. They can also make finished ice cubes have a cloudy appearance.
    • Filtered or bottled water typically produces better tasting ice cubes than tap water.
    • Even if you use filtered or bottled water, your ice cubes may wind up looking cloudy. If you want crystal clear ice, it helps to boil the water first. Allow the water to cool, and then bring it to a boil a second time. Fill the tray with the water.
    • Filling your ice tray with hot water can also help the cubes freeze faster. That may seem strange, but there’s actually a scientific principle behind it known as the Mpemba effect.

Freezing the Ice Cubes

  1. Place the tray on a flat surface in the freezer. When the ice cube tray is filled, it’s time to put it in the freezer. Many freezers have an area that’s meant to hold ice cube trays, but if yours doesn’t, find a spot where the tray can sit on a flat surface to allow the cubes to freeze evenly.[1]
    • The back of the freezer tends to be the coldest, so try to place the tray as far back as you can.
  2. Allow the ice to freeze for several hours. In order for the water to freeze into solid cubes, you’ll need to leave the tray in the freezer for approximately six hours. For best results, however, leave the tray in the freezer overnight.[1]
    • The amount of time that it takes the cubes to freeze depends on several factors, such as how crowded your freezer is and how much you filled the individual compartments in the tray.
  3. Remove the cubes from the tray for storage. When the ice cubes have frozen solid in the tray, you should remove them. Storing them in the tray exposes them to the scents and tastes in your freezer, which can lead to poor tasting ice. Pop the cubes out of the tray, and store them in an airtight freezer bag or plastic container.[1]
    • Some ice cube trays come with a cover. If yours had a lid, you can store the cubes in the tray.
    • You shouldn’t leave ice cubes in the freezer for more than a week even if they’re in an airtight container. Make a fresh batch if your ice is old.

Making Other Types of Ice

  1. Fill the tray with fruit juice. If you don’t want the ice cubes to water down your lemonade, iced tea, soda, or other sweet drinks, you may want to replace the water in your ice cube tray. Fill the tray with your favorite fruit juice to make flavorful ice that won’t dilute your drinks.[3]
  2. Freeze coffee in the tray. If you enjoy iced coffee drinks, you probably aren’t a fan of how the ice can water down the drink. Instead of using traditional ice cubes, fill your tray with coffee to ensure that the last sip of your coffee is as delicious as the first.[3]
    • To avoid wasting coffee, use the leftover amount in your morning pot to make the ice cubes.
  3. Add herbs or fruit to the water in the tray. If you want decorative ice cubes for a party or other special event, try suspending fruit, herbs, or edible flowers in your cubes. Add water to the tray to fill the compartments halfway, and freeze them for 20 to 30 minutes. Add the fruit, herbs leaves, or flowers of your choice, and fill the compartments the rest of the way with water before freezing fully.[4]
    • Fruits that work well for decorative cubes include raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries, watermelon.
    • Herbs such as basil and mint are ideal for “fillings” for ice cubes.

Tips

  • If you have trouble getting the cubes out of the tray, run warm water over the top or bottom of the tray until the cubes crackle or loosen.
  • If you don't have an ice cube tray, improvise. For example, use a small cup, a measuring spoon, a silicone cake or chocolate mold, etc.
  • If you are serving a lot of carbonated/aerated water (cola, orangeade etc) at a party, and can't chill so many bottles, make ice-cubes from some of the same drink in advance. Then add these to glasses of the drink while serving so you have cold drinks without the watered-down taste of plain water ice.

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Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 http://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/your-smelly-ice-cubes-are-grossing-me-out-article
  2. ↑ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/21/do-you-need-to-clean-your-ice-cube-tray_n_1613324.html
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://www.today.com/food/no-more-watered-down-drinks-make-these-flavored-ice-cubes-2D79731405
  4. ↑ http://www.raisinandfig.com/flavored-ice-cubes/
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