Can You Put Ice Cubes In Milk?
If you are a fan of enjoying a glass of milk every now and then, but you don’t want your milk to warm up before you are done, you might be tempted to put some ice cubes in your milk.
Placing ice cubes in sodas and water is common to keep the liquid cool, but placing ice cubes in milk is not as commonplace.
Can you put ice cubes in milk? You can definitely place ice cubes in milk, especially when you want to cool the milk down and keep it cool on a hot day, but you do need to keep in mind that as the ice cubes melt, it will water down the milk and cause it to lose some flavor and creaminess.
So, if you are still undecided, read on to find out more about whether you should put ice cubes in your milk or not, and the other options you might have to keep your milk cold!
Does Putting Ice Cubes In Milk Change The Taste?
Placing ice cubes in milk is a great way to keep it cold if you drink the milk fast enough to not let the ice cubes melt.
There should be no change to the taste of the milk if the ice cubes don’t melt — the milk will still taste like milk, but cold.
However, the problem comes in when the ice cubes begin to melt and become watery in the milk.
As the ice cubes melt, they water down the milk — this doesn’t necessarily change the flavor of the milk, but it does dilute it quite a bit.
If it is full-cream milk, the ice cubes melting will make it taste more like low-fat milk, but if you add ice cubes to low-fat milk and they melt, then the milk will taste very diluted and water-like.
If you do not mind the milk being watered down by the ice cubes and becoming less creamy, then this should not be a problem.
However, if you want your milk to taste just like milk and not be diluted, then you should look for another option to keep your milk cool!
How To Keep Milk Cold While Drinking It
If using ice cubes in your milk, whether water ice cubes or milk ice cubes, doesn’t seem like the right fit for you, then here are some other ways that you can keep your milk cold while drinking it!
Keep Mugs In The Fridge
If you have some heavy glass or ceramic mugs, you can place these in the fridge to cool down for about an hour before you want to have some milk!
Now if you’re like us, you might not remember to put the mug in the fridge beforehand, or you might not want to wait an hour to drink your ice-cold milk.
In this scenario, it could be worth just keeping a mug (or two) in the fridge at all times and replacing it with a new mug when you use one.
Thicker glass or ceramic mugs will become very cold in the fridge, and if you pour cold milk into the mug, then it will help keep the milk colder for longer.
You can use thinner mugs if they are all you have, but they will not stay cool for as long as thicker mugs might.
Another option is to place a mug in the freezer for a few minutes before using it for milk!
Use Double-Walled Glasses
Double-walled, insulated glasses are perfect for keeping cold drinks cold, and this is true for milk as well. These are often sold as travel mugs, but you can find double-walled insulated mugs that are made for the kitchen.
Being double-walled, the outside temperature is kept away from the inside contents of the mug — this means the milk should not warm too quickly, and it should be kept cool until you are done drinking it.
Drink Smaller Portions
If you pour yourself a large glass of milk, it will take you longer to drink compared to a smaller glass, and the longer you leave the cool milk in the glass, the more it will warm up.
To avoid this, you can pour yourself smaller portions of milk at a time so that you can drink it before it warms up.
You can always go back and pour yourself another portion of delightfully cool milk, without it warming up between sips! However, it might not be worth the effort of having a few sips before having to go fill up your glass again.
Use An Ice Tube
There are some bottles that come with a built-in ice tube in the middle of the bottle. This ice tube is placed in the freezer to freeze and is placed back into the bottle along with your drink (which in this case is milk) to keep it cool.
As the ice tube will not add water to the milk as it melts, it does not dilute the milk at all, but it does keep it cool for a longer period of time — this way you can enjoy a larger portion of milk staying cooler for longer!
Can You Freeze Milk Into Ice Cubes?
A great way to avoid ice cubes watering down your milk is to make ice cubes made from milk! This way, when the ice cubes melt, they will only add to the milky flavor, and they will not dilute the flavor or taste at all.
The issue with this is that milk does not always freeze properly, and there is a chance that it might separate when frozen and thawed — plopping this into your fresh milk could lead to some change in texture as the ice cubes melt.
Milk with higher fat content, such as whole milk, tends to separate more when frozen and thawed, compared to milk with lower fat content.
However, you can freeze both types of milk, as long as you understand that there might be some separation.
Freezing milk in ice cube trays is really easy, and it’s a great way to keep a glass of milk cool while drinking it.
To do this, you simply have to pour your milk of choice into an ice cube tray and place this in the freezer.
Once the milk has frozen, you can remove the ice cubes from the tray, and then place them into a resealable freezer bag, squeezing the air out before sealing.
This way, you get small milk ice cubes that are separated and contained in one plastic bag, just waiting for you to remove as many as you want to pop into your glass of milk.
Can You Add Ice Cubes To Chocolate Milk?
You can add ice cubes to chocolate milk, just like you can add ice cubes to normal milk! However, as the ice cubes melt, they will water down the chocolate milk quite a bit, which might ruin the creamy, thick texture that chocolate milk has!
Keeping chocolate milk in the fridge does help to keep it cool, and placing ice cubes in cool chocolate milk means that the ice cubes will not melt as quickly, so you can enjoy cool chocolate milk without the ice cubes melting down too fast.
Final Thoughts
It is definitely possible to put ice cubes into milk to cool it down, but it really is a personal choice.
Ice cubes can help to keep milk cool and chilled as you sip away, but if the ice cubes start to melt, then they will water down the milk and dilute the flavor.
Another option you could use to avoid your milk becoming diluted is to freeze milk in ice cube trays and use these frozen milk cubes to keep milk chilled, and to avoid the milk from becoming watery.
However, milk can sometimes separate when frozen and thawed, so you might notice some separation when the milk ice cubes begin to melt.
There are various ways to keep milk chilled while drinking it, so read through all of the above to find out the method that suits you best, and the best way for you to enjoy chilled milk!
Related Questions
Now that we know all about the best ways to keep milk cold without diluting it, here are some additional questions we thought you might have.
Can I put ice cubes in hot milk?
You can put ice cubes in hot milk to try to cool it faster, but the ice cubes will melt quickly in the hot milk, which will dilute the milk and make it more watery.
To avoid this, you could instead place the hot milk in the fridge to cool down or add in some cold milk to lower the temperature a bit.
Can you pour a latte over some ice?
You can pour a latte over some ice, and this is a great way to make an iced latte. For warmer months, a cold latte can be so much more enjoyable than a warm latte.
Why do people put ice cubes in black coffee?
People put ice cubes in black coffee to cool down the coffee quicker, so they can drink it sooner.
Also, you can use whiskey stones or stainless steel cubes, which you put in the freezer for about 4 hrs.