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It’s no secret that we love ice cream. From Snickers Brownie Ice Cream Pie to our homemade Dulce De Leche Ice Cream, we’ve never met an ice cream recipe we don’t love! This goes for the pints of ice cream from the stores as well. When we don’t have the time (or energy) to whip up a delicious ice cream treat, it’s always nice to have a pint or two on hand from the grocery store. However, sometimes when we reopen our ice cream tubs, we find that layer of ice crystals. You know the one we’re talking about. Sure, we try to scrape around it, but wouldn’t it be nice to not have it there in the first place? The solution is easier than you might think!

The problem of the ice crystals comes from how you store your ice cream. When you take the tub out of the freezer, the top layer of ice cream gets soft and melty, thus causing crystals to form during the refreezing process. If you store your ice cream tubs like the picture above… you’re doing it wrong! It’s ok, we’ve been doing it wrong too. After all, this seems like the most logical way to store ice cream, right? Keep reading to find out the smarter way to store ice cream in order to avoid that layer of crystalized ice!

As odd as it may seem, when you put your ice cream back in the freezer, you should store it upside down! Yes, you read that right. Storing your ice cream upside down eliminates that top layer from freezing in your crystals. When you’re ready for more ice cream, simply turn the tub right side up and scoop away!

Another method of keeping ice cream fresh and crystal-free is to cut the tub down to the top layer of ice cream and cover it with plastic wrap before placing the lid on top. However, this method really only works if you get your ice cream in cardboard tubs.

Find out the science behind these methods in the video below!

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