Post #800152 by AceExplorer on Sun, Jan 19, 2020 10:11 AM

This past summer I had two super-ripe watermelons which I knew I wasn't going to be able to use before they went bad. I ran them through my juicer and saved the juice in rectangular plastic freezer containers. Today came an opportunity to use some of the juice in a smoothie but first, the big rectangular chunks of frozen juice had to be broken down into more workable smaller sizes.

In the photo below I show a way to break blocks of juice apart quickly and easily. I use this technique for blocks of soft juices and for blocks of clear ice when I make crystal-clear cocktail ice cubes.

First a photo - then some helpful additional information.

The hand saw is from Dollar Tree where it literally cost $1. The same is true for the rubber mallet. These inexpensive items WORK VERY WELL and help me avoid using (and potentially damaging) other more expensive kitchen utensils. What if you damage the saw? Go get another for a buck. What if you damage the rubber mallet? Then you've done something really really crazy...

The "saw technique" is superior to using a serrated knife. I quickly abandoned the serrated knife method on my first attempt when I was learning to cut clear ice blocks. The saw is dual-purpose (score and cut), it is inexpensive, and I can beat on it with a mallet without any worries.

So how do I use these to cut solid blocks of clear ice? First I score the block by "sawing" a line up to 1/4 inch deep into the ice, then I use the mallet to tap the top of the saw as hard as I need to create a downward fracture. I get surprisingly straight cleavage which is awesome because good cleavage is something that I always appreciate!