Non crushed ice

I have searched but I can't find this in any older posts so I apologize if this has been answered before: Are there any traditional Tiki drinks that aren't served over crushed ice? Better yet, are there any traditional Tiki drinks where it's ok to not use crushed ice?

I sometimes backyard bar tend for my friends and I'd like to maybe speed up without sacrificing too much in tradition or quality. I don't have an ice crusher so I usually just crush it one drink at a time. Thanks

I can't think of any but it's easy enough to get an electric ice crusher (I recommend the Oster Sno Flake which you could usually find in vintage stores or online for $20-30). When I have gatherings of 8 or more people I spend a few minutes crushing a bunch before the guests arrive and keep it in an ice bucket or two so it's at the ready for a couple hours anyway. Go back in and repeat if necessary.

It might depend on how you want to define traditional. Run through The Grog Log, Beachbum Berry Remixed, and other Jeff Berry books and you'll find some. Blackbeard's Ghost, Bum Barrel, Chief Lapu Lapu, Cuba Kula to name a few...they're out there. :)

kevin

Mai-Kai Barrel-O-Rum uses cubes. Official recipe is in Taboo Table.

Thanks guys

In the end, I don't think crushed ice is mandatory - it's more of a preference for the particular chill and appearance of your drink. Your mai tai will still taste like a mai tai as well the rest of your drinks.

On 2015-05-19 20:57, kkocka wrote:
In the end, I don't think crushed ice is mandatory - it's more of a preference for the particular chill and appearance of your drink. Your mai tai will still taste like a mai tai as well the rest of your drinks.

For a casual backyard luau type affair it's probably not going to make a huge difference, but the main difference with different styles of ice is dilution and that is important for a recipe's balance. A 5 second blend with 1/2 cup of crushed ice will dilute differently than a shake with full ice cubes (to say nothing of dropping a big cube in a rum old-fashioned).

I'm certainly not saying don't experiment, but one may want to tweak the recipe if the goal is to try and really emulate a given recipe.

kevin

I have to agree. The 'water' element in the classic balance of the tiki drink can't be underestimated. The type of ice you use & the way you incorporate it will definitely affect the flavor of your drinks.

On 2015-05-20 03:22, happy buddha wrote:
I have to agree. The 'water' element in the classic balance of the tiki drink can't be underestimated. The type of ice you use & the way you incorporate it will definitely affect the flavor of your drinks.

Absolutely!

Big yes - ice size (cubes vs crushed) makes a difference.

Another point to consider - drinking your cocktail too slowly also has an impact on flavor due to dilution by the ice water whether it is crushed or cubed.

Conclusion? Drink up, drink fast! :drink:

Grinding ice by hand always wore me down especially when friends stopped by. Then I found out I can buy crushed ice by the bagful from my local Sonic for a couple of bucks, and that's now my regular "go to". It's good ice too!

I have a vintage hand-crank crusher I used to use at home when making drinks for 1 or 2 people, but then I found these. These little 1/2" cubes are now my go-to choice when a drink calls for crushed ice. I keep a container full in the freezer at all times and always have two more trays full ready to go in case the container gets emptied. The cubes are roughly the same size as the chunks I would get using the "course" setting on my hand crusher, so they dilute at about the same rate and work great in a shaker.

http://www.amazon.com/Cubette-Mini-Cube-Trays-White/dp/B00JG3OO5E/ref=sr_1_15?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1432142924&sr=1-15&keywords=ice+tray

Jen, I found one of those at a thrift store many years ago and tried it. The only downside was the cubes were hard to remove, but otherwise absolutely yes it made great ice. I have since lost that try, and haven't seen them for sale that I can remember. Maybe they make (or will make) them in silicone some day?

That's a very good option, Jen - a friend of mine does that, though on nites he makes drinks they always tend to disappear rather quickly given the needed quantity. Honestly when it came to crushed ice, I looked at my fridge and decided it was time to upgrade to something that could dispense crushed ice. :D

I should have Googled first, then posted... I searched "small ice cube tray" and found a number of varieties in plastic, and also that they are available from at least one seller on eBay in silicone. Awesomeness!

On 2015-05-20 10:44, AceExplorer wrote:
Jen, I found one of those at a thrift store many years ago and tried it. The only downside was the cubes were hard to remove, but otherwise absolutely yes it made great ice. I have since lost that try, and haven't seen them for sale that I can remember. Maybe they make (or will make) them in silicone some day?

I happened upon them in my neighborhood mom & pop hardware store. I don't have any problem removing them. I just hold the whole tray upside down over a container larger than the tray and give it a good hard twist or two. They usually pop right out!

On 2015-05-20 10:48, JenTiki wrote:
...I just hold the whole tray upside down over a container larger than the tray and give it a good hard twist or two. They usually pop right out!

My tray wasn't that easy, maybe that's why I found it in a thrift store! heheheh... Thanks for the info.

I also have a couple of these that make a small "bullet" shape. They're smaller than regular cubes, but a bit larger than the 1/2" cubettes. They're great if you want quick chilling, but slightly slower dilution.

On 2015-05-20 10:47, AceExplorer wrote:
I should have Googled first, then posted... I searched "small ice cube tray" and found a number of varieties in plastic, and also that they are available from at least one seller on eBay in silicone. Awesomeness!

Yep! Here's a silicone version on eBay that has 70 more cubes than the ones I posted before. Also, it says the cubes are only 1 cm, which is a little bit smaller than 1/2", so this should get you closer to crushed ice.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/160-Ice-Cubes-Frozen-Mini-Cube-Silicone-Ice-Tray-100-Food-Grade-Silicone-Blue-/141651317296

I might have to pick up a couple of those, along with one of these for good measure. My local tiki bar freezes blue lemonade in these and puts them on top of the other ice in glasses of water. :)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Easter-Island-Moai-Stone-Statues-Ice-Tray-Ice-Cubes-DIY-Mould-Pudding-Jelly-Mold-/131472794241?

Great tips thank you. I confirmed with my local Sonic that I can buy ice from them. I'm going to try it out Friday night and let you know how it works.

Ok, so I couldn't wait until Friday. Went to Sonic this afternoon and a bought a 10lb bag of their ice for $2.59. Came home and made Mai Tais. The ice was excellent. Perfect shape and didn't melt fast in the drink but melts very nice in your mouth. They said you can buy as much as you want. Drive-up, drive-thru or go inside doesn't matter. I highly recommend it for any crushed ice tiki drink recipes.