The Cool Hack For Keeping Popsicles Melt-Free (Even At The Beach)
There are a lot of dos and don'ts when it comes to packing the perfect picnic foods, and a lot of it comes down to keeping the food cold. Nothing's worse than getting all the way to the park or the beach and realizing that your macaroni salad or sandwich with mayonnaise has gotten gross and greasy. Cold food technology has come a long way, however. These days, if you've got the right gear, you can take almost anything on the road to your next outdoor adventure, even popsicles. If you have one of the newer insulated mugs like, those from Yeti, Corksicle, Hydro Flask and others, with just a handful of ice, you can pack a stack of popsicles to go and be a picnic hero.
Once you know how to take popsicles to go, you'll always have the perfect treat for a hot day at the beach. Plus, you'll save money if the ice cream truck stops by with tempting treats. A clever TikTok hack shows that all you need to keep your popsicles cold is to choose the right popsicle shape, make sure that they can fit inside a wide-mouth insulated mug with the top on, and then pack them up with some ice.
Use a wide-mouth insulated mug
If you want to show up to the barbecue with popsicles in tow, the most important tool you need is an insulated travel mug with a wide mouth. There's a lot of competition amongst mug makers these days, but any high-density insulated mug will do. Pick one of the wider, jumbo-sized models, which will allow you to get at least four or five popsicles inside of it (make sure they're single, not double pops). It should also be tall enough so that you can fit the popsicles inside with some extra room on the top and bottom for ice.
Scoop a few cubes of ice into the bottom of the mug, then pack the mug nice and tight with popsicles. The tighter you pack them, the colder they'll be since there will be less air inside the mug. Fill the cup with more ice and put the lid on top. This TikTok shows how to do it:
@kellie_atkinson Packing some popsicles for our day at the pool ☀️👙 #poolday #popsicle #momhack #momhacks #momlife #asmr #beachbag
If you know you'll be packing for the beach later, it helps to pop the mug in the freezer for an hour or so to really get it chilled. If you don't remember to do that, though, the hack will still work; your popsicles just won't stay as cold as long.
Pack more than popsicles
Once you start looking at your travel mug as a bit of a mini cooler, you'll notice that there are a lot more foods you can pack for a picnic without the bulk of a cooler. For example, some mugs are tall enough to pack a whole handful of Fla-Vor-Ice pops, which are super inexpensive and can make a whole crowd of kids happy even when the expensive ice cream truck calls from the edge of the park.
Some of the bigger, wider insulated mugs are also the right size for a pint of premium ice cream. Just be sure to freeze your mug first and pack it with a lot of ice because ice cream is made with dairy and melts a little faster than popsicles, which are made with sugar water. Pack a pint for a picnic, or bring an empty mug with you to the grocery store and stash your sweet stuff in the mug when you get out to the car so that it doesn't melt on the way home.
Travel mugs are also great for savory foods that need to stay cold, like shrimp cocktails. Just pack the cooked shrimp in a mug with layers of ice, and put a small container of cocktail sauce on top. And speaking of cocktails, a mug is the perfect size for bringing just enough ice for two cocktails — the exact amount for toasting a perfect beach day.