The Kitchen Hack That'll Keep Ice Cream Cold When You're Traveling

You are on your way to a gathering where there will be an array of homemade sweet treats like the iconic American staple apple pie and delicious spice cake. But before you head over, you are asked to bring a tub of vanilla ice cream. How do you do so without arriving with a container of melted ice cream soup? This can be a problem, especially if you are traveling in the winter season with the heat on high. Or even worse, the scenario could be happening during summer, when everybody is relying on you for a cooldown snack. No need to fear, there is a foolproof way to transport ice cream without worrying about it melting at a high rate. To do so, all you need is some bubble wrap.

Now, it is understandable that not many people have bubble wrap lying around their homes. They likely toss out their bubble wrap after one use as it is not regularly needed. With this hack in mind, you can start saving your bubble wrap from your deliveries or even go to a local office supply store and buy a roll for safe keeping. Bubble wrap can last for a few years, as long as you resist popping all the bubbles. When it comes to transporting the ice cream, wrap the ice cream container in bubble wrap for a quick fix. The bubble wrap will work as an insulator to keep the cold air from escaping and reduce heat flow.

Why does bubble wrap work for transporting ice cream? It is quite simple. Bubble wrap is made of air-filled pockets that are typically used as a cushion to transport fragile objects. However, the pockets also work as an insulator that prevents heat from leaving or entering an area. That means it can also be used to maintain the temperature of warm food during transportation. When it comes to ice cream, for a short commute, you can simply wrap the bubble wrap around the ice cream container and continue on your journey. This will keep it cool for a few hours. But for a longer drive, or a commute to somewhere without a freezer, you can place the bubble-wrapped ice cream in a cooler with ice for extra protection.

Bubble wrap can also be used to transport fragile food items like cookies in a way that prevents them from breaking during a winding or bumpy ride — or to send them in packages via the mail. Chowhound previously spoke to Milk Bar founder Christina Tosi about packing baked foods for transit, during which she said to "Always use an airtight container" and "make sure your box is well padded on the inside — I buy a giant roll of bubble wrap, use cling wrap like crazy and always do the 'shake test.' There should be no noise in the box in order to pass!" With this in mind, bubble wrap should be on everybody's list.