# freezing things \[water + olive oil\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 10, 2009, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927 "2009-05-10T07:38:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![copperwindow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@copperwindow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/copperwindow)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/1 "2009-05-10T07:38:51Z")
What would happen if I put water in my ice cube trays and then put some drops of olive oil in them and put it in the freezer? ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/2 "2009-05-10T07:40:44Z")
Why don’t you try it and let us know? ---
**Author:** ![Amblydoper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@Amblydoper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amblydoper)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/3 "2009-05-10T08:25:50Z")
You would have ice cubes with a layer of olive oil on top of them. ---
**Author:** ![ivn1188](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e480ec/32.png) [@ivn1188](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivn1188)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/4 "2009-05-10T08:45:33Z")
A layer of gross congealed olive grease, actually. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/5 "2009-05-10T09:48:12Z")
> [@copperwindow](#): > > What would happen if I put water in my ice cube trays and then put some drops of olive oil in them and put it in the freezer? I’m not sure how this would liberate anything, but you could try… ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/6 "2009-05-10T10:01:36Z")
> [@copperwindow](#): > > What would happen if I put water in my ice cube trays and then put some drops of olive oil in them and put it in the freezer? What result might you be hoping to obtain? ---
**Author:** ![Myglaren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@Myglaren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myglaren)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/7 "2009-05-10T10:12:34Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > What result might you be hoping to obtain? Ultra-slick ice? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/8 "2009-05-10T16:25:20Z")
Edited thread title to fix spelling and clarify subject. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![copperwindow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@copperwindow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/copperwindow)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/9 "2009-05-10T18:23:19Z")
> [@ivn1188](#): > > A layer of gross congealed olive grease, actually. Would the oil freeze? ---
**Author:** ![HongKongFooey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c4cdca/32.png) [@HongKongFooey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HongKongFooey)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/10 "2009-05-10T18:28:15Z")
> [@copperwindow](#): > > Would the oil freeze? According to [this site](http://www.oliveoilsource.com/olivechemistry.htm): > [@](#): > > Freezing Point: Olive oil will harden at refrigerator temperatures - around 10 degrees F. Water is a pure substance so it freezes at an exact temperature. Olive oil is a complex mixture of oils and waxes. The heavier oils and waxes will form needle-like crystals as the temperature is lowered, then the other oils will start to settle out. Winterization is the commercial process whereby these waxes are removed to keep the oil clearer when stored on a cold shelf. It is used mostly for aesthetics and to improve mixing when combined into mayonnaise, sauces, and dressings.. Because olive oil is a natural product and different from year to year even from the same bottler, each batch of oil will “freeze” at a different temperature. There is no exact freezing temperature. Freezing olive oil will not harm it; it will actually prolong it’s nutritional benefits and its flavor. It is a myth that the freezing point of olive oil can be used to predict whether it is pure, virgin or extra virgin. I don’t know if that helps answer you’re question or not. ---
**Author:** ![ivn1188](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e480ec/32.png) [@ivn1188](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivn1188)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2009, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/11 "2009-05-10T20:24:27Z")
It freezes, but before freezing it will become a kind of opaque paste. It looks similar to lard. I regularly make sundried tomatoes and store them in olive oil, and then freeze. Containers in the fridge to thaw or for shorter term storage get a bit sludgy but turn back into normal looking and tasting olive oil when they warm up. ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/12 "2009-05-11T01:21:41Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > I’m not sure how this would liberate anything, but you could try… The original title of the thread, before colibri fixed it, was “freeing things.” **Gfactor** General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/13 "2009-05-11T04:25:28Z")
> [@Gfactor](#): > > The original title of the thread, before colibri fixed it, was “freeing things.” > > **Gfactor** > General Questions Moderator Thanks, **Gfactor**. It was kind of a stupid joke, but at least no one will be wondering what the damn hell I was talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Auntbeast](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Auntbeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Auntbeast)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/14 "2009-05-11T04:37:30Z")
I’ll volunteer to remain wondering what the damn hell you were talking about. I don’t mind. 🙂 \*I get it, I promise. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/15 "2009-05-11T14:32:42Z")
If the OP was wondering about whether freezing has any effect on the miscibility of oil and water, the answer is “no”. In fact when water freezes into ice, it rejects virtually any substance that was dissolved in the water, typically forming a mass of pure ice crystals intermixed with the foreign substance. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/16 "2009-05-11T14:45:53Z")
Oh, and if the OP was asking about whether the oil and water affect the freezing point of either (the way alcohol lowers the freezing point of water) the answer to that too is no. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/17 "2009-05-11T14:53:26Z")
An Iron Chef America episode repeated a few weeks ago had olive _brine_ ice cubes used to chill a martini. Sounded pretty yummy! Semi-frozen/frozen olive oil, not so much. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/18 "2009-05-11T19:20:30Z")
> [@](#): > > In fact when water freezes into ice, it rejects virtually any substance that was dissolved in the water, typically forming a mass of pure ice crystals intermixed with the foreign substance. In fact, that’s one of the easier methods for hardening alcoholic drinks. Leave a bucket of hard cider on your back porch overnight in winter, skim off the ice from the top in the morning, and you’re left with apple jack. ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2009, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/freezing-things-water-olive-oil/495927/19 "2009-05-11T20:26:53Z")
IME, olive oil (extra virgin) freezes to something similar to candle wax. It is something hard that keeps its shape but you can easily carve it with your fingernails. So you should end up with an ice cube with a top layer of this waxy frozen oil. I have wondered about this myself for the only reason that I thought it would be a solution to the problem of sublimating ice cubes that result in ice slivers at the bottom of the ice cube tray. It does, of course, create even bigger problems if you plan to use this ice cubes for a drink so it seems like this is a solution to a problem I have not yet found.