This requires a little planning ahead to freeze the ice before we want to use this machine. Some machines recommend ice blocks for shaving, but we found that smaller, round blocks had the best results for us. After simply some trial and error testing, we found some cheap, round, plastic containers that are the perfect size.

You also need large frozen blocks of ice to shave. Things to know about a large commercial shaver: We’ve had ours for about 5 years and have used it lots and have had zero issues with it. It’s the Great Northern Commercial Ice Shaver and at under $250 and almost 300 nearly 5-star reviews, it’s a good buy for a commercial-level machine. There are some super nice, and incredibly expensive options available that will run into the thousands of dollars! We bought one on the lower end of the nice commercial ones and have been really happy with it. Great Northern Commercial Shaver: Great for large crowds and high quantities. Little Snowie: Hands down, the best small counter machine for every day use.Ģ. I’ll tell you about both of these and why we like each one.ġ. We’ve had some little starter machines over the years but we’ve settled on couple great ones that we’ve had for several years now and are working great. Yes, you can make a pretty darn good shave ice at home. Let’s review: Creamy ice cream, fluffy snow, fruity syrup, sweet milk. Sounds weird if you’ve never had it, but if you have had it, you know what I’m talking about. On the islands you’ll often find tropical flavors like macadamia nut, coconut, and pineapple ice cream, along with the standard vanilla. The crowning glory comes from a drizzle of sweetened condensed milk poured over the top, commonly known as a “snow cap” and you can include a scoop of ice cream on the bottom if you wish (and I always wish). (The photo above is from the famed Matsumotos on Oahu) They pile up scoops of cool, frosty snow and pour flavored syrups over the top. If you’ve ever been to Hawaii, Shave ice stands are everywhere.

It actually absorbs and suspends the flavored syrups instead of them running straight to the bottom as a typical snow cone would.

For starters, if you want to sound legit- say “Shave Ice” and not “Shav ed Ice!” The difference between a snow cone and shave ice is that snow cones are finely crushed ice and shave ice is shaved across a sharp blade creating a smooth, melt-in-your mouth velvety snow kind of texture. But let’s talk about authentic Shave Ice. I’ve learned over the course of almost 10 years to never, ever claim to make anything “authentic” to a certain culture, or the internet will freak out on you.

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