Introduction: 15 Minute Homemade Dry Ice Root Beer

By tomatoskins
About: My name is Troy. I'm a Mechatronics and Aerospace Engineer. I make things out of wood and electronics and spend time outdoors (especially SCUBA diving).

Root Beer has been a favorite of mine for as long as I can remember. Growing up it was either a can of Barq's, a bottle of IBC, or a frosted mug of A&W. Of all those tasty commercially available options for root beer, nothing can quite measure up to the wonderful taste of a freshly brewed batch of Homemade Dry Ice Root Beer.

Step 1: Ingredients

Ingredients:

  • 5 Gallons Water
  • 2 fl oz Bottle Root Beer Extract
  • 5 lbs Granulated Sugar
  • About 8 lbs Dry Ice

If 5 gallons of root beer is too much, you can scale down the recipe:

  • 1 Gallon Water
  • 2 1/2 tsp Root Beer Extract
  • 1 lb Granulated Sugar
  • 3-4 lbs Dry Ice

Materials:

  • 5 Gallon Bucket/Beverage Cooler
  • Cake pan that fits the bottom of the beverage cooler (place upside down to keep the dry ice from freezing and breaking the bottom of the cooler)
  • 1 inch diameter dowel to stir root beer

Step 2: Combine

Place the cake pan in the bottom of the cooler. Leaving about 3 to 4 inches at the top, fill with water (the dry ice will cause it to spill over the edge a little). Pour in 5 lbs sugar and the whole bottle of root beer extract. Stir mixture.

Step 3: Mix and Wait

Break up the dry ice into smaller pieces with a hammer. Using gloves to handle the dry ice, stir it into the mixture. After 15 to 20 minutes (stirring occasionally) the root beer will be carbonated just right!

The more dry ice you add will cause more slush to form. The slush is very tasty however be careful to make sure that there isn't any dry ice in the middle. Consuming dry ice will cause severe internal frostbite!

I hope that this simple and quick recipe will bring as much joy into your life as it has mine!