I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream. There is no limitation of age, gender, or location of people to like ice cream. That is the reason why ice cream is one of the most popular frozen desserts in the world. It is due to the love for ice cream that we attempt to make it at our homes. But we usually fail to make it like a commercial one. Making ice cream is not easy to make like any other dish, that is why homemade icecreams usually have some problems. The most common problem with homemade ice cream is that it is usually too hard. You may think you may need a commercial ice cream maker to make the perfect ice cream, but you can also make it better by avoiding the mistakes you make during its preparation. Let’s find the key reason why homemade icecreams are hard and how can you make them softer.
Hard and Icy homemade ice cream- what is the reason?
The main reason for hard and icy ice cream is ice crystallization. The ice crystallization happens either due to excessive water in the mixture or long freezing time. You must bear in mind that the faster an ice cream mixture freezes, the more creamy it will become. The small ice crystals on the walls of the freezer grow big and large when you let the ice cream slowly freeze. Slowly mixing or churning the mixture can grow the ice crystals and make the ice cream hard rather than soft.
The hard texture of ice cream can also occur due to the amount and type of sugar you use for the mixture. Though sugar adds sweetness to the ice cream, it also impacts the texture and consistency of the ice cream. Also, sugar has the ability to depress the freezing point of the ice cream so that the ice cream does not freeze rock solid. It means that a small amount of sugar makes the ice cream hard and too much makes it extra soft. As a result, if you add a small amount of sugar or any other sweetener, the ice cream will become hard.
Thirdly, you may have seen some recipes that direct you to add a bit of alcohol to the ice cream mixture. The addition of hard alcohol like whiskey, tequila, and vodka can make ice cream soft. The alcohol depresses the freezing point of water in the ice cream mixture and helps in softening the ice cream. If you add a little alcohol and let it freeze for a longer time, your ice cream will turn out hard and solid.
How do you make homemade Ice-cream softer?
The basic way of avoiding hard ice cream and making it softer is shortening the freezing time. Remember: Fast mixing/churning leads to instant freezing, and instant freezing means smoother ice cream.
But the ingredients that you can use to make the ice cream texture soft and smooth are:
Sugar:
As stated above, sugar is responsible for softening and hardening the texture of ice cream. You must add a reasonable amount of sugar that does not either harden or soften your ice cream.
Alcohol:
Alcohol is another remedy for solving the issue of hard ice cream. Since it can depress the freezing point of the water present in the ice cream, it helps in instantly softening the ice cream.
Stabilizers:
Ice cream experts recommend using stabilizers and anti-crystallization agents to counter the issue of ice crystallization. They influence the viscosity of the ice cream mixture to reduce the degree of ice crystal growth.
Bottom line:
We all love soft and smooth ice creams but cannot make any such at home due to significant mistakes. But with a few tips and tricks, you can maintain the stability and consistency of your homemade ice cream.
Also Read: 5 Ice Cream Flavors People Love the Most in the UK
