Dense, Chewy, and Rich New England-Style Ice Cream Recipe

Max Falkowitz
Dense, Chewy, and Rich New England-Style Ice Cream Recipe
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  • Yield:Makes 1 quart
  • Active time:45 minutes
  • Total time:6 hours to overnight
  • Rated: 4.5
This recipe appears in:
How to Make Your Ice Cream as Dense, Rich, and Chewy as a New England Scoop Shop's

Even without the special equipment used by the New England pros, you can make delicious chewy ice cream at home. [Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

New England scoop shops are some of the country's best, in part because they tend to specialize in dense, rich ice creams with little added air and a distinct pleasant chewiness. Now you can MacGyver a batch of your own.

Why this recipe works:

  • A moderate butterfat content makes for an ice cream that doesn't get too aerated.
  • Evaporated milk, many egg yolks, corn syrup, and arrowroot powder add chewiness and body to the base.
  • Churning the ice cream until it's just solid, then freezing it as fast as possible, makes for a low-air ice cream that stays extra creamy.

Ingredients

  • 8 large egg yolks
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup corn syrup
  • 1 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 cup evaporated milk (a little more than 1 can), divided
  • 2 teaspoons arrowroot starch
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 to 1 teaspoon kosher salt, to taste

Directions

  1. 1.

    In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, and corn syrup until well combined. Add cream and 1 1/4 cups evaporated milk and whisk to combine. In a small bowl, stir remaining 1/4 cup evaporated milk with arrowroot starch until is dissolved and forms a slurry with no lumps. Set aside.

  2. 2.

    Place saucepan over medium-low heat and cook, whisking frequently, until the custard's temperature reaches 170°F (custard is ready when it coats a spoon and a finger swiped across the back leaves a clean line).

  3. 3.

    Remove from heat and stir in arrowroot starch slurry, vanilla extract, and salt. Pour custard through a fine-mesh strainer into an airtight container and chill in an ice bath or refrigerator until temperature drops to 40°F, about 4 hours for ice bath, up to overnight for refrigerator.

  4. 4.

    Churn ice cream until it just takes on a firm soft serve consistency without any runnyness; a spoon pressed across the top should leave a clean impression that doesn't collapse. Then, working very quickly, transfer ice cream to a wide, flat airtight container and chill in the bottom-back of a well-stocked freezer for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight. Avoid opening freezer door during hardening if possible. When ice cream is fully hardened, serve with plenty of mix-ins.

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