The idea of fried ice cream sounds delicious, but it may also have you scratching your head for as good as it sounds. Applying any heat to such a cold dish seems like it shouldn’t work, but somehow it does. The question is: what’s the trick that allows this marriage of hot and cold to happen?
The Secret Ingredient to Fried Ice Cream
The fact is, it’s not the ice cream itself that’s fried, but rather a batter or crumb coating that surrounds the ice cream. This coating functions as a type of insulation for the ice cream, protecting it from melting due to heat. Essentially, the coating gets nicely fried while keeping the ice cream cold. The result? A combination of flavor, texture, and temperature is hard to replicate.
How Do You Make Fried Ice Cream?
The coating is one of two critical steps in making fried ice cream. Before or after adding the coating—depending on the preferred method—the scoop of ice cream is stored at an even lower temperature than usual, often in a blast chiller. The cold temperature helps provide extra time to allow the coating around the ice cream to fry before the internal temperature can meet the melting point.
Why a Good Insulator is Essential to Fried Ice Cream
So how exactly does a coating work as insulation? It’s all about choosing an ingredient with low thermal conductivity because low thermal conductivity = a good insulator. As it turns out, there are quite a few tasty insulators out there, including:
- Tempura batter
- Pound cake
- Cornflakes
- Cookies
- Crackers
- Nuts
How the Right Coating Can Affect Heat Conduction
When two things come into contact, these items play a significant role in conduction or the transfer of energy (heat). Higher temperature particles move quickly, while colder particles move more slowly. When they meet, the higher-energy (temperature) particles generously give some of their energy away, causing the lower-temperature particles to move faster and, in turn, warm up.
Because of this, the ice cream would melt without an insulator when it hits the boiling deep-fryer oil due to heat conduction. But the suitable coating will take on all that extra energy from the hot oil without allowing it to pass on to the ice cream underneath.
Experience the Science of Fried Ice Cream for Yourself at Amarin of Thailand
Taste fried ice cream for an experience like no other at Amarin of Thailand, where you’ll see the science behind this unique dessert come to life. With various ice cream flavors and a deliciously fried coating, you’ll soon forget all about the science and simply enjoy the unique treat of fried ice cream. Call us at (781)239-1350 to place your order today. We look forward to serving you this delicious treat!