No-Machine Soft Ice Cream Bars - Thai Tea Flavor
Soft and creamy ice cream bars without needing a machine but instead adding tapioca starch. It's an old-school treat in Thailand and a brilliantly easy way to make ice cream at home!
Ingredients
- ½ cup Thai tea leaves
- 1 ½ cup hot off-the-boil water
- ¼ cup tapioca starch
- 1 can evaporated milk, (354 ml)
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk, (300 ml)
- 1 cup whipping cream, (see note 1)
- ¼ teaspoon table salt, scant (see note 2)
Notes
- For a lighter treat, you can use half and half or whole milk. Keeping in mind this will make your ice cream icier.
- Scant ¼ teaspoon means just a little less than ¼ teaspoon. Sorry for this imprecise measurement but I found that ⅛ is not enough, and ¼ is too much!
Instructions
- Prepare your molds. If using a dish, grease the bottom and sides with oil. Cut a piece of parchment paper so it's as wide as the longest side of your container. Line the dish with the parchment, leaving plenty of overhang on two sides. Press the parchment into the oil so it sticks, and use a bulldog clip to secure the overhang onto the edge of the dish to prevent the paper from moving around. For easier removal, you can line with another piece of parchment, going across the first piece so you have overhang on all 4 sides. Tip: I recommend using good quality, sturdy parchment paper for this. Cheap filmy parchment might tear as you try to pull the ice cream out (as I found out the hard way!)
- Steep the tea leaves in hot-off-the-boil water for 5 mins, then strain using a fine mesh strainer, pressing out most of the liquid. You should end up with a little more than 1 cup of tea (1 cup exactly is fine, but it should be less than 1 ¼ cups.) Allow the tea dust to settle to the bottom for a minute.½ cup Thai tea leaves, 1 ½ cup hot off-the-boil water
- Meanwhile, put the tapioca starch into a small mixing bowl, add about ⅓ cup of the evaporated milk and whisk to dissolve the starch - making extra sure there are no lumps. Pour the starch slurry into a medium size pot, followed by the remaining evaporated milk.¼ cup tapioca starch, 1 can evaporated milk
- Add the sweetened condensed milk, whipping cream, and salt to the pot. Then pour in the tea, holding back the last little bit so as to not pour in too much of the tea dust. Stir until the condensed milk is dissolved.1 can sweetened condensed milk, 1 cup whipping cream, ¼ teaspoon table salt
- Turn the heat on medium and stir constantly with a rubber spatula, scraping the bottom. The mixture will slowly start to thicken, and once the mixture starts to bubble and is no longer getting any thicker, it is fully cooked. (To check for bubbling you'll have to stop stirring for a few seconds and watch for movement.)Remove from heat and, while still hot, pour or ladle it into your molds. Pop any big buggles with a toothpick, then allow the ice cream to cool to room temp before freezing for at least 6 hours before unmolding.
- To unmold, I highly recommend watching the video to see how this is done so you have a better idea. If using a cake pan or a dish, use a thin knife or metal offset spatula and run it along the edges that don't have parchment paper. You can dip the knife in hot water if you're having a hard time inserting. Carefully lift the parchment overhang to remove the ice cream from the pan. If you're having a hard time removing, try running the knife around the edges one more time, especially around any rounded corners, or wait a minute; resisting the urge to dip the mold in hot water as this ice cream melts quickly.Once it's out, place it on a cutting board and use a knife to trim the edges if you wish, then cut into blocks of your desired size. If making bars, insert a sturdy bamboo skewer into the ice cream, using a knife or something sturdy to push against the top to hold the ice cream steady. Peel it off the paper and enjoy!
- To store: wrap each piece in parchment paper to prevent them from sticking to each other.
- Tip: Because of the added starch, these are soft and creamy but also melt quickly, so work quickly when unmolding the ice cream.
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