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Making Ice Cream Without A Machine

July 30, 2007
People have been making ice cream far longer than the invention of electricity so there's no reason you can't make ice cream and sorbets at home without a machine.
The advantage to using an electric or hand-cranked machine is that the final result will be smoother and creamier. Freezing anything from liquid-to-solid means you're creating hard ice crystals, so if you're making it by hand, as your ice cream or sorbet mixture freezes, you want to break up those ice crystals as much as possible so your final results are as smooth and creamy as possible.
Machines are relatively inexpensive nowadays with models costing less than $50, and yes, I've seen the ball, but if I started tossing one of those around the streets here in Paris, I'd probably get even more strange looks than I normally get. (Plus you'll need to lug some rock salt home as well.)
But not everyone has the space or the budget for a machine, so here's how you can do your own ice cream at home without a churner. I recommend starting with an ice cream recipe that is custard-based for the smoothest texture possible. You can use my Vanilla Ice Cream or another favorite, or even this Strawberry Frozen Yogurt recipe using Greek-style or drained yogurt. The richer the recipe, the creamier and smoother the results are going to be.
Ice cream made this way is best eaten soon after it's made—which shouldn't be a problem.

Making Ice Cream Without A Machine
1. Prepare your ice cream mixture, then chill it over an ice bath.
2. Put a deep baking dish, or bowl made of plastic, stainless steel or something durable in the freezer, and pour your custard mixture into it.
3. After forty-five minutes, open the door and check it.
As it starts to freeze near the edges, remove it from the freezer and stir it vigorously with a spatula or whisk. Really beat it up and break up any frozen sections. Return to freezer.
4. Continue to check the mixture every 30 minutes, stirring vigorously as it's freezing. If you have one, you can use a hand-held mixer for best results, or use a stick-blender or hand-held mixer.
But since we're going low-tech here, you can also use just a spatula or a sturdy whisk along with some modest physical effort.
5. Keep checking periodically and stirring while it freezes (by hand or with the electric mixer) until the ice cream is frozen. It will likely take 2-3 hours to be ready.
You can easily make Stracciatella ice cream with Italian-style chocolate chips:
Drizzle pure melted dark or milk chocolate (about 5 ounces, 140 g) over the almost-frozen mixture, then stir, breaking up the ribbons of chocolate as they start to freeze, to create little 'chips'. Transfer the ice cream to a covered storage container until ready to serve.
More low-tech methods for making ice cream:
Squeeze in two Zip-Loc freezer bags.
Toss 'The Ball'.
Roll a couple of coffee cans around and around.
Previous posts on ice cream-making:
What's Gelato?
Making Homemade Ice Cream Softer
Roquefort-Honey Ice Cream (recipe)
Meet Your Maker: Buying An Ice Cream Machine
White Chocolate Sorbet (recipe)
Recommended Tools for Ice Cream Making
Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream (recipe)
How Long Does Ice Cream Last?
White Chocolate and Fresh Ginger Ice Cream with Nectarines & Berries (recipe)
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Comments

David,
The step #1 picture shows a copper bowl. Do you prepare your custards on copper bowls? What are the advantages?
Thanks.
Posted by N. R. at July 30, 2007 3:59 AM
That coffee tin within a coffee tin idea is genius, although perhaps it may wrapping in a towel as the ice melts. Now I'm very hungry.
B
Hand to Mouth
Posted by B at July 30, 2007 8:16 AM
ooh, thanks for this post! i've long lusted after an ice cream machine, but after a history of ice cream abuse too gruesome to detail in public, as well as zero counter space (studio apartment), it would be a dreadful -- nay, FATAL -- event to make the purchase. however, a method that involves too much work for casual ice cream production as well as some inherent caloric burning could be the ideal solution!!
Posted by dddg at July 30, 2007 9:49 AM
I have a friend who says she uses her old fashioned blender, she puts the custard in the blender, then transfers the blender jar to the freezer, then about every half an hour she takes it out, blends, and return the blender jar to the freezer. Works beautifully and involves only one dish!
Posted by Mercedes at July 30, 2007 11:53 AM
N.R.: The sole advantage is that it's more photogenic, especially when its all polished!
; )
Mercedes: If someone has room in their freezer for a blender jar, I'd like to see that freezer.
Seriously, that would work up to a point. Once the mixture gets thick, I don't know how it would work its way down to where the blender blades are to get stirred up. But if it does work, anything that involves less dishes to wash, I say bravo to!
Posted by David at July 30, 2007 11:59 AM
My Argentine "mother" (I lived in the San Juan/Mendoza region many years ago) used to make ice cream several times a month using this rustic method. We would barely breathe, waiting for it to be ready. Ice cream never tasted so good. Thanks for the memories!
Posted by Christine at July 30, 2007 2:06 PM
I was all set to try the Ziploc version...thanks for your tips so I can feel a little better experimenting with the creamy recipes I haven't attempted yet.
Posted by Sara, Ms. Adventures in Italy at July 30, 2007 3:26 PM
Great post, David! I just returned my loaned ice cream maker and was wondering how I was going to survive the rest of the summer sans homemade ice cream. How did you read my mind?
Posted by Julie at July 30, 2007 3:30 PM
This is a great write up! I'm surprised you omitted to volunteer the things you can do while waiting to stir every 30 minutes. Do share, please!
Posted by brian at July 30, 2007 11:17 PM
I've actually found that a food processor works even better at blasting away those ice crystals than a stick blender, particularly once the mixture is mostly frozen. On the other hand, I rarely do it that way because I hate washing up my food processor, and we all know that laziness trumps all...
Posted by Melissa at July 31, 2007 7:28 AM
Oh, this is so genius. Because I was GOING to reward myself after moving with an ice-cream machine, only to find that our counter space is somewhat limited and my budget even more so. But an immersion blender I have! Yum yum yum. Thank you!
Posted by Luisa at July 31, 2007 10:23 AM
My coeditor has been looking for ways to make ice cream without a machine for awhile now! And I find your Stracciatella technique to be awesome! I didn't know you could do it this way, but it makes so much sense! Thanks for sharing this!
Posted by Hillary at July 31, 2007 12:00 PM
for making ice cream without a machine, see the alice b. toklas cookbook for pre-electricty ice cream cecipes -- all of her recipes involve whipped egg whites or cream to provide volume. and of course it being miss toklas quite a hefty dose of different alcoholic beveridges.
Posted by mike at August 2, 2007 3:33 PM
Thank you thank you thank you for this post!
Posted by gladys at August 3, 2007 6:18 PM
fun reading the posts. will adding powdered gelatin (without heating) do the job?
Posted by sam at August 11, 2007 11:13 AM
Sam: I'm not a fan of using gelatin in ice cream. You can make Philadelphia-style ice cream without heating the mixture if you use superfine sugar (or whiz it in a food processor) so it dissolves without heating.
Mike: Yes, those are other ways to go for sure. I love her book...next time you pull it out, try A Tender Tart. It's delicious, although not very boozy. : 0
Posted by David at August 15, 2007 12:02 PM
Hello, of course I came to visit your site and thanks for letting me know about it.
I just read this post and wanted to say it is full of number one resources. Some I am familiar with. For those who don’t know these other sites they are in for a treat as there is a lot to learn there.
Posted by Male Enhancement at March 6, 2008 6:58 AM
I came to your site to know more about making ice-cream. Your making of the ice cream is so cool, tell me more-thx!!!!!!
Posted by shaoyang at April 8, 2008 10:22 AM
I love this! Does it work just as well with ice? I love making thyme or lavender ice for serving between courses as a palette cleanser but loathe to have an appliance just for that. Thanks!
Posted by sarah at April 12, 2008 9:03 PM
Posted by bola at May 9, 2008 7:45 PM
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