For more unique ice cream recipes, also try our black pepper pistachio ice cream, tonka bean ice cream, and white balsamic and roasted strawberry ice cream. This time, we’ve made a popular Japanese treat, matcha ice cream. It’s rich and earthy, distinctly bitter, yet perfectly sweet. We use simple ingredients and simple methods and the result is a creamy, dreamy green tea ice cream that you can make, too! Matcha tastes earthy, bitter, vegetal, and slightly sweet. It’s a well-loved flavor in Japan and is widely consumed in the form of tea, sweets, and even savory dishes. There are two main types of matcha, ceremonial grade and culinary grade. While both yield a tasty matcha ice cream, here are the differences:
Ceremonial grade matcha is a higher quality matcha and you can recognize it by its vibrant green color. It tends to be higher in price and is meant to be mixed with water for tea ceremonies. Culinary grade matcha tends to be a more muted green color, of slightly lower quality, and best for cooking.
Milk – we use whole milk for that extra rich and creamy taste. Granulated sugar – to sweeten it all up! Egg yolks – egg yolk helps with the stability of the ice cream and works as an emulsifier. Matcha powder – we use ceremonial grade matcha because we love its bright green color. Heavy cream – heavy cream (such as whipping cream) gives your ice cream a smooth texture and creamy taste.
You’ll also need an ice cream maker. If you don’t have one, head to our no churn ice cream recipe for tips on making ice cream with an electric hand mixer.
Purchase the right matcha – whether you opt for ceremonial grade or culinary grade matcha is up to you. It will depend on what’s available to you, how important the bright green color is, and your budget. Both will yield delicious creamy ice cream with slight differences in taste and color. Make a paste with the matcha powder – because matcha is a fine powder, you can’t add it to a high volume of liquid or it will clump. So, when it’s time, mix your matcha with a few tablespoons of hot milk to make a paste before adding it to the larger volume of liquid. Cool the cream mixture in the fridge – in order for ice cream to churn properly, the cream mixture needs to cool completely in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Wait to dig in – give the ice cream at least 2 hours in the freezer before digging in. We know this will be hard (but it will be worth it)!
White chocolate chips Dark chocolate shavings Cacao nibs Pistachios Coconut Oreo cookie crumbles Sliced strawberries Black pepper Sprinkles!
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