Taro Ice Cream Recipe (2024)

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Homemade taro ice cream with real-deal taro is more than worth the small effort.

ByMax Falkowitz

Updated January 14, 2023

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Why It Works

  • Dairy brings out the delicately sweet, vanilla-coconut flavor of real taro root.
  • There's no need to make a custard base because taro's high starch content provides all the texture you need.

I won't wax eloquent on taro ice cream;Robyn's done that splendidly already. But I will say that a good scoop of taro is, afterblack sesameandmatcha, probably my favorite Asian dessert.

Of course most taro ice creams don't taste much like taro at all, since the pale, sticky tuber can be hell to work with and free-flowing purple powders are so widely available (wholesale, anyway). But in the home kitchen, taro ice cream made with real-deal taro is more than worth the small effort: the root's delicately sweet, vanilla-coconut flavor is brought out well by dairy, and the texture is as creamy as can be.

You can find taro in most well-stocked Chinese markets. The tubers are sold in thick logs; look for moist cut edges and skin that's smooth and slightly glossy, not wrinkled. Leftover tuber is great to cube and fry for a potato side dish or to simmer in a vegetable curry.

To wrangle your taro into submission (and it's abig, ugly sucker to wrangle), slice off the skin with a knife, grate it by hand or in a food processor, and fry it in a little butter to drive out moisture and build caramelized flavors. Then simmer it with cream, coconut milk (for added nuttiness), and sugar until the shreds fall apart and the liquid is thick and starchy. Blend it up, strain it, and chill until it's cold enough to churn. No need to separate eggs or cook a custard—the taro's high starch content adds all the texture insurance you need.

All that starch does mean that the ice cream freezes rock solid if you leave it overnight. But if you let it rest on the counter for a few minutes it'll revert back to its scoop-ably soft self, and it'll carry all the naturally sweet, pleasantly starchy taste of taro minus the typical tooth-aching dose of sugar. Now isn't that better than some bright purple bubble tea made with cheap powder?

September 2013

Recipe Details

Taro Ice Cream Recipe

Active60 mins

Total8 hrs

Serves8 servings

Makes1 quart

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

  • 2/3 pound grated taro (about 2 cups, packed)

  • 2 cups heavy cream

  • One 14-ounce cancoconut milk

  • 3/4 cup sugar

  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

  1. In a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan, melt butter on medium heat. When butter has melted completely and foam has subsided, increase heat to high and add taro. Stir to coat with butter and cook until the taro turns slightly translucent, begins to color at the edges, and reduces in volume to a soft, starchy lump, about 5 minutes.

  2. Use a wooden spoon to scrape any starchy bits off the bottom of the saucepan, then stir in cream, coconut milk, and sugar. Bring to a simmer and then reduce to very low heat. Cover and cook until taro is completely soft, about 20 minutes.

  3. Transfer dairy mixture to a blender and carefully purée on high speed until very smooth, about 30 seconds. (To keep blender top from popping off, remove the plastic knob in the center of the lid and cover with a paper towel folded over several times.) Pour through a strainer into an airtight container, add salt to taste, and chill in refrigerator until very cold, at least 4 hours.

  4. When ice cream base is cold, transfer to ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and chill in freezer at least 6 hours before serving. Let ice cream sit on counter for 5 minutes before scooping.

Special Equipment

Ice cream maker, blender

  • Ice Cream
  • Heavy Cream
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
451Calories
35g Fat
35g Carbs
3g Protein

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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount per serving
Calories451
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 35g45%
Saturated Fat 25g124%
Cholesterol 75mg25%
Sodium 147mg6%
Total Carbohydrate 35g13%
Dietary Fiber 2g7%
Total Sugars 21g
Protein 3g
Vitamin C 3mg14%
Calcium 56mg4%
Iron 2mg11%
Potassium 350mg7%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Taro Ice Cream Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is Taro ice cream made of? ›

The ingredients for homemade taro root ice cream are milk, sweet condensed milk, taro boba powder and heavy whipping cream.

What is the secret ingredient to ice cream? ›

The cream cheese helps create an ice cream with a denser, smoother texture. As explained by TASTE, cream cheese acts as a stabilizer in ice cream, preventing water from seeping out of the milk and cream as well as preventing the formation of ice crystals that detract from ice cream's creaminess.

What is the secret to making ice cream very creamy? ›

When it comes to great ice cream, cold temperatures and speed are your friends: the faster you bring your base from liquid to solid, the creamier it'll be. In a 2-quart unit, a typical batch of ice cream will take between 18 and 25 minutes to churn.

How to make ice cream 6 steps? ›

How to Make Ice Cream
  1. Step 1: Ingredients. whole milk. ...
  2. Step 2: Mixing. mix 1 cup of whole milk with 3/4 of a cup of sugar in a big bowl. ...
  3. Step 3: Mixing (part 2) ...
  4. Step 4: Machine Mixing. ...
  5. Step 5: Scooping and Putting the Ice Cream Away. ...
  6. Step 6: Enjoy!

Is taro good or bad? ›

Nutrition. Taro root is an excellent source of dietary fiber and good carbohydrates, which both improve the function of your digestive system and can contribute to healthy weight loss. Its high levels of vitamin C, vitamin B6, and vitamin E also help to maintain a healthy immune system and may eliminate free radicals.

What kind of milk is in taro? ›

For a super creamy and sweet taro bubble milk tea, use condensed milk or dairy-free coconut condensed milk combined with milk. Brown Sugar: Use dark brown sugar. Or, use dark muscovado sugar for a deeper molasses flavor (and color). For a subtler flavor, use regular granulated sugar.

What are the 3 most important ingredients of ice cream? ›

If you have ever made ice cream, you already know what goes into it, ingredients such as milk, cream, and sugar. But there is one main ingredient that you may not have thought about, probably because you can't see it—air.

What ingredient makes ice cream thicker? ›

Adding thickening agents, such as egg yolks, cornstarch, gelatin, tapioca starch, or even Junket tablets, enhances the texture and elevates the overall ice cream experience. Remember, making homemade ice cream is as much an art as it is a science.

What sugar is best for ice cream? ›

Most home ice cream recipes call for simple table sugar, which is chemically known as sucrose. But in pro kitchens you have more options. Liquid sugars like invert sugar, corn syrup, honey, and glucose syrup all add body, creaminess, and stability to ice cream, and a little goes a long way.

Do eggs make ice cream creamier? ›

Eggs leverage the fat already present in the ice cream base (the butterfat in cream and milk) and make it work even further for a creamier texture. But wait, there's more! Egg yolks also improve the stability of an ice cream, reducing its tendency to melt before you can get it from freezer to cone to mouth.

Why does my homemade ice cream freeze so hard? ›

There are two things that will lead to a homemade ice cream getting rock solid after freezing for a while: the fat content and the sugar content. First, the fat content of ice cream acts as an emulsifier, stabilising the water and fat particles in the ice cream and preventing them from separating.

What does taro taste like? ›

It tastes sweet and vanilla-like in desserts, but can also taste starchy and nutty in soups and stir-fries. Remember, taro taste also depends on the variety you're choosing. Roughly speaking, larger varieties have a stronger, nuttier flavour. Smaller varieties, on the other hand, have a milder flavour.

What does taro ice taste like? ›

Taro has a flavor all its own. That said, it's actually quite mild with a slightly sweet taste—sort of like a mildly nutty vanilla. Because of this flavor profile, taro is a great addition to sweet treats like boba tea or ice cream.

What does taro root ice cream taste like? ›

But in the home kitchen, taro ice cream made with real-deal taro is more than worth the small effort: the root's delicately sweet, vanilla-coconut flavor is brought out well by dairy, and the texture is as creamy as can be. You can find taro in most well-stocked Chinese markets.

What is taro root made from? ›

Taro [Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott] is a tropical root crop grown primarily for its starchy corm or underground stem. It is one of the most important staple food crops in the Pacific Islands and is widely grown throughout the South Pacific, Asia, and Africa (Kreike et al., 2004).

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