How to Make Tempura-Fried Ice Cream

In a twist on fried ice cream, Japanese tempura batter creates a crispy crust around your favorite ice cream flavors. This recipe requires timing and a good-deep fryer or stock pot to fry the balls of ice cream to perfection. The hot crunchy tempura pairs well with the cold creaminess of the underlying ice cream.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• 1 c all-purpose flour
• 1 egg
• 1 c ice-cold water
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 c vegetable oil
• 1 pint ice cream

1. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop out even balls of ice cream and place them evenly spaced on a plate or small sheet pan. Make sure that the balls don’t touch each other.

2. Once you have portioned out the ice cream, place the pan on a flat surface in the freezer and freeze for at least one hour.

3. While the ice cream is freezing, pour the oil into a deep-fat fryer or a heavy-bottomed stockpot. Heat the oil over medium-high heat. The temperature of the oil should be approximately 400 degrees.

4. In a medium bowl sift the flour and baking soda together.

5. Lightly beat the egg in a small bowl until the yolk has broken and is just beginning to froth and bubble.

6. Add the ice-cold water and vanilla extract to the egg mixture and mix well.

7. Combine the egg and flour mixtures and whisk them until they are just combined. A few lumps of batter may remain, but this is normal.

8. Take out your frozen ice cream balls and dip one into the batter. Cover the ice cream with the batter evenly.

9. Carefully ease the battered ice cream into the hot oil by using kitchen tongs or a slotted spoon.

10. Fry the ice cream for approximately 15 to 30 seconds, until the tempura batter has turned golden.

11. Take out the tempura-fried ice cream and serve immediately with some powdered sugar sprinkled on top.

Tips & Warnings

• When freezing the ice cream, it might help to turn your freezer setting to the coldest setting.
• To test that the oil is hot enough for frying, cut a 1-inch cube of bread and carefully let it drop into the hot oil. The bread should turn a brown color in one minute, any faster and the oil is too hot. Any slower and the oil needs to be hotter.
• When you’re frying each ball of ice cream, you might consider returning the remaining balls to the freezer so they stay as cold as possible before frying.
• Try out some inventive flavors of ice cream with this recipe, such as green tea or ginger ice cream.

Who Can Help Sponsored

• How to Lose 30+lbs Guaranteed. Try it Free.

[MariM]

on 2/22/2009 Is the texture kind of chewey. I am trying to figure out a certain coating that I once had at a restaurant. It was not corn flakes it may have been this.5* recmd

[Felicity]

on 6/13/2008 This is an interesting version; I am impressed! Thanks for sharing with us.

[amylaine]

on 6/10/2008 This sounds very yummy.