Sous Vide Malted Milk Shake Ice Cream Recipe

Matt Zadorozny is my sous vide guru. I recently spent a few hours with him at his home on Nantucket Island, talking a blue streak while he prepped 50 pounds of mushrooms for his sister's wedding. Matt has worked in some of the finest kitchens in New York, including Per Se and WD 50, where sous vide cooking is part of the daily routine. He has his own immersion circulator and chamber vacuum sealer (I'm envious), and his passion for the technique is contagious. Matt has been very generous in sharing his extensive knowledge of cooking times and temperatures with me, and we're delighted to have him collaborate with us.

Ice cream is one of Matt's specialties. As a matter of fact, he and a friend are in the process of launching an ice cream business. They have a cool concept in mind, but "mum's" the word at the moment. Stay tuned for more details as plans emerge. During my visit, Matt was eager to show me his new Pacojet, a really nifty little machine that makes ice cream, among other things, in just seconds. The small appliance looks a bit like a coffee maker, but its $4,000 price tag may give you some idea of just how special it is. Pacojet aside, Matt told me he always makes his ice cream base in a water oven, then ages it for 24 hours in the refrigerator before churning.

For those of us without access to a chamber vacuum sealer, working with liquids can be frustrating, so check out my Ask Jason blog on "How to Use Ziploc Bags for Sous Vide" which includes how to remove air from a the bag. Make sure you use freezer bags and look for a brand that does not contain BPA (Bisphenol A). Technically, cooking in bags like this is not sous vide cooking, because no vacuum has been created. However, it's a terrific use of the water oven, whatever the terminology!

Even without a chamber vacuum sealer, making ice cream custard in the sous vide machine is a snap and eliminates the stress of using the stovetop method, where scrambling the eggs is always a possibility.

Matt has generously shared one of his favorite concoctions, based on malted milk powder. He uses a stabilizer called Cremodan in all his ice creams because it improves the mouth feel and inhibits ice crystallization. Cremodan comes in 2 versions: Cremodan 30 for ice cream and Cremodan 64 for sorbets. Cremodan is an all-natural mixture of land and sea vegetable gums such as alginate, locust bean gum, guar gum, and carrageenan. The general rule of thumb is to add 5 grams per 1,000 grams of ice cream base. Matt recommends using 1% of the total liquid weight (milk and cream only).

I wanted to see for myself if I could tell the difference, so I made his Malted Milk Shake Ice Cream with and without the Cremodan. At Matt's suggestion I also experimented with substituting a small amount of sweetened condensed milk in place of the Cremodan. The flavor of each was terrific, so we've included all three recipes. I would definitely give the edge to the version with Cremodan, because the ice cream was much creamier and denser. But several taste testers did not agree with me, and preferred the condensed milk recipe because the ice cream was colder and also very rich and creamy. Whichever way you make it, the ice cream is fabulous.

For caramel fans, I suggest swirling in a cup of dulce de leche before you harden the ice cream in the freezer. It's simply sublime! Or get whimsical, and add some coarsely chopped Whoppers (chocolate-covered malted milk balls) and serve in ice cream cones. It's an instant trip back to childhood!