Have you ever wondered what ice cream was like hundreds of years ago in the same summer heat without Air-Con? Well, then I have an answer for you, not as good as ours!
In the west, Ice deserts have been a treat for the Romans since the second century B.C. and Marco Polo brought a recipe to his homeland from the east, the early sherbet. A type of ice cream that is in between a sorbet and ice cream, includes only 1-2% of dairy ingredients. Originally it only contained snow, milk, and fruits. This recipe was later shared to many places in Europe including England, Italy, and France where the actual “ice cream” that we know today. A recipe named “Sicilian Procopio” included blending milk, cream, butter, and eggs.
Today, Ice cream has transformed drastically to fit the regional ideal.
Italian Gelato, which contains 70% less air than others contains more milk and less cream. Full of richness, Intensity, and pureness.
American Sherbet differentiates itself from Italian sorbet through the addition of dairy milk. Based on similar ingredients such as sugar-sweetened water and another flavoring like fruits juice or wine.
French Glace is creamier and heavier with the usage of butterfat often in the vanilla flavor.
Indian Kulfi is much denser and creamier and eggless. Often served with nuts and rose water.
In modern China, Hard Ice Cream is much more preferred than soft serve ice cream cones. From plain cream ice cream bars to the contemporary brown sugar bubble tea ice cream bar and Thai ice cream roll. It Contains 10%-18% milkfat and 20% cream, in contrast to soft-serve ice cream’s 3%-6%. A type of Traditional Chinese Ice Cream that is passed down and remains famous is the Chinese Bean Popsicle, made of either green or red beans, corn starch, glazed beans, cream, and milk.
Japanese Kakigōri is a type of shaved paper-thin ice with flavor syrups and condensed milk, making it light and fluffy. Not to mention the recently popularized mochi ice cream.
So, which one would like to try now?
Photo credits via Google
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