This Black Pepper Ice Cream balances velvety sweetness with a subtle, peppery kick that pairs especially well with fruit desserts yet is delicious enough to scoop on its own. I highly recommend making my Black Pepper Blueberry Crisp to go with this.
Does black pepper ice cream taste good?
If it didn’t I wouldn’t be writing this, but it’s understandable if you’re skeptical. I like to compare it to ginger or cinnamon ice cream—zingy yet familiar. Black pepper works in ice cream because it adds a subtle zing and complexity that complements the sweetness of the cream and sugar. The pepper’s sharpness enhances the flavors, not to mention the fun contrast between black pepper’s heat and the cool ice cream.
Black Pepper Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 7 g black pepper, coarsely cracked 1 Tbsp
- 350 mL heavy cream
- 400 mL whole milk
- 120 g granulated sugar
- 20 g dextrose sub granulated sugar
- 30 g skim milk powder
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 g locust bean gum sub 2 large egg yolks + 10g cornstarch dissolved in 20g cold milk
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine 120 g granulated sugar, 20 g dextrose, and 1 g locust bean gum. Stir to disperse the stabilizer then set aside.
- Heat a saucepot (3 quarts or larger) over medium, then add 7 g black pepper. Toast the black pepper by continuously stirring until it becomes fragrant and slightly darker in color. This should only take a minute or two, and be careful not to burn the pepper.
- Slowly pour 400 mL whole milk and 300 mL heavy cream to the saucepot. Be careful while pouring into a hot pan since the liquid may splatter.
- Whisk in the sugar mixture, 30 g skim milk powder, and 1/4 tsp kosher salt until dissolved.Add egg yolks and cornstarch slurry at this stage if substituting and whisk well to incorporate.
- Heat the mixture over medium heat to 165F, stirring frequently. Maintain at 165F for 5 minutes for locust bean gum stabilizer to fully hydrate.If using egg yolks and cornstarch, heat mixture to 200F for cornstarch to fully gelatinize then remove from heat immediately.
- Transfer the cooked ice cream base to a heatproof container. Place heatproof container over the ice bath to cool. Once cool, cover and set in the fridge overnight, ideally at least 8 hours to develop body and flavor.
- Pass the mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove any large pieces of black pepper then churn the ice cream base according to machine directions. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for at least 4 hours to fully firm up.
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We made this for our family, which is very conservative in ice cream flavors. They loved it. The directions were perfect and the end flavor was just incredible. Never tasted anything like this. We’ll be going through all of Mei’s ice cream recipes to the best of our ability!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us!!