A super simple twist on my easy Basic Ice Cream recipe, using chai tea bags to infuse flavor into the ice cream’s custard base. The result is a deliciously spicy-satisfying treat—and all it takes is a few tea bags. (For more ice cream flavor infusion ideas, see the suggestions at the end of the Basic Ice Cream recipe.)
A couple of notes. One, if, like me, you’d rather avoid the caffeine, look for decaf tea. (Nothing against caffeine, but I tend to eat my ice cream at night and I do have something against not sleeping well.) And two, sometimes a tea bag can open into the base mixture during the infusing. But that’s okay because it’ll make pretty little flecks in your ice cream, hinting of its yummy flavors.
(Don’t have an ice cream maker? See the note at the end of the recipe.)
Makes about 1 1/2 quarts
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 2/3 cups heavy cream
- 8 chai tea bags
- 8 large egg yolks
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, or more to taste
In a medium heavy saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the milk and cream and heat until the mixture is just beginning to bubble at the edges. Remove from heat, add the tea bags, cover, and let steep for 30 minutes.
In a medium bowl, whisk the yolks and sugar until smooth. Whisk a small amount of the warm milk mixture into the egg mixture, then pour the whole egg mixture into the milk mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring and scraping the sides and bottom of the saucepan constantly, until the ice cream base coats the back of a spoon, about 170°F. (How long this takes will depend on how hot your milk got in the previous step, how much it cooled while steeping, and the size of your saucepan.) Immediately strain the mixture through a medium mesh strainer into a large bowl. Stir in the salt and thoroughly chill.
When the custard is completely cool, taste and add more salt if you like. Freeze according to your ice cream maker's manufacturer's instructions.
Note: If you don’t have an ice cream maker, pour the custard into a shallow baking pan and freeze, stirring and breaking the mixture up with a fork every hour for 3 to 4 hours. Once solid, set the mixture aside at room temperature for about 10 minutes, then break it up and add it to a food processor. Pulse until smooth, then transfer to a container and refreeze.
