Recipe · Dessert

Ube ice cream

Two ways to make creamy purple yam ice cream with pure ube powder. Churn a gelato-style base, or make the no-churn version with condensed milk, whipped cream and a freezer.

8 scoops
85°C base
6-12 h resting

Jump to the recipe Buy ube powder

A scoop of purple ube ice cream in a glass with espresso poured over it

The recipe

Here's how.

Ube powder brings the color and flavor, and the milk powder, dextrose and locust bean gum keep the base creamy instead of icy. Our ube powder is 100% purple yam with no sugar in it, so all the sweetness comes from the sugar and dextrose. From start to first scoop it takes about 9 hours, and most of that is the base resting in the fridge.

What you need

Purple

40 gBig Moca pure ube powder

Dairy

500 mlwhole milk
150 mlwhipping cream, at least 35% fat

Dry mix

125 ggranulated sugar
40 gdextrose
30 gskimmed milk powder
3 glocust bean gum
small pinch of salt

You also need an ice cream machine, a pan, a whisk and a kitchen thermometer.

No ice cream machine?

Make this version with sweetened condensed milk and whipped cream. The air you whip into the cream does the job the machine would do, so you don't have to stir it while it freezes. You need:

30 g Big Moca pure ube powder
50 ml whole milk, warm
1 tin sweetened condensed milk (397 g)
500 ml whipping cream, at least 35% fat, cold
1 tsp vanilla extract
small pinch of salt

Whisk the ube powder into the warm milk until smooth and leave it for 10 minutes to thicken and cool down. Since nothing gets heated in this version, this step matters even more. Whisk the ube paste into the condensed milk with the vanilla and salt until the color is even. Whip the cold cream to soft peaks, fold a third of it into the condensed milk mixture to loosen it, then fold in the rest until no white streaks are left. Spread it into a 1.5 liter container or loaf tin, press baking paper onto the surface and freeze for at least 6 hours, or overnight. It makes about 1.2 liters and comes out a little softer and sweeter than the churned base.

01

Make the ube paste

Mix the ube powder with about 50 ml of the cold milk until you have a thick, smooth purple paste. This prevents clumps later.
02

Mix the dry ingredients

Combine the sugar, dextrose, skimmed milk powder, locust bean gum and salt in a separate bowl.
03

Heat the base

Add the remaining milk, the cream and the ube paste to a pan. Warm it gently, then whisk in the dry mix. Heat slowly to 85°C.
04

Cool and rest

Cool the pan quickly in an ice bath. Cover the base and rest it in the refrigerator for 6 to 12 hours.
05

Churn and freeze

Churn the cold base in an ice cream machine until creamy. Transfer it to a container and freeze for 2 to 4 hours before scooping.

Color and texture

Paste first, then rest. Making a paste lets the ube hydrate evenly, so you don't get specks. Heating the base slowly gives the dry ingredients time to dissolve, and resting it overnight before churning gives the ice cream more body and a cleaner scoop.
The purple deepens as it freezes. Pure ube powder gives a natural soft purple, not the bright violet of ice cream with added coloring. The base looks paler while it's warm, and the no-churn version is always a shade lighter because the whipped cream adds so much air. For a deeper color, add up to 10 g more ube powder to either recipe. We wouldn't go further than that, because the texture starts to feel starchy.
Sugar keeps it scoopable. If you cut back on the sugar, expect a harder, icier result, especially in the churned version.
Let it sit before serving. Take the ice cream out of the freezer 5 to 10 minutes before serving. It scoops more cleanly, and the ube flavor comes through better when it isn't rock hard.
How we serve it. We like it as an affogato, with a shot of hot espresso poured over a scoop, like in the photo at the top. It also goes well next to a slice of ube cheesecake or ube chiffon cake, or pressed between two ube crinkle cookies as an ice cream sandwich.

Ube ice cream

A scoop of purple.

Cone of purple ube soft serve against a blue sky

Ice cream sandwich made with purple ube cookies, held up against the sky

Bowl with three scoops of ube matcha mango ice cream

FAQ

Common questions

Can I make ube ice cream without an ice cream machine?

Yes. Use the no-churn version under the ingredients: bloomed ube powder stirred into sweetened condensed milk, with whipped cream folded through. The air in the cream does the work of the machine, so you don't need to stir it while it freezes.

Can I use only ube powder for the flavor?

Yes. This recipe uses pure ube powder as the main color and flavor source. Mix it with milk first for the smoothest base.

Why heat the base to 85°C?

That temperature helps dissolve and activate the dry ingredients, which makes the base more stable and the ice cream less icy.

How do I get a deeper purple ube ice cream?

Bloom the powder in warm milk before it goes into the base, and give the ice cream a night in the freezer, because the color deepens as it sets. You can add up to 10 g more ube powder to either version. More than that makes the texture slightly starchy. Pure ube powder gives a natural soft purple, not the bright violet of ice cream made with added coloring.

How long does homemade ube ice cream keep?

It is at its best within 2 weeks. Store it in an airtight container with a sheet of baking paper pressed onto the surface. After that it is still fine to eat, but it slowly gets icier.

How much ube powder do I need for ube ice cream?

40 g for the churned base, which makes about 8 scoops, and 30 g for the no-churn version, which makes about 1.2 liters. A 100 g pouch is enough for two to three batches.

Is ube ice cream the same as taro ice cream?

No. Ube is purple yam and taro is a different root. Ube ice cream tastes softer and more like vanilla, and its purple comes from the yam itself. Taro ice cream is earthier and usually paler. We explain the difference in ube vs taro.