No Churn Chocolate Ice Cream
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The easy, five-ingredient no churn chocolate ice cream recipe does exactly what it says on the tin: no churning, no cooking, no tempering. Just whisk together cocoa powder and sweetened condensed milk, fold it into freshly whipped cream, scoop everything into a metal loaf pan, and freeze until firm enough to scoop. Rich, creamy, and perfectly chocolate-y, it’s great in a cone, a bowl, a shake, a sundae, or eaten straight out of the pan.
Key Ingredients
- Sweetened Condensed Milk – This recipe calls for one 397-gram (14-ounce) can of sweetened condensed milk. Make sure you’re using sweetened condensed, not evaporated milk. (It’s the same kind used in my soft peppermint candy and three ingredient fudge recipes.) Evaporated milk is too thin, and lacks the sweetness of condensed milk, which you need because there are no other sweeteners in this recipe.
- Chocolate – Natural unsweetened cocoa powder combines with the cream and condensed milk to make the deep chocolate flavor. I think the 1/3 cup indicated in the recipe strikes the perfect balance—chocolate-forward, but not bitter—but you can experiment with dark cocoa powder, or increase the cocoa powder to taste.
- Cream – Most of my ice cream recipes use a combination of milk and cream; this one only calls for cream, since it includes sweetened condensed milk. Whipping cream (heavy cream) works best for creating a smooth, creamy scoop.
Tips, Tricks and Variations
- Add mix-ins. I’m generally a big fan of ice cream with lots of chunks, swirls, and mix-ins—Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food is my all-time favorite store-bought ice cream. This no churn chocolate ice cream is so rich, dense, and deeply chocolate-y that I find I don’t even miss the mix-ins, but you can totally toss in some extras if you’d like. Try crushed Oreos; chopped candy bars or Reese’s cups; salted almonds; or bits of chocolate covered pretzel. If you do add mix-ins, fold them in after combining the whipped cream and sweetened condensed milk, but before freezing.
- Fold with a flexible rubber spatula. After mixing the cocoa powder and sweetened condensed milk in one bowl, gently fold the two together with a rubber spatula. Don’t stir briskly, and don’t use a mixer. You want to deflate the cream as minimally as possible. Don’t worry if a few streaks of cream or chocolate are still visible after folding; these won’t affect the taste in any way.
- Freeze in a loaf pan. A metal loaf pan, approximately 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches in size, works best. If you don’t have a loaf pan, you can scoop the base into a large plastic food storage container instead.
- Skip the fancy equipment. Most of my homemade ice cream recipes require the use of an ice cream maker. And while I firmly believe that every home cook should own an ice cream maker (in addition to ice cream, you can make fun treats like sorbets, slushies, and frozen hot chocolate—mine basically never leaves the countertop between May and September!) this no churn version requires absolutely no special equipment.
Preparing the Loaf Pan
Freeze the pan while you prepare the ice cream base, so that by the time you’re ready to pour the mixture, the pan feels good and cold. (The cold temperature will give the freezing process a head start.) Do not grease or line; just scoop the folded chocolate-and-cream base directly into the pan then cover the ice cream tightly with clingfilm/plastic wrap, allowing the plastic to touch the ice cream to prevent a tough skin from forming on top, just like you’d do when making homemade pudding or pastry cream.
After freezing, you can scoop and serve the ice cream directly from the loaf pan, but don’t store it in metal long-term. I recommend transferring the leftovers to a freezer-safe plastic or cardboard container for longer-term storage, to avoid damaging your loaf pan with repeated scooping and scraping.
Print
No Churn Chocolate Ice Cream
- Total Time4 hours 15 minutes
- Yield850 grams (30 ounces) 1x
A five-ingredient no churn chocolate ice cream recipe made with cream, cocoa powder and sweetened condensed milk.
Ingredients
397 grams sweetened condensed milk (14-ounce can)
45 grams unsweetened cocoa powder (1 1/2 ounces; 1/3 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
480 milliliters whipping cream (2 cups)
Instructions
Place an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch metal loaf pan in the freezer.
In a medium bowl, whisk together sweetened condensed milk, unsweetened cocoa powder, vanilla bean paste, and fine sea salt. Set aside.
In a separate bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whip cream on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes.
With a flexible rubber spatula, fold the whipped cream into the sweetened condensed milk mixture.
Scoop into frozen loaf pan. Cover tightly with clingfilm/plastic wrap. Freeze 3-5 hours, or until firm enough to scoop.
Scoop leftover ice cream into a freezer-safe plastic container or cardboard pint container. Store in the freezer for up to 1 month.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Freezing Time: 4 hours
- Category: Ice Cream and Frozen Desserts
- Method: Freezer
Serving Suggestions
You can enjoy this no churn ice cream anywhere and any time you’d serve traditional ice cream. Serve it in homemade ice cream cones; blend it into a milkshake; or make a sundae with layers of homemade hot fudge sauce, whipped cream, crushed peanuts, and plenty of homemade sprinkles. Make brownie ice cream sandwiches or pair with chocolate cake or cupcakes for a double chocolate dessert. I also love a simple scoop drizzled with homemade cherry, strawberry, or mixed berry compote.
Other Homemade Ice Cream Recipes You Might Enjoy
Birthday Cake Ice Cream
S’mores Ice Cream
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
Lavender Ice Cream
Cookies and Cream Ice Cream
And if you do make these, or any of my recipes, don’t forget to tag me @bastecutfold or use the hashtag #bastecutfold on Instagram. I always love to see what you’re making!
