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Thai Tea Ice Cream (No-Machine Cha Yen)
The flavor of cha yen, frozen into the creamiest no-churn ice cream - and you don't need a machine. Just steep real Thai tea into cream, whip it with condensed milk, and freeze. Four ingredients, zero special equipment, all the orange glow.
Why no-churn works here
No-churn ice cream skips the custard and the machine: whipped cream traps air, and sweetened condensed milk keeps it soft and scoopable straight from the freezer. Because Thai tea is steeped directly into the cream, the flavor goes deep - far more than a syrup stirred in at the end.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup Thai tea mix or leaves
- Pinch of salt
- 1/2 can (about 150ml) sweetened condensed milk
- Optional topping: condensed milk + evaporated milk to drizzle
No-Churn Cha Yen Ice Cream
Method
- Infuse the cream. Heat the cream until steaming, add the tea and salt, and stir until it just bubbles. Off the heat, steep 5 minutes.
- Strain. Pour through a fine strainer, pressing out as much cream as you can. Chill until cold (ideally a few hours or overnight).
- Whip. Whip the cold tea cream to soft peaks.
- Sweeten. Add the condensed milk and whip to stiff peaks.
- Freeze. Scrape into a container and freeze 4-6 hours, until scoopable.
Watch it made
If it's your first no-churn, this video tutorial from Pailin's Hot Thai Kitchen walks through the whip-and-freeze method:
"Thai Tea Ice Cream Recipe (no machine!)" · Pailin's Kitchen
The mix that matters
Steeped into hot cream, this is what gives the ice cream its color and that real Thai-tea depth.
Check price on Amazon →FAQ
Do I really not need an ice cream machine?
Correct. The whipped cream provides the air a machine would churn in, and condensed milk keeps ice crystals from forming, so it stays creamy.
Can I make it dairy-free?
Use chilled full-fat coconut cream in place of dairy cream and coconut condensed milk. The coconut flavor pairs naturally with Thai tea.
How long does it keep?
Best within 2 weeks. Press parchment onto the surface and seal well to prevent ice crystals.
Keep reading
- Make ice cream sandwiches with Thai tea cookies
- Blend a scoop into a Thai tea smoothie
- The authentic street-style cha yen
- Watch: more Thai tea recipes on video
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