There’s nothing like a tub of ice cream to cool you down on a hot day – but you’ve likely been eating it wrong, according to an expert.
While many people instinctively dig straight into the middle before working their way down, it turns out there’s a better approach.
Roz Kaldor-Aroni, founder of Australian ice cream brand Elato, says you should always start at the edges and work your way in.
In a video she explained: ‘Here’s a tip when eating ice cream out of the tub.
‘You eat from the outside edge in. That way all the melted ice cream doesn’t refreeze and go hard later.’
It’s a common frustration for ice cream lovers: once melted ice cream refreezes, it often develops a coarse, grainy texture.
This happens because melting allows air to escape while the water inside forms larger ice crystals as it freezes again.
As Britain has sweltered through weeks of unusually hot weather, the tip has resurfaced on social media – although not everyone is convinced it’s worth changing their ice cream-eating habits.
While many people instinctively dig straight into the middle before working their way down, it turns out starting from the outside may be a better approach
Last week, Oxford-based mum Kelley Priest shared a picture of her ice cream tub on Facebook.
The image shows a ball of ice cream left in the middle of the tub after she ate from around the edges first.
She said she was watching TV and enjoying some ice cream when her son suddenly noticed the way she was eating it and deemed her a ‘psychopath’.
‘Now I’m wondering how many other people out there like to scrape it away at the sides as it starts to soften and eat it all this way,’ she wrote.
‘I can’t be the only ice-cream psychopath.’
One person commented this is the ‘correct way’, while another pointed out that it is the ‘path of least resistance’.
Another user disagreed, saying: ‘I eat it in layers – it has to be completely flat before I dig down any further.’
And one disgusted commenter added: ‘Anyone who eats it straight from the tub – unless it’s the last serving – is a monster.’
When ice cream melts the air bubbles it contains escapes. The water inside forms larger ice crystals when it freezes again, resulting in a grainy texture
When ice cream is first made, machines whip air into the liquid base to create tiny ice crystals for a smooth texture.
But when it melts, the air escapes, and the water refreezes into large, crunchy crystals.
This is why it’s important to put your ice cream in the freezer as soon as possible after you’ve bought it.
As the outside edges of the ice cream are in contact with the tub, they are most likely to melt first.
According to Ben & Jerry’s, there’s no ‘wrong’ way to eat your ice cream.
However, the brand recommends allowing your ice cream to soften for 10 minutes after taking it out of the freezer, and running your ice cream scoop under warm water before digging in.
