Bacon ice cream
Encyclopedia
Blumenthal explains that traditional ice cream is frozen egg custard with flavours added. Using his scientific method to create ice cream, he whisks egg yolks with sugar until the sugar interacts with the proteins in the yolk, creating a network of proteins. The entire substance turns white, at which point any flavouring can be added and cooked in. Once the mixture is cooked, it should be cooled as fast as possible (Blumenthal regularly uses liquid nitrogen
in cooking) while being stirred. In an article explaining the concept of "flavour encapsulation", Blumenthal points out that flavour is much more intense in encapsulated bursts, rather than being dispersed in a solution. He goes on to state that the more that the eggs are cooked, the more that the proteins stick together, creating pockets of egg flavour in the ice cream, which release as it melts in customers' mouths.
Blumenthal's bacon and egg ice cream, now one of his signature dishes, along with his other unique flavours, has given him a reputation as 'The Wizard of Odd' and has made his restaurant a magnet for food enthusiasts. In the 2006 New Years Honours List, Blumenthal was awarded an OBE for his services to food. Blumenthal has stated that one ambition is to create an ice cream with flavours released in time-separated stages, for example bacon and egg followed by orange juice or tea. Once he perfects the technique of separating the flavours, he would attempt mussels followed by chocolate
.
stars, in 2004, rival chef Nico Ladenis showed his disapproval for the Michelin Star system by suggesting that bacon ice cream shows such a desperate need for originality in very graphic language. Blumenthal pointed out that Ladenis had never actually tried the aforementioned ice cream.
Trevor White has suggested that the Heston Blumenthal has latched onto a culture where we cannot get enough of the new and are spoiled by choice, comparing the food to a "freak-show". Janet Street-Porter is highly critical of Blumenthal's cooking philosophy, explaining that it was pretentious. She attempted to make his egg-and-bacon ice cream from the recipe published in his book, The Big Fat Duck Cookbook, altering the recipe slightly due to her hectic workload and guessing when she did not have the right tools. The end result she described as nauseating and "too sickly for words".
The ice cream also sparked debate within the Los Angeles Times, where the food writer Noelle Carter described bacon ice cream as perfection but the health section put up a photograph of a heart bypass and the headline "Bacon ice cream. No good can come of it". The Delaware "Udder Delight" ice cream maker, Chip Hearn, who made bacon ice cream appears to have done so partly as a gimmick to get people into his shop, since he allows customers to taste any flavour in the store. He explains that his flavours differentiate him from the many other parlours on the shore and many people come in to try bacon ice cream only to buy something else.
. Celebrity chef Bob Blumer
won a Texas ice cream making competition with a bacon ice cream. Originally planning to use candied bacon, he changed at the last moment to do a bacon brittle
ice cream.
Liquid nitrogen
Liquid nitrogen is nitrogen in a liquid state at a very low temperature. It is produced industrially by fractional distillation of liquid air. Liquid nitrogen is a colourless clear liquid with density of 0.807 g/mL at its boiling point and a dielectric constant of 1.4...
in cooking) while being stirred. In an article explaining the concept of "flavour encapsulation", Blumenthal points out that flavour is much more intense in encapsulated bursts, rather than being dispersed in a solution. He goes on to state that the more that the eggs are cooked, the more that the proteins stick together, creating pockets of egg flavour in the ice cream, which release as it melts in customers' mouths.
Blumenthal's bacon and egg ice cream, now one of his signature dishes, along with his other unique flavours, has given him a reputation as 'The Wizard of Odd' and has made his restaurant a magnet for food enthusiasts. In the 2006 New Years Honours List, Blumenthal was awarded an OBE for his services to food. Blumenthal has stated that one ambition is to create an ice cream with flavours released in time-separated stages, for example bacon and egg followed by orange juice or tea. Once he perfects the technique of separating the flavours, he would attempt mussels followed by chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
.
Reception
Bacon ice cream has received a mixed reception, as a combination of sweet and savoury flavours it was designed to be controversial. So while Blumenthal's combinations have won him awards such as "Best restaurant in the world" and three MichelinMichelin Guide
The Michelin Guide is a series of annual guide books published by Michelin for over a dozen countries. The term normally refers to the Michelin Red Guide, the oldest and best-known European hotel and restaurant guide, which awards the Michelin stars...
stars, in 2004, rival chef Nico Ladenis showed his disapproval for the Michelin Star system by suggesting that bacon ice cream shows such a desperate need for originality in very graphic language. Blumenthal pointed out that Ladenis had never actually tried the aforementioned ice cream.
Trevor White has suggested that the Heston Blumenthal has latched onto a culture where we cannot get enough of the new and are spoiled by choice, comparing the food to a "freak-show". Janet Street-Porter is highly critical of Blumenthal's cooking philosophy, explaining that it was pretentious. She attempted to make his egg-and-bacon ice cream from the recipe published in his book, The Big Fat Duck Cookbook, altering the recipe slightly due to her hectic workload and guessing when she did not have the right tools. The end result she described as nauseating and "too sickly for words".
The ice cream also sparked debate within the Los Angeles Times, where the food writer Noelle Carter described bacon ice cream as perfection but the health section put up a photograph of a heart bypass and the headline "Bacon ice cream. No good can come of it". The Delaware "Udder Delight" ice cream maker, Chip Hearn, who made bacon ice cream appears to have done so partly as a gimmick to get people into his shop, since he allows customers to taste any flavour in the store. He explains that his flavours differentiate him from the many other parlours on the shore and many people come in to try bacon ice cream only to buy something else.
Notable uses
Bacon ice cream has been re-created by other chefs in recent years. For example, it appears on the menu at Espai Sucre in Barcelona, a restaurant that specialises in desserts, with descriptions such as "innovative" and "spectacular". In the United States, bacon was one of the themes for dessert at the Fancy food show. In 2006, two separate contestants created versions of bacon ice cream in the reality series Top ChefTop Chef
Top Chef is an American reality competition show that airs on the cable television network Bravo, in which chefs compete against each other in culinary challenges. They are judged by a panel of professional chefs and other notables from the food and wine industry with one or more contestants...
. Celebrity chef Bob Blumer
Bob Blumer
Bob Blumer is the host of Food Network's The Surreal Gourmet and Glutton for Punishment. He is also a cook book author and illustrator. Blumer was born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, but now calls Los Angeles, California his home...
won a Texas ice cream making competition with a bacon ice cream. Originally planning to use candied bacon, he changed at the last moment to do a bacon brittle
Brittle (food)
Brittle is a type of confection, consisting of flat broken pieces of hard sugar candy embedded with nuts such as pecans, almonds, or peanuts....
ice cream.