Made without an ice cream maker, all you need are mangoes, condensed milk and cream to make this homemade Mango Ice Cream recipe that is creamy and scoopable, just like the ice cream you buy in tubs at the shops. Except this is ice cream money can’t buy. Because shop bought will never be able to capture the flavour of real mango like when you make it from scratch at home!
Homemade Mango Ice Cream
You won’t believe it until you try it. This really is a creamy ice cream made without an ice cream machine.
Regular readers know one of my big gripes is pretty photos of food for so so recipes. And my other gripe is watching cooking shows where the host is serenely scooping a perfect ball of ice cream and popping it in a cone when in actual fact, it’s a frozen solid mass, and if you leave it out to soften, it just turns into a puddle of liquid. I’ve been caught out so many times!
Such is the case with any recipe made with just milk, cream or yoghurt + sugar/honey. If you take it out of the freezer after 5 hours 17 minutes and 43 seconds, there is the chance that it will have frozen to that perfect stage where it is firm enough yet still scoopable. If you miss that window of opportunity by a mere second (or heaven forbid, you don’t eat it all in one sitting), it will be a frozen solid block of ice. Leave it out to soften, and, just like ice, it goes from frozen to melted.
So this homemade Mango Ice Cream recipe is dedicated to all of you who, like me, have been disappointed by efforts to make a homemade ice cream in the past. That is, without an ice cream maker! ?
A traditional ice cream starts with a sweetened mixture of cream and eggs which is then poured into an ice cream machine which churns as the ice cream gradually freezes. The churning serves two purposes: it aerates the mixture to make it light and fluffy and it stops icicles from forming so the ice cream is creamy rather than icy.
And all of this is replaced with two simple ingredients: condensed milk and cream. The whipped cream aerates the mixture and the condensed milk is the ingredient that keeps the mixture creamy, like ice cream. I must profess I don’t know the science behind why this works, I just know it does!
Whip the cream, fold through the condensed milk, add a touch of vanilla, freeze it and voila! 12 hours later, you will have an ice cream that looks like it’s store bought. Go wild with the add ins! Chocolate chips, coffee, spices, rum and raisin!
For this version, I added MANGOES!
FOR THE FOOD NERDS ?
The recipe base of condensed milk and whipped cream lends itself to flavour variations that can be stirred through (like choc chips) or infused into the cream (like spices). However, if you start adding liquid content into the mixture – like fruit purees – the addition of water based ingredients affects the creaminess of the ice cream.
Originally, I just plonked pureed mangoes into the mixture. It didn’t make the whole ice cream icy, it was still scoopable and creamy, but when I ate it, there was definitely teeny tiny bits of fine icy bits in the ice cream.
So to solve that problem, I reduced the mango puree by simmering it on the stove. The added bonus of this was that I could use more mango puree and thus get a more intense mango flavour in the puree, while avoiding those teeny tiny icicles in the ice cream.
Finally. After quite a number of batches, I was finally happy with my homemade Mango Ice Cream. Not that I was short of taste testers, even for the initial experimental versions!
And how does it compare to store bought tubs of ice cream?
Well, here’s the clincher: this mango ice cream is something you simply can’t buy at the shops. This has the real flavour of mango, not a single bit of artificial flavouring in sight. It’s really incredible. For mango lovers everything, this is your mango dream come true!
In terms of texture, this ice cream is creamier than ice cream made in an ice cream churner / store bought. You can see this in the photo above – you see how thick the drips are? If this was traditional ice cream, the drips would be thinner.
The ice cream really is scoopable, like real ice cream. Between about 12 – 18 hours of freezing, it only needs a couple of minutes out of the freezer to be easily scoopable, like what you see in the video. After about 24 hours, it freezes firmer but the key thing is that after 5 minutes or so on the counter, it softens to become scoopable without melting into liquid which is the problem with no churn ice cream recipes made without condensed milk.
I’d love to know what you think if you try it! – Nagi x
More Mango recipes
We can never have enough during mango season!!
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Homemade Mango Ice Cream recipe video! Two areas to note: The stiffness of the cream (it’s not softly whipped, it’s stiff peaks) and how thick the mango puree is when cooked down (see how when I drag the wooden spoon across the skillet, it leaves a clear path through the mango puree). Oh! And of course, notice how the ice cream is truly scoopable like real store bought tubs of ice cream!
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Homemade Mango Ice Cream Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 large mangoes , ripe and juicy - to make 2 cups puree (Note 1)
- 395 g / 14 oz sweetened condensed milk (1 can)
- 2 cups thickened cream / heavy cream / whipping cream , cold
- 1/8 tsp yellow liquid food colouring (optional) (Note 5)
Instructions
- Dice the flesh of the mango (see video for how I do it). Puree using a blender, food processor or stick blender then measure out 2 cups of mango puree (about 2 1/4 cups of diced mango).
- Pour puree into a non stick skillet over medium low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for 8 - 10 minutes or until it reduces by half. The test is when you can drag a wooden spoon across the skillet and the path remains there for a second (see video). Or measure out the puree to ensure it's reduced to at least 1 cup - less is even better!
- Cool puree.
Ice Cream
- Combine cooled mango and condensed milk in a bowl. Add food colouring if using. Whisk until combined.
- Beat cream with a hand held beater or stand mixer until stiff peaks form (see video).
- Take a scoop of cream and put it in the mango mixture. Fold through until mostly combined - lumps is fine (this is just to lighten it up a bit).
- Then pour the mango mixture into the cream. Fold through (see video) rather than mixing vigorously like you would cake batter, until lump free. This will take a few minutes.
- Pour into a container (preferably with a lid). I recommend glass, if you can, or other non reactive container.
- Place a piece of baking / parchment paper on the surface. Then place lid on or using cling wrap.
- Freeze for 12+ hours.
- Remove parchment paper. Stand for 5 minutes to soften slightly, then scoop and serve!
- If frozen for 24 hours or longer, it will need a couple of extra minutes to soften to a scoop able consistency.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
Me – currently skiing in Japan. Him – seems to be doing just fine without me….
This mango ice cream looks absolutely dreamy—so rich, creamy, and packed with real mango flavor, I love that it’s made without an ice cream maker and still turns out so perfectly smooth. The simplicity of the recipe paired with such indulgent results is just amazing. It’s the kind of treat that makes mango season even more special. Thank you for sharing such a fuss-free, delicious dessert—definitely trying this out soon for a sunny weekend indulgence.
Has anyone tried this with tinned mango puree or tinned mango pieces? Fresh mango isn’t really viable where I live.
Sorry but this didn’t work for me.
Followed the recipe exactly, using ripe Honey Gold mangoes and reduced down as per recipe
Just took out of the freezer now and it has no mango flavour at all All I can taste is a creamy condensed milk flavour.
Reckon you can churn it in an ice cream maker anyway? Let’s find out. Ima churn it.
This was a delicious and creamy icecream. Easy to make and well received by my family.
I’m going to replicate it with rum and raison next.
My diet is on hold.
Wow! I knew this would because – well, it’s mango ice cream – but it was spectacular. Such a beautiful mango taste and yellow colour. We used 2 honey gold mangoes.
I might experiment with less condensed milk next time just so we have a lower-calorie option if we want one, but I can’t imagine buying mango-flavoured ice cream ever again after tasting this.
I have frozen Bowen mangos in freezer they tend to be a bit watery after freezing do u thing tgey would work seeing as we are reducing them by half. I love Bowen have the best flavour
Hi Nagi, I can’t wait to try this recipe in mango season. However, I was wondering if one could use a chocolate ganache to fold into the ice-cream recipe instead of cocoa to make chocolate ice cream? Cheers, Alison
It is mango season on the Cayman Islands and all things mango are on. This is a very good recipe we can and probably will use for our vacation Bible School.
Wow, mango delicious.
I always play safe and add a little Vegetable glycerin, It’s a clear liquid that helps give ice cream a creamy texture and stay scoopable instead of icy when frozen.
Would 1 Tablespoon be enough for this size recipe Stuart?
Normaly you use 1 tablespoon per 1.5 litre of mixture. It does depend the sugar content The higher the sugar content, the lower the freezing point.
Yum! Yum! Yum! Soooo delicious using home grown Kensington Pride mangoes. Didn’t bother with the food colouring. Absolutely no ice crystals. Super creamy and delicious. Will be making this again, what a treat.
Outstanding, creamy and delicious. Made with mangos off the tree in the backyard too! Sublime and easy !
Thank you Nagi, I followed this recipe faithfully and the ice cream was excellent. I take your point about the differences between fruits, and why watermelon wouldn’t work, but could you simply substitute yellow peaches for the mangoes? The texture of the flesh would seem to be similar.
I was thinking just that as I was ugly eating the mango flesh leftover on the seed. I am definitely trying it with peaches. The mango ice cream turned out delightfully creamy and yummy.
So another variation which I’ve made a lot is making the base and after freezing put the mango purée on top and freeze. Cut into bars and you have home made Weiss bars
Hi Nagi, tried the recipe and it turned out really good. Can I lessen the condensed milk or add more cream to this recipe coz some find it too sweet. Will it affect the creaminess of the ice cream?
Thank you!
Tried your base recipe last night to make blueberry ice cream. I added dark chocolate chips and sliced almonds with it. It was refreshing! There were no icicles in it, really creamy. Thank you Nagi for your recipes.
I hope you’ll notice this but could you also share your recipe for frozen yogurt (froyo), if you have. Is it possible to make a creamy froyo without a churner? Thank you again and God bless.
OMG!!! So I tried this out and it was super easy to make and the taste. This tastes so good it did not last. I now have to make another batch this weekend. I used nam dok mai mangoes.
I recently made this and followed the recipe. Found it somewhat disappointing, mostly tasted like condesensed milk. Maybe need to add more mangos to it. Will try again.
I made this for a party and it was absolutely delicious! Everyone wanted seconds. It is quite easy to scoop out and the texture is just like regular ice cream and the taste is amazing!! I used 2 very ripe mangoes, almost over ripe and didn’t use any food coloring. When cooked I had a bit less than a cup but it still tasted fantastic and had a lovely orange colour. This recipe makes enough to fit a 8”x 11” glass dish. I will never buy packaged mango ice cream again. Super easy to make also.
I’m going to try this recipe for strawberry ice cream next.
I made this for a party and it was absolutely delicious! Everyone wanted seconds. It is quite easy to scoop out and the texture and taste is amazing. I will never buy packaged mango ice cream again. Super easy to make also.
I’m going to try this recipe for strawberry ice cream next.