Watermelon Sorbet (No ice cream maker needed!) (2024)

FAQs

Do you need to churn sorbet? ›

The traditional method would be to churn it like ice cream, like in this recipe for lemon sorbet. Another way is to make a pureed mixture, pour it into a pan and let it freeze, stirring frequently until smooth and slushy like this rosemary citrus sorbet recipe.”

Sugar doesn't just sweeten sorbet—it's also responsible for sorbet's structure. In ice cream, a combination of fat, protein, and sugar all influences ice cream's texture, but in sorbet sugar is the big fish.

Alcohol doesn't freeze, so it helps prevent sorbet from freezing solid. A little bit goes a long way. 1 to 3 Tablespoons per quart of sorbet is a good rule of thumb. If too much alcohol is added the sorbet will stay mushy.

Without fat from dairy or eggs, it's the suspension of sugar within the fruit purée that allows the sorbet to churn into something with a creamy mouthfeel. You need 20-30% sugar in your sorbet, which will come from your fruit plus some added sugar.

Making home-made sorbet is easier than you think. You don't even need an ice cream machine! It's basically just frozen fruit puree sweetened with sugar and water.

The quality of the water is important as well — if your water has a bad aftertaste, so will your sorbet — so we recommend using bottled. The optional egg white helps to stabilize, emulsify, and preserve the texture of the sorbet if you are going to keep it in your freezer for a few days.

Lemon Water

It may seem like an overwrought step but it really helps. It gives the sorbet even more lemon flavor and just a touch of bitterness which nicely balances the sweet and sour. There is so much flavor in lemon peel it would be a waste not to take advantage of it.

The egg test: Clean an egg well in water. Dry it and place it into your sorbet mixture - the egg should float and the tip should stick out about the size of a dime. If it is more than a dime - there is too much sugar.

Anyone who has stored a bottle of booze in the freezer (that's how you get the coldest martini) knows that it doesn't freeze all the way. Why? Alcohol has a low freezing point (about -16°F, depending on the spirit), and your freezer hovers around 0°F. This makes alcohol an invaluable addition to no-churn ice cream.

What are three sorbet flavors? ›

These icy treats are perfectly refreshing on a hot day or as an after-dinner dessert. Learn how to make sorbet with our indulgent recipes including lemon, raspberry and pineapple. Sorbet is a great vegan ice cream alternative as it usually doesn't contain dairy.

Too much sugar will not only make for a sickeningly sweet dessert, it also reduces the freezing point so that firstly, your sorbet will take ages to freeze, and secondly, it will crystallize as it freezes. Too little sugar and you end up with loads of crunchy ice crystals.

The churning is necessary because the key to great ice cream is to freeze the custard without allowing ice crystals to develop. Those crystals won't affect the flavor, but they do have an impact on the texture.

Using a little neutral alcohol will also affect the freezing (without actually affecting the flavour), will help fight the growth of the ice crystals and prevent the sorbet from freezing too hard. But it won't stop the air from abandoning the sorbet.

All you need is chopped fruits, puree it, then add a little simple syrup and lemon juice, chill the base, churn the sorbet, and then freeze it.

Corn syrup also stops sugar crystals from forming, thereby keeping your sorbet's consistency thick. It's long been used to provide a cohesive texture in hard candy and jelly, and it's more viscous than granulated sugar — meaning it can add thickness and creaminess to whatever food it's in.