How to Freeze Dry Ice Cream

Freeze Drying Ice Cream is one of my favorite treats to produce for my freeze-dried business. It’s a lot of work but with the correct tools and methods, you can up your product line to the next level for your customers by offering Freeze Dried Ice Cream. In this video, I show you how I quickly scoop the ice cream so that it doesn’t melt while securing a great-looking bite-size scoop.
If you find the content in this video helpful or entertaining, please hit the LIKE button or Subscribe. Thank you!
You can support my channel by purchasing items from the links below for either personal use or your freeze-dried business. Thank you!
Here are several freeze-dryers I use in my business and I would recommend considering them for your existing freeze-dried business or just starting out.
Harvest Right Freeze Dryers - affiliates.har...
StayFresh Freeze Dryers - stayfreshfreez...
Here are the items I used in this video:
Cookie/Ice Cream Scoop (1/2 or 1 tablespoon size) - amzn.to/3utyX4H
Other items I buy for my freeze-dried business:
Avery Labels for Product Ingredients - amzn.to/3VEpjbo
Oxygen Absorbers (200 pack, 50cc) - amzn.to/3VGPkqS
Dry & Dry 1 Gram(400 Packets) Food Safe Silica Packets: amzn.to/3h45CLc
Kraft Food Bags (100 count) - amzn.to/3iGpi8n
Square Chip Reader for Events - amzn.to/3h4cbNX
Rollo Printer for Shipping Labels - amzn.to/3W1ylzj
DISCLAIMER: This video description contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. This helps support my channel and allows me to continue making videos. Thank you for the support!

[@kathleen8765]

Another great video! I love all of the tips you give! I'm so excited to get my FD and try this out!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Have fun!

[@kathleen8765]

@@freezedriedbusiness thank you!

[@sarames9256]

what happens if i taste test 2 and theyre nice and crunchy, but i grab a 3rd and its a bit chewy in the middle? Does that mean itll go bad faster because its milk? and would it spoil the rest? Im selling them and I'm scared to give someone spoiled food.

[@Judten1]

Hello. So does this mean you exceeded over the 15 minutes of when your machine says load the trays? Is that what I would have to do? Thank you very much.

[@dustyboots03]

Thanks for sharing such complete info!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Happy to help, thank you for watching.

[@dderr1356]

Thank you! I appreciate you!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

You are so welcome!

[@thedrmike1]

Thank you so much for the tips. I got my freeze dryer last night and have used your videos to help make candy, but I want to try ice cream. I have a basic, hopefully not stupid question. How do I set the freezer dryer (Harvest Right) to just freeze, like you do while loading ice cream? I hit the leaf, and it comes up with functional test, and I can toggle freezer on and off, but I don't know if that's the correct way to do it. Thanks again.

[@judyblaise1639]

The ice cream looks great

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Thank you! All hand-scooped.

[@ralph2003x]

Have you ever done paletas ? I’ve ran my FD for almost 3 days and they are still moist not sure what I’m doing wrong. They are hard and sticky. More Drying time ?do I need to warm the trays more ?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I have not, you may want to try a very light amount on each tray to speed up the cycle or it may just be a dud of a freeze dried product.

[@jozy5154]

Could you get a big freezer ?and put them in a freezer, multiple trays, and left overnight

[@DangerZone-w6y]

Great Tips.

[@The_Christian-777]

I came here for the settings. What settings on your harvest right did you use?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

125 degrees and final dry for 6 hours or more. I'm getting ready to revise this video and update with better information in a few months.

[@motrwithmary6531]

If you have Braums near you, their ice cream freeze dries very well and will disappear before you can bag it, keep kids and stray adults awy from your trays 😂

[@donheggenstaller6416]

I liked on your one video where you showed your costs and ROI. You did it in a google spreadsheet. Any chance you'll be doing more of that in the future?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I will aim for another video like that early next year.

[@jasonkustra5671]

Were the settings mentioned anywhere here? I was actually doing a batch in my freeze dryer while listening so I might have missed it

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Check out my latest videos on freeze drying ice cream, settings are the default settings for most freeze dryers of 125 degrees with a freezing temp of -10

[@jasonkustra5671]

@@freezedriedbusiness love your honest videos. You inspired me to get into this and my first batch ever was last night for skittles and they came out perfect!

[@fernandotabares7367]

Hi! Just one question. How much did the weight reduce after the freeze drying? For example if you freeze dry 1 pound ice cream, How much does the result weigh? Thanks!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I haven't calculated that yet but you'd be surprised at how little it does change in weight. It's still lighter but not like fruit.

[@maryrobinson4166]

What are the settings?

[@Grannygangg]

Hi, how long does it take to freeze dry ice cream & how much do you recommend charging per bag?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

About 36-48 hours and I charge $12 for a 3 oz bag of freeze dried ice cream

[@BryanKirch]

How long did you have to leave ice cream in the dryer for?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

It freezes for probably 6 hours and then the entire process is between 32-40 hours

[@BryanKirch]

@@freezedriedbusiness thank you! What are your thoughts on this blueAlpine freeze dryer company?

[@دليلالعبدفيكشفالهبد]

Hi, is the freeze dried food too hard on the teeth to bite on ? and what affordable brand of Freeze Dryers do you recommend. Thanks.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

No in fact some things are "malt-like" so they melt in your mouth. Whether you are just starting out or want to expand your freeze dryer equipment, I recommend Harvest Right Freeze Dryers. affiliates.harvestright.com/1974.html

[@tonyb33168]

If you can setup a small work area inside of a walkin freezer you can maybe do it all at once .

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Thought about it but I'd freeze in there.

[@Ale-yt2ok]

What settings do you use ? Also during the initial freeze time the machine doesn’t go below 15 degrees, so does that mean I have to click continue so the machine freezes ?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

125 degrees for dry time and then at least 6-8 hours of final dry time. Second part of your question is yes press the continue to get below the 15 degrees. I typically do that when I’m on my second rotation of putting ice cream on the trays. The pump won’t turn on when you press continue I promise

[@Ale-yt2ok]

@@freezedriedbusiness so if the pump is on my ice cream will explode ?. It has happened to me, you also mentioned you put your trays in at 15 degrees, your ice cream won’t explode at that temperature?

[@seniorchonkza997]

@@Ale-yt2ok temperature wont cause the ice cream to "explode". Air pockets already inside the ice cream will expand when a vacuum is pulled due to the differential pressure. If the ice cream is frozen enough, this won't happen at all even when you turn the pump on but that's about the extent of my knowledge

[@galaxyaj2938]

What are the settings you used for the ice cream?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I've got a new video up on Ice Cream, I stick with 125 degrees: kzbin.info/www/bejne/n2Hdh5aqjd9oiZI&lc=Ugx3dQzH4IE8JvHJOfx4AaABAg

[@hydroponichomestead]

What ice cream do you recommend for lactose intolerant people?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Breyers Lactose Free Natural Vanilla, which is 99% lactose-free

[@catf2065]

Glad to see you can FD Tillamook! I was wondering about the high fat content and if the FD could even handle it and using the small scoops is such a great idea

[@freezedriedbusiness]

You will notice a difference in how off-brand ice cream FD's versus more premium brands like Tillamook. Use the small ice cream scooper I put in the video description, it's fairly inexpensive on Amazon.

[@philw7174]

Thanks for this video David. Can you please tell me the size of the cookie scooper that you use? Happy trails!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

It’s a small scooper, there’s a link in the video description of one listed on Amazon.

[@philw7174]

@@freezedriedbusiness They show 5 different sizes. My guess is 1 tablespoon? Or 1.5? Thank you for the reply.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I would suggest the 1/2 tablespoon or 1 tablespoon scoop.

[@jamesross8704]

So you bring the freeze drier down below 15 deg first. What temp do you set it on. I am very new.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Correct, pre-freeze the FD to below 15 degrees. You don't need to change any other settings for the dry cycle, the machine settings have worked fine for me.

[@thedrmike1]

Thanks. How do you pre-freeze the FD to below 15? Do you hit continue when it says load trays but then wait until loading the trays, and then when done close the valve?@@freezedriedbusiness

[@scarleenswalker7923]

Are there flavors of ice cream that better, or not so good? What does best?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Tillamook is the best!

[@permabull5885]

Can you explain what you mean when you say that after the ice cream is done drying that you need to warm the trays to prevent ice crystals from forming. There shouldn't be any water left in the ice cream.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Thank you for the comment! I don't think I say that warming the trays would remove ice crystals but if that's what you took from it then no that's not correct. After a cycle is done, the FD will automatically begin to cool down and if it's been hours since it's finished then it could get back down to a 0 degree temp so I suggest warming the trays to kinda get that freezing coat off the batch. That's what I meant by warming the trays. But you are correct that there shouldn't be any leftover water in the freeze-dried ice cream if the drying processed correctly. Thank you for watching!

[@markandlisalucey]

Do you run at zero or do you have to be colder for ice cream

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I run at 15 degrees or less before starting to put the scoops on the trays and into the freeze dryer

[@kristenwahlstrom5365]

WHAT SIZE SCOOP IS THAT?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I believe it’s a #2 type, I’ve got a new ice cream video out right now with the exact tool

[@ToniaS-c2v]

Hi there I'm in the process of buying a freeze drying machine and starting my freeze driyng company. . I found freeze dried neopolitan ice cream on Etsy neopolitan is my favorite strawberry is my second I've bought so much of the stuff since I found it again. My godfather worked for NASA and when I was a kid he sent me a box of austranaut ice cream neopolitan it was my favorite thing to get every year. Until I get my freeze driyng machine how much do you charge for your neopolitan ice cream for a7 1/2 oz bag

[@freezedriedbusiness]

If you haven’t purchased your machine yet, would you use this referral link to buy online? affiliates.harvestright.com/1974.html. I charge $12 for a bag containing 2.5 net ounces of freeze dried ice cream

[@dennisbasile-pq4od]

what are the settings

[@freezedriedbusiness]

125 degrees and final dry minimum 8 hours

[@justindavis755]

how many hours and what is tray temp?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Tray temp is 125, hours range between 24-42 hours depending on the heat in your environment.

[@Aspiring-Hobo]

How do the Ice Cream scoops not melt into the bottom and make a puddle? They seem to stay intact, how?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I stick to a very strict cadence as I show in the video. I pre-freeze the machine to under 15 degrees F and I freeze the trays as well. I scoop about half the quart and then put it back in the freezer as well as put the tray in the freeze dryer, and I continue that process until the trays are full.

[@tawnys340]

Where do you sell your products?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

In Idaho!

[@HelenWhite-z3r]

Do you use oxygen absorbers in your bags

[@freezedriedbusiness]

For ice cream I do not but I do for fruit

[@HelenWhite-z3r]

@@freezedriedbusiness Thank you.

[@isa30001]

Hi 👋 have you ever had any issues with the fruit, cookie dough, or chocolate bits in the ice cream doing anything funny? And what tempbare you drying at?

[@TheGoodkilo]

Could you freeze dry Dippin dots? I was thinking they would be cool because they are so small you could eat like 10 at a time.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I’m sure they would freeze dry just like normal ice cream

[@yahairaluvsyou]

Those are my favorites 😅

[@kimberlysloan7525]

I doubt it. They are kept frozen at -40.

[@Sourcecodemastergoaheadcheater]

Would you like to help me help you make money and be my Administrator work together

[@DianaMurphy-ef2sy]

Hi, what temp and everything do i need to set the freeze drier at? Thank you for your videos

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I don’t change the standard temp for ice cream which is 125.

[@babygirlwithers]

​@freezedriedbusiness for how long? My kids really want to try the ice cream lol

[@stephenframstad4078]

Wouldn’t it be easier to just prep the trays in a walk in freezer?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

If you had a walk in freezer yes!

[@dderr1356]

First FD on the way

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Congratulations!

[@Jr-nd9kd]

Can yoy freeze dry sherbert

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Haven't tried yet but I don't see why not.

[@realwildgoods]

Thanks for not showing us the outcome! 🤦‍♂️

[@freezedriedbusiness]

4th video I ever posted on this channel so I’ve learned a lot of what people want to see since then, check out my updated ice cream video on the channel