Shanxi shop leaves a sweet taste with its vinegar ice cream
'Delicious' and 'sweet and sour'
by Jethro Kang October 15, 2018 in Food
In China, vinegar is a no-brainer addition to everything from noodles to breaded pork cutlets, but a store in northern China is using it to flavor something rather unconventional: ice cream.
A dessert shop in Taiyuan, the provincial capital of Shanxi, has recently created the sweet treat with the sour condiment as the highlight.
The ice cream is made from milk, sorghum, peas, barley, and Lao Chen Cu (老陈醋), a type of aged vinegar the province is famous for.
“We use mature vinegar that has been fermented for three years to five years,” store employee Chen Yichao told Xinhua News Agency.
According to Chen, it took many experiments to make the vinegar ice cream palatable.
“Some people don’t like the flavor,” he said, “but we are catering to those who dare to try new things.”
There seems to be a lot of adventurous eaters: over 200 cones are sold everyday, according to China Global Television Network, and Chen said it accounted for at least 60 percent of their total daily sales. Each vinegar ice cream cone costs ¥10.
In a Weibo video by China News, a lady described the flavor as “delicious” and “sweet and sour.”
Lao Chen vinegar is considered to be one of the four famous vinegars in China. It has a history of over 3,000 years and it’s thought to be the first style of vinegar in the world.
[Photos via CGTN]