There's more to love at Chick-fil-A besides the fast-casual chain's famous chicken sandwich,
chicken nuggets, or a cold glass of their signature lemonade. If you've ever tried Chick-fil-A's
take on ice cream, then you know it's a deliciously creamy soft serve. The chain's soft serve
is also used in almost all of its sweet treats including the different flavors of milkshakes,
the frosted lemonade, and even the frosted coffee drink.
But you may have noticed that it didn't taste quite the same as normal ice cream. You would
be right, too, because the chain's ice cream is actually called "Icedream" thanks to the
kind of ingredients Chick-fil-A uses to make the soft serve. However, it might be the light
texture and mild vanilla flavor that make it so versatile in the chain's other frozen
sweet too. To understand why Chick-fil-A's soft serve isn't really ice cream, you need
to know what constitutes real ice cream.
There are certain standards ice cream has to meet to be called ice cream. Most frozen
treats resembling ice cream are made with sugar, cream, and milk. Both ice cream and
Chick-fil-A's Icedream contain these basic ingredients. However, there's another ingredient,
or lack thereof, that determines the status of real ice cream.
The amount of air that is in ice cream can significantly improve the taste of the treat,
though it is regulated by the FDA. The amount of air that is in the ice cream is known as
overrun. So, a low overrun ice cream has little air incorporated in while high overrun has
a lot. The less air there is in the ice cream, the more space there is for butterfat, which
is why premium brands taste so good. This also accounts for low-calories pints that
allow you to eat the whole container without feeling too guilty. Those brands simply have
high overruns.
The key here is that a low overrun is vital to allow the ice cream to hold more butterfat.
When there's more butterfat in the ice cream, it tastes richer and creamier. This is the
one thing that Chick-fil-A's Icedream lacks.
The truth about Chick-fil-A's ice cream is that it doesn't have enough fat to actually
be called ice cream. In turn, this is the primary difference between Icedream and real
ice cream. According to the restaurant's website, Icedream is made with nonfat milk and milk
fat. So, the ice cream doesn't have any cream at all and very little fat overall. A lower
fat content in the Icedream does make it a healthier, lower-calorie option, however.
Not to mention, Chick-fil-A's Icedream cone was one of the most popular items ordered
in 2019, according to the chain's blog, The Chicken Wire.
Michael Douglas says, "Have you ever heard the expression, the customer is always right?"
So while the soft-serve frozen dairy dessert is very similar to ice cream, it does lack
that richness that comes with higher fat content ice creams. Though the overrun, or the air
content of the ice cream, is unknown, it seems reasonable to think it's likely higher since
the dessert has so much less fat to the point that it cannot be called ice cream. However,
the amount of air is likely responsible for the decadent texture.
However, more fat isn't always better. Similar to controlling how much air is in ice cream,
the FDA also controls how much or how little butterfat ice cream can have to be considered
real ice cream. While Chick-fil-A's frozen dairy dessert falls below the mark, other
ice creams can only have up to 20 percent butterfat. Honestly, you probably don't want
more than that, though, because the fat will start to coat your mouth, giving it a filmy
feeling.
While we cannot know with certainty, it seems unlikely that most fast-food restaurants use
much butterfat in their ice cream or ice cream-adjacent products because butterfat drives the cost
up. Wendy's famous Frosty, for example, uses less butterfat than ice cream. A former Wendy's
executive cited, quote, "customer demand" as the reason. But butterfat is usually the
most expensive ingredient in ice cream, so reducing or cutting it out altogether helps
increase a chain's bottom line. If they do use butterfat, then you'll certainly pay for
it. That's why premium ice creams tend to be so expensive.
So the next time you visit Chick-fil-A, enjoy a guilt-free Icedream cone. It will only set
you back 120 calories, according to the company's website, and that's a great thing for anyone
watching their diet. Don't forget that your child might even be able to score a free Icedream
cone if they exchange their meal's toy.
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus, even more Mashed videos about your favorite
stuff are coming soon. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss
a single one.