Pacojet Competitor? The Ninja Creami

[andrewk512]

21 hours ago, ElsieD said:

@andrewk512  I could go back through all these pages to see where you talk about peach sorbet but I'll ask here instead.  What were your ingredients for that sorbet?  Now that I am getting the machine, I'll be taking notes.

 

400g cooked peach puree [90% of pre-cook weight], 64g dextrose, 34g sucrose, 1.5g cremodan 64, malic & citric acid to taste. Needs to be frozen to -26C though. I am in the process of reworking all my recipes to be able to process out of a -18C freezer, will post when done.

 

1 hour ago, weinoo said:

 

I thought the idea was to use a blender to puree everything before freezing?

 

I actually wonder if the prior comments about it not effectively pureeing everything were from products that weren't frozen cold enough. Watching my machine a lot it seems the warmer the product gets the less effective the blending is. I think maybe freezing to -20C or -22C everything might blend in nicely. Or maybe that's me trying to convince myself that I need to buy a deep freezer.... was looking at them all last night (and dipping cabinets but I'm hearing these aren't good for long term storage)

 

 

 

I wasn't able to process my fennel oil yet. I woke up this morning and the oil had gone below the level of the fennel so I had to top it up. It's not frozen enough yet

[weinoo]

On 9/3/2021 at 9:56 AM, btbyrd said:

Kyl Haselbauer of ChefSteps has this to report after some limited testing.

"So far I am a fan of the thing for sure.  The biggest differences I have found so far [between the Ninja and the PacoJet] would be the results when you use whole fruit chunks with syrups or ice cream bases.  It just doesn't have the power to blend them Smooth, But it is still pretty dang good.   I would just recommend throwing everything through a blender before you freeze it.  I highly recommend it for $200.  I'll probably be ordering one to keep at home for sure.  I won't bash any other products directly here,  but it is 10x better than any other brands counter top ice cream machines for way less $$.  Not sure about the build quality and how long it will last, but for now I'm a fan.

@rotuts - see the above

[rotuts]

@Shelby 

 

''  Thinking about booking a hotel for our guest and Ronnie with meal reservations........ ''

 

smart

 

very smart.

[rotuts]

@weinoo 

 

OK

 

results tomorrow

 

-ish

 

 

re

ChefSteps ?

 

Ok here , there 

 

results tomorrow 

 

FD :  dont know why I used the Granton in the can

 

just though of it

 

no C.S. involved

 

remember :

 

@weinoo

 

the container is 1 Pt  ( I think )

 

the work id done in your freezer.

 

and you can possibly 

 

put 1/2 pf that pint back

 

and fix it up tomorrow !

 

Ed. :  ' Fix it Up Tomorrow "

 

is now a TradeMark of eGullet 

[ElsieD]

12 minutes ago, andrewk512 said:

 

400g cooked peach puree [90% of pre-cook weight], 64g dextrose, 34g sucrose, 1.5g cremodan 64, malic & citric acid to taste. Needs to be frozen to -26C though. I am in the process of reworking all my recipes to be able to process out of a -18C freezer, will post when done.

 

 

I actually wonder if the prior comments about it not effectively pureeing everything were from products that weren't frozen cold enough. Watching my machine a lot it seems the warmer the product gets the less effective the blending is. I think maybe freezing to -20C or -22C everything might blend in nicely. Or maybe that's me trying to convince myself that I need to buy a deep freezer.... was looking at them all last night (and dipping cabinets but I'm hearing these aren't good for long term storage)

 

 

 

I wasn't able to process my fennel oil yet. I woke up this morning and the oil had gone below the level of the fennel so I had to top it up. It's not frozen enough yet

 

I need to check the temperature of my freezer.  I doubt very much it goes to -26C.

[rotuts]

@ElsieD 

 

I think regular freezers 

 

are going to do fine.

 

give it a bit of space 

 

and appropriate time.

 

Ill take picks 

 

I might thermopen it

 

but , its there

 

Im processing it

 

\and can but it back 

 

until tomorrow 

 

 

 

 

[JeanneCake]

I should have checked to see if it was possible to buy extra beakers.  Any time I bought a KitchenAid mixer, I always bought an extra bowl, whip and beater.  Which is why I have such a great selection now and I don't have to immediately wash a bowl when I need it......

[ElsieD]

37 minutes ago, JeanneCake said:

I should have checked to see if it was possible to buy extra beakers.  Any time I bought a KitchenAid mixer, I always bought an extra bowl, whip and beater.  Which is why I have such a great selection now and I don't have to immediately wash a bowl when I need it......

 

I could not find any extra beakers on the BBB Canadian site but you will likely have better luck on the American one.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

6 hours ago, blue_dolphin said:

 

This story about a gentleman who set up a full woodworking shop in his apartment aired on local radio a while ago. Of course, @JoNorvelleWalker came immediately to mind. 

 

My metalworking shop is in the living room.  But I'd have to move the rum from the workbench to use it.

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I'm kicking myself that I could have saved $10 by entering a promo code.

 

[mgaretz]

Extra containers have been out of stock on the American site for a while. They gave me a 10% off coupon to buy extras and it was only good for seven days, but they’re out and you can’t back order them. When I called to complain the only answer they had was to call again when they are back in stock and ask for a discount. I’m hoping the coupon doesn’t actually expire. 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

4 minutes ago, mgaretz said:

Extra containers have been out of stock on the American site for a while. They gave me a 10% off coupon to buy extras and it was only good for seven days, but they’re out and you can’t back order them. When I called to complain the only answer they had was to call again when they are back in stock and ask for a discount. I’m hoping the coupon doesn’t actually expire. 

 

The unit I ordered comes with five containers.  Somewhere in this thread I read that if you registered your purchase with Ninja you could get an additional container.  Is this still the case?

 

[mgaretz]

20 minutes ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

 

The unit I ordered comes with five containers.  Somewhere in this thread I read that if you registered your purchase with Ninja you could get an additional container.  Is this still the case?

 

 

They make it sound like they give you extra containers.  They don't.  They give you a 10% off coupon.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

10 minutes ago, mgaretz said:

 

They make it sound like they give you extra containers.  They don't.  They give you a 10% off coupon.

 

If so, sad.  I neglected to use the 10% off coupon.

 

[mgaretz]

Success!  This was peanut butter salted caramel, made with almond milk and coconut oil powder.  It came out great!  Just like when I use the soft serve mix.  I am hopeful it will still be good after freezing for day, but I am betting it will. 

 

It only took one spin on the ice cream setting and nothing stuck to the sides.

 

Here is the base recipe so far:

 

Unsweetened, unflavored almond milk:  14 fluid ozs 

Coconut oil powder:  22 grams - see notes

Table sugar: 120 grams

Vegetable glycerin:  1 tbs 

Perfect Sorbet stabilizer (Modernist pantry): 3.5 grams

 

For this flavor I also added:

1/4 cup peanut butter powder

1 tbs Torani Classic Caramel Syrup (see notes)

1 tsp sea salt (table grind)

 

Notes:  The coconut oil powder I used is 8% fat and also contains soluble tapioca fiber, sodium caseinate, sunflower lecithin and silicon dioxide.  This one: https://amzn.to/3kb5TKW  If you use something with a different fat percentage you will have to adjust the quantities.

The syrup is this one: https://amzn.to/2XhHL0v  I normally use 1/4 cup but I ran out and all I had was 1 tbs.  Didn't seem to matter to the flavor so that's what I will use from now on.

 

After spinning:

 

 

After scooping with a spoon:

 

 

 

 

Edited September 15, 2021 by mgaretz
changed smoothie mix to soft serve mix (log)

[mgaretz]

By the way, no hint of coconut flavor!  Not that I have anything against coconut flavor, but only when I want it, not all the time.  The powdered oil is more often marketed as MCT oil.

[dhardy123]

1 hour ago, mgaretz said:

Success!  This was peanut butter salted caramel, made with almond milk and coconut oil powder.  It came out great!  Just like when I use the soft serve mix.  I am hopeful it will still be good after freezing for day, but I am betting it will. 

 

It only took one spin on the ice cream setting and nothing stuck to the sides.

 

Here is the base recipe so far:

 

Unsweetened, unflavored almond milk:  14 fluid ozs 

Coconut oil powder:  22 grams - see notes

Table sugar: 120 grams

Vegetable glycerin:  1 tbs 

Perfect Sorbet stabilizer (Modernist pantry): 3.5 grams

 

For this flavor I also added:

1/4 cup peanut butter powder

1 tbs Torani Classic Caramel Syrup (see notes)

1 tsp sea salt (table grind)

 

Notes:  The coconut oil powder I used is 8% fat and also contains soluble tapioca fiber, sodium caseinate, sunflower lecithin and silicon dioxide.  This one: https://amzn.to/3kb5TKW  If you use something with a different fat percentage you will have to adjust the quantities.

The syrup is this one: https://amzn.to/2XhHL0v  I normally use 1/4 cup but I ran out and all I had was 1 tbs.  Didn't seem to matter to the flavor so that's what I will use from now on.

 

After spinning:

 

 

After scooping with a spoon:

 

 

 

 

Have you or has anybody tried freezing small chunks of peanut butter ahead of time and then adding them in as a mix in?

[mgaretz]

20 minutes ago, dhardy123 said:

Have you or has anybody tried freezing small chunks of peanut butter ahead of time and then adding them in as a mix in?

 

Not me.  I have tried many commercial products with "real" peanut butter swirls and have never really been impressed with the result.  It's like an intrusion instead of a complimentary addition.

[ElsieD]

[andrewk512]

Fennel oil. Color is more vibrant in real life. There was a bit left on the walls but not much. I would've liked a darker green but partly my fault as I didn't fully pack in the fronds and I used some other bits from my end of the season plant. We'll see how it looks and tastes when it thaws

[andrewk512]

 

Color deepened up nicely with thawing. Fennel oil on right. Fennel puree after pushing through strainer on the left.

 

The texture pre straining was similar to a blender puree of fennel, smooth but not 100% smooth. The fennel oil has a lot of particulate and should probably go through a cheesecloth for the most refined outcome.

 

Overall I would rate this process as equivalent to a vita mix. Given these results, I don't see much use for this at home yet to be honest. It might be handy for smaller volume purees, or assisting mise en place for a large dinner or one where you need the blender for a lot of other things

 

 

I did another watermelon sorbet today (right) compared to old. I added 2.5% inulin and am really happy with the results. The mouthfeel was a lot creamier, more akin to an ice cream, and the texture was noticeably smoother. I might try with 3.5-4% next time.

 

Watermelon sorbet: 378g pureed and strained watermelon flesh; 106g sucrose; 0.9g malic acid; 0.9g citric acid; 1.5g cremodan 64; 12.5g inulin. Blend, strain and freeze to -18C before processing on sorbet function.

 

 

Edited September 15, 2021 by andrewk512 (log)

[mgaretz]

Happy to report my new recipe stayed nice and scoopable after 24 hours in the freezer.  No sign of iciness.

 

[IEATRIO]

On 9/14/2021 at 5:00 PM, andrewk512 said:

 

400g cooked peach puree [90% of pre-cook weight], 64g dextrose, 34g sucrose, 1.5g cremodan 64, malic & citric acid to taste. Needs to be frozen to -26C though. I am in the process of reworking all my recipes to be able to process out of a -18C freezer, will post when done.

 

 

Is this a recipe you've carried over from the churning world, or if you've designed it with the Creami in mind? If the later, wondering about the cremodan. Have you found that the stabilizer makes any difference? I have been removing stabilizers and hydrocolloids I would normally use in ice cream to preserve texture as unnecessary given the way that the machine works. We don't need to worry about the texture as it ages because we can just reprocess it and make the texture perfect again. Or have you noticed a difference in the final product? Thanks.

[ElsieD]

I have two pints in the freezer, one with mango pulp and one with strawberry ice cream.  The mango went into the freezer late yesterday afternoon and the ice cream around 9 last night.  I checked the temperature and they read 1F which is within the range required.  Given that they are within the targeted temperature range can I spin them now or do I have to wait the full 24 hours?  Is the time factor more important that the temperature?

[andrewk512]

1 hour ago, IEATRIO said:

Is this a recipe you've carried over from the churning world, or if you've designed it with the Creami in mind? If the later, wondering about the cremodan. Have you found that the stabilizer makes any difference? I have been removing stabilizers and hydrocolloids I would normally use in ice cream to preserve texture as unnecessary given the way that the machine works. We don't need to worry about the texture as it ages because we can just reprocess it and make the texture perfect again. Or have you noticed a difference in the final product? Thanks.

 

It's made for a cheap churning machine that's why the freezing point depression is so high. My new recipes I am making to be frozen to -18C before processing

 

I haven't been able to conduct any direct experiments about stabilizers. You are probably right though for most recipes it is not necessary in this new machine. Since I only have 3 containers I have been removing all my sorbets to other containers though. Also I have now been focusing on some high water content fruit where I think the stabilizers/inulin are more important. For peach you likely do not need it.

 

57 minutes ago, ElsieD said:

I have two pints in the freezer, one with mango pulp and one with strawberry ice cream.  The mango went into the freezer late yesterday afternoon and the ice cream around 9 last night.  I checked the temperature and they read 1F which is within the range required.  Given that they are within the targeted temperature range can I spin them now or do I have to wait the full 24 hours?  Is the time factor more important that the temperature?

 

Temp is most important. The time is a failsafe. In some of the Ninja technical documents they actually say that only 16.5 hours are required in ideal conditions.

Edited September 16, 2021 by andrewk512 (log)