Commercial Ice Cream Maker Buying Guide
Commercial ice cream makers return their initial capital quicker than most other kitchen products. Choosing the correct style and size of the machine is important to maximise profit from gelato in your restaurant. Ice cream, gelato or sorbets are the most popular dessert in the UK and will also be served alongside many classic desserts. Adding "Homemade" ice cream to your menu will certainly grab your customers attention and get them coming back for more.
Below is our buying guide for commercial ice cream makers.
How does a Commercial Ice Cream Machine Work?
In the most simple terms an ice cream maker works by cooling and mixing the gelato at the same time. Mixing without cooling will o
nly add air to the mixture. Cooling without mixing will cause ice crystals which translates into a crunchy gelato, or a solid block with no air incorporated.
What’s the difference between a commercial and domestic ice cream maker?
- Commercial machines have a built in freezer. Many domestic machines only offer a motorised paddle and a bowl that needs to be placed in the freezer for a minimum of 8 hours before use.
- Warranty – The ice cream machines that we sell come with a 1 year onsite warranty as standard for UK customers. Report any problems with the machine and a certified engineer will be out to fix the machine in 48 hours. Ensuring you won’t be without it for long.
- Capacity – Commercial machines have larger capacities than domestic versions. Domestic ice cream makers might be able to keep up with a small families requirements but will never be able to produce enough to satisfy a restaurant.
- Speed – Commercial machines produce delicious gelato in minutes rather than hours. The built in freezer can cool mixtures far faster than relying on the residual cooling of the frozen bowl.
- Multi function – Commercial machines can be set to make both hard and soft ice cream, gelato, granita, sorbet, frozen yogurt amongst other consistencies at the touch of a button. The ability to control different cooling and mixing rates contribute to this.
- Density control switch – All Nemox machines come with a density control switch that stops the motor and the freezer when the density becomes too hard. This stops the machine damaging itself when motor cannot turn frozen paddles.
Different types of ice cream machine
Domestic Pre-freeze Ice Cream Maker
As we have covered above. Domestic machines predominantly require the user to prefreeze the bowl, have reduced capacity, take longer to finish and don’t have any options to control the consistency. These should be kept at home and out of the restaurant.
Commercial Manual Machines
Commercial manual machines offer larger capacities, speed and some control of consistency but lack intelligent or automatic functions seen in the automatic machines below. The Nemox machines we supply do come with a density control switch that stops the machine if the consistency becomes too hard so they will not damage themselves. A great option if you’re looking for a simple machine that performs.
Commercial Automatic Machines
Commercial automatic machines offer intelligent programs, the ability to control small changes in consistency or pre-set options for different types of ice cream. Another key benefit of the automatic machines are the set and forget functionality. The chef can fill the machine with the mixture set it and when they return the machine will have automatically kept the gelato at optimal consistency for serving.
Size Matters
Many of the most popular machines that we sell are counter mounted. Nemox saw a growing requirement for restaurants and gastro pubs with an ever changing menu for a lower number of covers. They didn’t need a large industrial machine but wanted the opportunity to create delicious “homemade” ice cream for their customers. The countertop machines are simply plug and play, easy to clean and fast to allow flexibility in the menu.
How long does it take to make ice cream?
Nemox machines can take as little as 12 minutes to make a batch. Generally speaking the more they cost the faster and higher capacities the machines offer.
