GET THE SCOOP

It's thandai, or your favourite mithai, but it's a creamy ice cream. Why are artisanal brands bringing more and more Indian spices, ingredients, and flavours into their menus?

- SAMREEN TUNGEKAR

The nostalgia of a Chocobar will forever remain special, but I’ve never been able to forget my first taste of a green chilli ice cream at the local ice cream parlour in the Panchgani market. The sweetness of it would leave a spicy aftertaste, and the thrill of a rather unconventional flavour at the time. At present, a fresh scoop at the local gelateria does more than just satisfy a sweet tooth craving – the flavours have become more unique yet familiar, there’s tartness in a sorbet that the commercial raspberry dolly could never quite have, and the room for experimentation is far wider. We can’t talk about flavour expansion without talking about the revolution of the 70s and 80s, when India’s OG ice cream brands, Apsara Ice Cream and Naturals Ice Cream took all of our favourite seasonal fruits, and turned them into seasonal desserts. I never saw sitaphal with ice cream potential before Naturals made it the norm. These brands walked, so that artisanal ice cream brands today can run. And today, running for these brands means moving beyond the tiramisus of the world, and going back to finding flavours in Indian ingredients and dishes. It’s taking the kokum out of the curry and putting it in the sorbet, or turning the buttermilk into a bonbon – no questions asked. This upward tick is further validated by this year’s Godrej Food Trend Report, where 61.5 per cent experts anticipate an increase in the demand for spice and Indian flavour-infused ice creams.

THE DESI FACTOR