Everyone needs a go-to brand of ice cream to grab at the store.
It’s a nostalgic, classic flavor that everyone can agree on.
Except there’s one disagreement: Which vanilla ice cream reigns supreme?
Photos by brands. Design by Eat This, Not That!
(Hey, someone had to!)
I recently sampled 10 of the most widely accessible, well-known ice cream brands.
I even threw in one lighter ice cream alternative that’s sweetened with allulose and erythritol instead of sugar.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
(Its placement on this list may surprise you.)
I sampled each product on its own and took note of looks, texture, and flavor.
The look:The ice cream is fluffy and light.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
It has visible air pockets and is easy to scoop, even straight from the freezer.
The taste:This ice cream is very sweet.
It has a strong vanilla flavor but lacks the rich density of a higher-priced ice cream.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
It’s sweetened with sugar and corn syrup.
The look:This container held the brightest, whitest ice cream I tried.
The brand also carries a vanilla bean flavor that’s presumably more bean-speckled.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
The taste:I could barely taste vanilla in this ice cream.
Though the texture was pleasant and rich, the flavor was bland.
The look:This product has a softer, airier texture than the other products I tested.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
It feels almost semi-melted straight from the fridge, which I love.
Several stabilizers and preservatives are included in the recipe to maintain that soft, fluffy texture.
It’s made with sugared egg yolks and is flavored with natural vanilla.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
Once softened, the texture is super dense and thick.
The color is pure white, with no visible vanilla beans.
It’s not icy or airy, and the flavor is highly concentrated.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
I preferred some of the more natural-tasting ice creams to this over-the-top version.
The look:This light and fluffy ice cream contains the tiniest specs of vanilla beans.
It develops the telltale ridges of an airier ice cream and scoops into nice round balls with ease.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
The taste:This ice cream has a natural vanilla flavor that’s neither overwhelming nor a background player.
It’s nice and flavorful but would be amplified by hot fudge or a slice of pie.
This is a great standard lighter ice cream choice if you don’t want to go the super-premium route.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
There are few vanilla beans visible.
The taste:I was surprised by how well-balanced and natural-tasting this ice cream was.
The look:There are no specks of vanilla bean in this smooth, purely white ice cream.
Lizzie Briskin/Eat This Not That
It has a dense, firm texture without any air pockets or ridges.
According to the label, it’s made with a “special blend of the very best vanilla.”
The look:There’s nothing remarkable about how this ice cream looks.
It has the classic off-white hue you expect from “old-fashioned” vanilla and no vanilla bean speckles.
The texture is somewhere between dense and airy.
The taste:I loved the scoopable, not-too-dense texture of this ice cream from Tillamook.
It’s made with egg yolks, which give it a natural custardy texture and flavor.
The look:This ice cream is made with vanilla extract and real vanilla beans.
It is pure white, with lots of black vanilla beans dispersed throughout.
There are no air pockets or ridges in this intense, dense dessert.
Scooping the ice cream was quite difficult.
It needs to be tempered for several minutes out of the freezer.
I needed a second spoon to separate my ice cream from the scoop.
The taste:This is one of the richest ice creams I sampled.
The texture is super smooth and thick.
The look:This ice cream has a yellowish tint and plenty of black vanilla bean bits.
The pale yellow color and rich, dense texture come from egg yolks.
This was one of the most jam-packed pints I tried.
There’s very little air inside this ice cream, clear from the hefty scoops and coat-your-mouth texture.
It’s just right.
