Good compound ingredients feature an optimal balance of components, ensuring a product with the right consistency, flavor, healthiness, and hygienic safety. To achieve perfect churning, it’s essential that the solid and liquid parts are thoroughly mixed so that water particles freeze finely and an adequate amount of air is incorporated.
In modern gelato laboratories, this is done more safely and efficiently than in the past, thanks to equipment that guarantees precision and hygiene, combined with the use of carefully balanced and selected compound ingredients: bases, stabilizers, emulsifiers, and vegetable-based thickeners that fulfill their role without altering the finished product’s organoleptic qualities or compromising its naturalness.
Depending on personal creativity, seasonality, and customer preferences, different semi-finished products can be used. Below is a list of those commonly available.
Compound Ingredients for Base Mixes
Available in powder, liquid, or paste forms, these are prepared at varying concentrations based on the additional ingredients the gelato maker plans to add. For example, some preparations contain additives for emulsification and stabilization of artisanal gelato, to which fresh ingredients are later added. Others include milk, cream, eggs, and other base components. The choice depends on time availability, seasonality (and perishability) of loose raw materials, and whether one or more pasteurizers are available in the lab.
Characterizing Compound Ingredients
These are added to base mixes to provide flavor. Examples include powdered flavorings (cocoa powder, freeze-dried coffee, licorice powder) and pastes (pistachio and other nut pastes, sugary syrups, fruit pastes), which create the various gelato flavors. The choice depends primarily on seasonality and the desired final product.
Ready-to-Use Compound Ingredients
These preparations come in powder, paste, or liquid form with complete composition, allowing quick preparation of cream or fruit gelatos without additional ingredients beyond water, milk, and/or cream according to the recipe.
Compound Ingredients for Decoration
This category includes a wide range of toppings and garnishes for gelato, based on honey or sugary syrups, chocolate or cocoa, coffee or infusions, nuts, preserves and preparations of fruits and vegetables, fruit juices and pulp, candied or syruped fruits, alcoholic products, colorings, flavorings, and additives.
- See the list of manufacturers of gelato machines and batch freezers
- See the list of compound ingredient manufacturers