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The Daily Insight

Why did the Chinese make ice cream?

Author

David Jones

Published May 14, 2026

Why did the Chinese make ice cream?

An ice-cream-like food was first eaten in China in 618-97AD. King Tang of Shang, had 94 ice men who helped to make a dish of buffalo milk, flour and camphor. Roman emperors are supposed to have sent slaves to mountain tops to bring back fresh snow which was then flavoured and served as an early form of ice-cream.

Do Chinese like ice cream?

Ice cream is becoming hugely popular in China, as shops experiment with sweet — and savory — flavors. As China experiments with frozen treats, people can now find popsicles shaped like the Great Wall of China, boba tea-flavored ice pops and even peppercorn-flavored ice cream.

Do Chinese eat desserts?

Chinese people do eat dessert – the fruit plate,” my friend reminded me. Yes, Chinese people don’t usually order dessert, but restaurants do serve fruit platters, mostly comprising fruits that are in-season, such as watermelons, tomatoes, apples and oranges. I love it.

How popular is ice cream in China?

In 2018, China’s ice cream market reached 124.3 billion yuan ($19.2 billion), an 11.98% increase from the previous year. Ice cream production, meanwhile, has only increased by 3.54%, according to data (in Chinese) published by the Huajing Research Institute.

Why is ice cream so popular in China?

Despite its early origins ice cream never caught on in China, both because of a lack of refrigeration in Chinese homes and because the Chinese believe it is unhealthy to eat completely frozen foods. Demand for ice cream is slowly increasing, especially in larger cities such as Beijing and Shanghai.

How did Marco Polo get ice cream from China?

According to the world-famous explorer Marco Polo, coming back from his years of travels in China in 1254 (and yes, most researchers nowadays believe that he actually did visit China) the Chinese had mastered a process whereby they managed to freeze ice cream by using salt and salpeter (nitre) to lower the freezing point of ice.

Where does ice cream come from in the world?

Ice cream is a popular dessert loved the world over. Many of my students assume that ice cream is a dessert that is imported from the West. That is NOT true! Actually, ice cream originated in China. Millenniums ago, emperors stored iced drinks in cellars, to keep them safe from the summer heat, and would drink them each summer to cool off.

Where can I get yolk ice cream in China?

The yolk ice cream can be found in Bonus (陆记蟹行), a Chinese ice cream store in Shanghai. These are all newly invented flavors and consumers are keen on trying them. On a widely used restaurants review and recommendation app called Dianping (大众点评), Global scored 8.3 on a scale from 1 to 10 in terms of its flavors, which is a pretty high mark.

Despite its early origins ice cream never caught on in China, both because of a lack of refrigeration in Chinese homes and because the Chinese believe it is unhealthy to eat completely frozen foods. Demand for ice cream is slowly increasing, especially in larger cities such as Beijing and Shanghai.

Where does the origin of ice cream come from?

The History of Ice Cream. Its origins date back as far as 200 B.C., when people in China created a dish of rice mixed with milk that was then frozen by being packed in snow. The Chinese King Tang of Shang is thought to have had over ninety “ice men” who mixed flour, camphor, and buffalo milk with ice.

According to the world-famous explorer Marco Polo, coming back from his years of travels in China in 1254 (and yes, most researchers nowadays believe that he actually did visit China) the Chinese had mastered a process whereby they managed to freeze ice cream by using salt and salpeter (nitre) to lower the freezing point of ice.

How did the Japanese make their ice cream?

And leave it to the Japanese to transform an ancient food into something totally trendy (and completely adorable): They pounded down that sweet mochi dough into sheets, wrapped it around balls of ice cream and turned it into one of the most Instagrammable desserts of the year. How does it taste?