The 5-Ingredient Homemade Ice Cream Recipe Olympic Breakdancer Sunny Choi Makes to Win Gold

When American dancer Sunny Choi isn’t making waves on the dance floor, you’ll likely find her experimenting in the kitchen. In a recent conversation I had with Choi, she revealed that in addition to breakdancing, she has a deep passion for food. “I love cooking. For me, it allows me to get creative and relax a little bit, especially after a long day,” Choi explains.

This year, Choi is set to compete in the 2024 Paris Summer Games, which will mark breaking’s official Olympic debut. In anticipation of the event (the competition is scheduled for August 9-10), Choi has teamed up with Incredible Egg for its “Meant to Be Broken” campaign, to dive deeper into one of her all-time favorite ingredients to snack on while training for the competition: eggs.

But like many of us, Choi loves a good dessert, which is why she can’t get enough of her latest egg-based concoction, “Custard Freeze, Sunny Style,” a homemade, dairy-free ice cream.

Below, Choi shares the recipe for her five-ingredient custard ice cream, as well as a few other egg-filled dishes she regularly makes to motivate herself to hit the dance floor.

Cooking as another form of self-expression

Choi isn’t afraid to push the boundaries (pun intended), especially when she’s performing on the dance floor. However, she’s discovered a similar passion for trying new things when she’s cooking in the kitchen. In fact, it’s one of her favorite places to let her imagination run wild. “I love to cook, I love to bake, and I make things with whatever I have lying around in my kitchen,” she says.

In recent years, Choi has spent a lot of time experimenting with new ingredients and recipes, partly because of her own struggles with lactose intolerance. “I don’t have a very strong stomach. I’m lactose intolerant, so I can’t usually have dairy,” she says, which has made her even more adept at cooking.

2 Savory Egg Dishes Choi Loves to Make

Fried eggs with sesame oil

Coincidentally, two of her all-time favorite savory recipes feature eggs: a simple fried egg with sesame oil and a spicy version of shakshuka.

“(A fried egg in sesame oil) is super simple, but it reminds me of home, which is why I love it,” Choi says. To make it, she fries eggs in sesame oil—instead of olive oil or any other oil—and tops them with a pinch of salt. “It gives them a subtle sesame flavor. It’s the easiest thing in the world (with) tons of protein,” Choi says.

Spicy “Shakshuka”

On the flip side, she also enjoys making a shakshuka-style breakfast every now and then. However, instead of the traditional Mediterranean spices (cumin, paprika, and cayenne), she adds her own creative twist by infusing the dish with chipotle and green chiles for a more Latin take. “I add eggs, bake it, and then eat it with tortillas,” Choi says.

The inspiration behind the “Custard Freeze”

When you’re craving something sweet, Choi regularly makes his signature “custard ice cream” recipe, and it’s easy to see why. In addition to being delicious, Choi says it’s dairy-free, naturally sweetened, and has a rich, creamy consistency. Swoon.

“A few years ago, I was looking for frozen treats, but I couldn’t find anything that suited me. So I took pieces from other stores, mixed it all together, and tested several variations,” Choi says.

Choi’s ice cream recipe only has a handful of ingredients: coconut cream, egg yolks, honey, vanilla, and almond extract. The best part? You don’t do it You’ll need a fancy ice cream maker to make it; a food processor or blender will also help you achieve the consistency of soft-serve ice cream.

After much testing, Choi finally perfected her recipe. “It’s still easy to take, has a fairly high fat content, so when you put it in the food processor and freezer, you don’t have to wait for it to thaw,” she says.

For those who have never made homemade ice cream, this recipe is a game changer. “I get impatient when I’m trying to make my dessert and I don’t want to wait for my ice cream to soften, so I can just scoop it and then go work out,” she explains.

Daring to try it? Choi recommends trying it “Sunny’s way” by infusing the custard with matcha for an extra energy (and flavor) boost.

As Choi prepares to win gold this summer, she says she’s looking forward to competing, meeting new people and soaking up the energy of the event. “But I think more than anything, (I’m most excited) that my family is here. We don’t get to get together with everyone very often,” she says. Plus, like her, they love food. “One of my nieces is planning a whole day dedicated to food,” Choi says. “It’s really having my family there — I think that’s what I’m looking forward to the most — even more than the competition,” she adds.

Sunny Style Ice Cream Recipe

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

1 can (13.5 ounces) coconut cream
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1. Heat the coconut cream in a saucepan over medium heat to 170°F.
2. Temper the egg yolks, then whisk the egg yolk mixture into the hot coconut cream. (To temper the egg yolks, pour some of the hot coconut cream over the egg yolks while whisking. This keeps the egg yolks from cooking and turning into scrambled eggs once added to the hot coconut cream.)
3. Continue to whisk the mixture over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes until the mixture thickens slightly. The mixture should be around 170°F. For food safety reasons, always make sure eggs are cooked to 160°F and/or use pasteurized eggs.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and place it in an ice bath. Stir the mixture to cool. If using regular honey, you can add honey and flavorings at this point. If using raw honey, let the mixture cool to 105°F before adding the honey.
5. Let cool then freeze the mixture.
6. Once frozen, remove from freezer and allow to thaw at room temperature.
7. Add the mixture to a food processor or blender and blend until the mixture reaches the consistency of soft serve ice cream.
8. Serve immediately or transfer to a container and freeze for later. Enjoy!

Pro tips: For matcha ice cream, remove the almond extract and stir in 1 1/2 tablespoons of matcha powder after removing the mixture from the heat. For chocolate ice cream, remove the almond extract, stir 1/4 cup of cocoa into the coconut cream at first, then once you remove the mixture from the heat, stir in 1/2 ounce of dark chocolate and stir until the chocolate is melted. For coffee ice cream, remove the almond extract and stir in 2 teaspoons of instant coffee into the mixture while it is hot.