Rolled ice cream videos are the mental summer vacation you need
This post is part of Hard Refresh, a soothing weekly column where we try to cleanse your brain of whatever terrible thing you just witnessed on Twitter.
A few weeks ago, a friend and I were in line for some food. We had been together for a few hours so naturally we took a little break from chatting and our attention drifted to our phones. I caught up on missed texts from my mother but when I looked over at my friend's phone, I noticed she wasn't scrolling through Twitter or responding to group chats.
Instead, her eyes were glued to Instagram videos of a someone rolling ice cream into bundles that were then placed delicately into cups and topped off with a combination of chocolate, fruit, and whipped cream. I'd later learn that this dessert is called "stir-fried ice cream" (though it's often referred to as rolled ice cream,) and it hails from Thailand.
After a few moments, I realized I was staring open-mouthed at my friend's phone, my mind transfixed by the hypnotizing videos.
"I started seeing them on celeb Instagram stories all the time and at some point I was just like, 'Wait this is hella satisfying," my friend told me. "There has to be more of these videos?"
She was right -- it's enormously popular. I discovered a YouTube channel aptly named "Ice Cream Rolls" and that's where my journey into the world of ice cream videos began.
Each video starts with a solid sweet food, like Oreos or a slice of cake, sitting on an ice-cold metal surface. Then it's covered in liquid ice cream base, and chopped up into tiny pieces using two metal scrapers. The person behind the videos mixes the chopped sweets with the liquid base until the mix begins to freeze up.
Then the mix is spread into a thin layer, sliced into strips, and rolled up into perfect little bundles. They're then nestled into a little cup and covered with sweet toppings. It's yummy and soothing — what more could you want?
The Ice Cream Rolls YouTube channel has more than 1 million subscribers, and features sections devoted to certain treats, like videos that include Oreo products or ones that feature Nutella.There's even a section called, "Disgusting or Delicious?" which features nightmare ice cream flavors like Ketchup and Burger King Whopper.
Barring the odd exceptions on the channel, it's chock full of the deliciously distracting content we all deserve. But if you're not willing to dedicate your life to checking a YouTube channel, don't worry. Follow #RolledIceCream on Instagram, instead.
Consider this the delicious calm you so greatly need right now.
Or better yet: Visit a stir-fried ice cream vendor IRL.
