Gourmia GSI170 Ice Cream Maker Review

This Gourmia GSI170 is a moderately priced unit that may serve well as a “starter” ice cream maker for your family if you are not yet sure you want to invest more in this type of appliance. Read our Gourmia GSI170 Ice Cream Maker Review to see if it might be a good idea for your household.

Capacity

This model produces 3 pints of finished frozen dessert.

Features and Functionality

How does it work?

You may be familiar with the old fashioned hand crank ice cream maker. With that method you place the mixing canister inside a larger bucket and place ice and rock salt in the space between the two containers. The Gourmia ice cream maker uses a similar idea, but the ice and rock salt is replaced by a pre-frozen bowl. Place this freezer bowl in the coldest part of your freezer for at least 12 hours – usually longer. You may need as much as 24 hours, depending on your freezer. Your freezer should be set to 0 degrees.

To test the readiness of the bowl, shake it. You should not hear any sloshing of the fluid. If the bowl is not frozen solid, you will not have success with your frozen dessert.
You should also chill your ice cream mixture in the fridge 2 to 4 hours prior to putting it in the ice cream maker.

So, once the bowl is frozen and the dessert mixture is well chilled, you are ready to begin.

Place the freezer bowl inside the larger base unit. Insert the paddle into the
top cover. You will hear a click when it is properly inserted. Place the assembled paddle/cover unit into the freezer bowl. Be sure to align the arrows on the top unit with those on the base. Press down. You will again hear a click.
Plug it in and set the timer. Start the machine.
Do not pour the mixture into the freezer bowl before the paddle starts to rotate! The mixture will start to freeze right away, and you don’t want it to block the paddle. The motor could be damaged.

 

How do tasters rate the quality of finished ice cream product?
Smooth, creamy texture. Some users described the ice cream as “fluffy”.

What kind of frozen dessert can I make?

You can use your Gourmia GSI170 to make ice cream, frozen yogurt, sorbet, and sherbet.

How quickly will I have finished ice cream ready to eat?

The freezer bowl must be frozen solid. This can take up to 24 hours.
After you prepare your recipe, you should chill it for 2 to 4 hours to make sure it is really cold. (This is especially true if you are making a custard-based ice cream.) From this point, it will take about 20 to 30 minutes to churn your dessert, depending on the recipe you are using.

Features you may appreciate

The controls are easy to operate.  The digital timer  with LCD display light is easy to read  
An easy pour spout makes it easy to add your favorite mix-ins such as chips, nuts, or bits of candy.

Ease of Use

How easy is it to use? 

The instruction manual is not as thorough as I’ve seen with some other models.  It is, however, a fairly simple-to-operate machine.  Not a lot of “bells and whistles”.  The timer is easy to read and set.  The audible “clicks” let you know that you have assembled the parts correctly.

Easy to clean?

Remove electronic parts and wash the bowl, paddle, and lid by hand in warm, soapy water. Dry the parts thoroughly, and then wrap the bowl in a plastic bag and put it back in the freezer. Within less than 24 hours, it will be ready for you to make another batch of your favorite frozen dessert.

How easily/quickly can I transfer ice cream from the mixer bowl to the freezer storage bowl?

This is an important question because this step impacts the quality of your ice cream. Thawing and refreezing results in the formation of ice crystals. To maintain the rich, smooth quality, you’ll want to transfer the finished dessert to freezer-safe storage containers as quickly as possible.
With freezer bowl type ice cream makers, this step is a bit challenging. After the churning stops and you lift the bowl out of the larger bucket, the frozen dessert continues to be frozen hard against the inner wall of the freezer bowl. To avoid damaging the bowl, you must use a rubber or wooden spatula.  It can be difficult to complete this step quickly.

One way of dealing with this might be to quickly transfer the product from the inner part of the bowl to your freezer-safe containers and pop that into the freezer right away. It will take a little longer to remove the dessert that is frozen to the inner wall of the bowl. You might serve this right away to that enthusiastic audience that has been patiently waiting!

Will it shut off automatically when finished?

You will use the timer button to set how many minutes you want the churning process to last. The default preset timing is 20 minutes, but you can add minutes, one at a time, up to 40 minutes. The machine will stop at the end of the set time.

How noisy is it?

The noise level measured 60 decibels at 2 feet away. This is considered normal conversation volume.

Adding mix-ins

Without interrupting the churning cycle, you can add items like chopped nuts, chocolate chips, or bits of fruit. Just lift the filling lid on top and drop your mix-ins in during the last few minutes of the cycle.

Accessories

What comes with this ice cream maker?

Recipe book: This small booklet includes recipes for 9 flavors of ice cream and one dairy free mango sorbet.
Instruction manual: The owner’s manual provides information for assembly and use of your unit in addition to safety precautions.

What additional accessories would be helpful but do not come with this machine?

Containers for storing finished ice cream.  You will need at least a few freezer-safe storage containers to preserve the quality of your frozen dessert. You will find a good selection of reusable or single use containers here.
Ice cream scoop.  Here is a good selection of best selling scoops on Amaxon.
Recipe book. While there are a few great recipes in the little book that comes with this unit, you will probably soon be wanting to expand your repertoire. There are several very popular recipe books here on Amazon.
Additional freezer bowl.- If you want the option of being able to make another batch of frozen dessert without taking the time to refreeze the freezer bowl, you will need to have another bowl in the freezer and ready for use. You can purchase additional bowls from Gourmia.
Condiment tray. This accessory may not be for every day family use, but if you are hosting an ice cream party a condiment tray is a great way to present a variety of toppings. Check out these trays on Amazon.

Dimensions and construction

materials: This model is mostly plastic. The plastic parts that come in contact with food are BPA free.
The freezer bowl is seamless aluminum on the inside and plastic on the outside. [the aluminum is not anodized]

watts: 12
dimensions: 8.75” X 9” X 9.25”
weight: 6.3 pounds
120 volts

Warranty and Support

Warranty?

The Gourmia GSI170 has a 1 year limited warranty.

Where is it made?

Gourmia is an American company headquartered in Brooklyn, New York. The manufacturing plant where the Gourmia GSI170 is made is located in China.

How good is customer support?

From the Gourmia website you can contact the company via email. In my experience this method has pros and cons. On the plus side, I got very quick response to my questions – usually within the hour. (On some other sites I have had to wait 3 or 4 days for a response!) On the down side, you may have to go back and forth a few times to get clarification if the first answer you got wasn’t complete enough for your needs. Still, given the very quick response this can still be better than waiting on hold for an hour to speak with a company rep.

The paddle, bowl and motor are all replaceable. Contact customer service department at Gourmia.

Pros

plastic parts are BPA free
digital timer with LCD display easy to read
UL listed
easy to use
price
recipe booklet included

Cons

aluminum bowl not anodized
have to refreeze the bowl before making another batch
freezer needs to be set at 0 degrees or colder
difficulty removing frozen dessert from the bowl

Consumer Ratings for the Gourmia GSI170 Ice Cream Maker

There are no consumer reviews on the Gourmia web page, and a limited number of reviews on Amazon. (This model is not available at Walmart.) The reviews are mixed but mostly favorable.
My main concern regarding this machine is the non-anodized aluminum freezer bowl. I would not want to make an acidic fruit sorbet with this unit.
I would also like to see more detailed information in the owner’s manual.

Gourmia GSI170 Ice Cream Maker Price

This model is reasonably priced and may well serve the family who is new to making frozen desserts at home. The low cost would give you an opportunity to try out a few recipes and decide if ice cream making is something you would like to “get serious” about. If you already know that you want to make a lot of these frozen desserts for your family and guests, I would recommend either the Cuisinart-ICE100 or the Cuisinart-ICE 70W

Sources

Information for this review was gleaned from the Gourmia company website, direct contact with Gourmia company rep, and the Amazon website.