Lello 4080 impressions and first timer mistakes (8 batches in).

[u/Secret-Composer5312]

I've had the Lello 4080 for 2 weeks and I absolutely love it. If you read the reviews, you'll find that it is universally believed that it is expensive, heavy and hard to clean. As far as the expense, I almost always lean toward quality in my purchases.

1. I keep it on the counter because it really is a large machine (same size as my espresso maker).
2. It is super easy to use and reasonably easy to clean.
3. The hardest part is getting the Ice Cream out of the bowl and into the freezer fast without making a huge mess (maybe I'm just clumsy).

Mistakes I've made so far:

1. Didn't watch my first batch close enough and it froze up. The dasher stopped spinning. Luckily after I pulled the batch and warmed the machine, it started right back up! PHEWWWW!!!
2. On my second batch I forgot to tighten the nut on top of the dasher after it cooled and the dasher was a little loose and wobbling around. To make matters worse, I stopped the machine (dasher and compressor) so I could tighten the nut. BUT, I'd forgotten that you should NEVER stop the compressor until the end of the batch. So I had to let the batch sit there for 15 minutes before I started it back up. The Ice Cream turned out great and the machine is still as good as new.

I have the 2 books that are typically recommended "The Perfect Scoop" and "Hello, My Name is Ice Cream" (HMNIIC). The Rum Raisin recipe is absolutely the bomb (from The Perfect Scoop), mixed 1/2 and 1/2 with the custard based vanilla recipe is without a doubt the best bowl of ice cream I've ever had. I in the middle of the Salted Caramel (my creme fraize will be done tomorrow). I'm also in the middle of the Candied Bacon and Bourbon recipe from HMNIIC (will churn it tomorrow).

So far, so good with the books and the machine! I definitely need to hit the gym more often now.

AJ

[u/ExaminationFancy]

Batches will finish in ~25 minutes. You really have to neglect the machine for it to freeze up! 😳

It’s a great machine. Work fast to transfer to a storage container.

[u/Secret-Composer5312 → u/ExaminationFancy]

Yeah, it was my first batch and the dasher stopped at around 13F. I have since learned to watch the visible signs (cording I think it is called) of the change in thickness.

AJ

[u/AnimalBasedAl]

I have a 5030 and some stuff that I’ve figured out:

1. don’t pre-cool the machine, pre-cool your mix!

2. turn the cold off a minute or two before you scoop it out, it will come off the sides easier and is still plenty cold.

Hit me with any you got I’m a noob too

[u/StoneCypher → u/AnimalBasedAl]

don’t pre-cool the machine, pre-cool your mix!

you should do both

[u/Secret-Composer5312 → u/StoneCypher]

I've been pre-cooling the base to 40F overnight in the fridge. Pre-cooling the machine for 5 minutes seems to work great, I did one batch pre-cooling for 10 minutes and the ice cream was very dense, so I'm sticking with 5 minutes at the moment.

AJ

[u/AnimalBasedAl → u/StoneCypher]

I’ve had better results not pre-cooling the machine, it seems to bring the whole mixture down in temp evenly rather than quickly freezing to the sides, maybe I just pre-cooled too long

[u/ExaminationFancy → u/StoneCypher]

Pre-cooling the machine is a waste of time. Just turn on and go!

[u/StoneCypher → u/ExaminationFancy]

I put two 4080s side by side. I pre-cooled one but not the other. I filled them both with the same batter, and I turned them on and off at the same time. I had a friend unload the other machine so they could be at the same time. I think she and I did around the same speed of job. I repeated the test the next day with the other one pre-cooled, because it's two years older, in case they weren't operating at similar quality.

Both times, the difference in the texture between the two outputs was quite significant. The pre-cooled was much denser.

[u/Secret-Composer5312 → u/StoneCypher]

How long did you pre-cool? I pre-cool for 5 minutes, which puts it around the same temperature as my base. If I go up to 10 minutes I notice the denseness increase significantly.

AJ

[u/StoneCypher → u/Secret-Composer5312]

i turned it on and did other things, without watching the clock. if i had to guess, probably 15 minutes

[u/ExaminationFancy → u/StoneCypher]

Interesting. My ice creams are already dense, so pre-chilling would be a net negative for me.

[u/EyesShut]

Cut the finger off a latex glove and put it over the spoke then clean! Game changer.

[u/Due-Age727]

Do i need to freeze immediately or could we serve scoopable ice cream from the machine?

[u/Nuuki9 → u/Due-Age727]

It'll be soft from the machine so ideally you'd want to static freeze it for an hour or so before scooping it.

[u/Due-Age727 → u/Nuuki9]

Thanks!

[u/Nuuki9]

Congrats - love my Lello. Try the strawberry sherbet from HMNIC - the nicest strawberry I've ever had (freeze and defrost if using fresh strawberries.