{"id":1433,"date":"2023-07-20T05:35:00","date_gmt":"2023-07-20T12:35:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/?p=1433"},"modified":"2024-10-03T16:53:30","modified_gmt":"2024-10-03T23:53:30","slug":"best-chocolate-ice-cream","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sporked.com\/article\/best-chocolate-ice-cream\/","title":{"rendered":"An Updated Ranking of the Best Chocolate Ice Cream"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The best chocolate ice cream is a powerful thing. It can improve moods, change minds, make bad days suck way less<\/a>. If you need proof of its power, just try this:  Crack open a 1.5 quart container of Neapolitan, toss it on the counter in the break room, and see which flavor goes first. (Confession: I actually like strawberry ice cream<\/a> best, but I keep quiet since I\u2019m generally not in the mood to have people tell me all the reasons I\u2019m wrong.) Chocolate ice cream is good! The best chocolate ice cream is even gooder!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But what separates the best chocolate ice cream from the rest of the pack? It should be creamy, have a distinct chocolatey flavor\u2014we want deep<\/em> cocoa flavor\u2014and you should be able to eat a lot of it. I should know! Over the course of two taste tests, I tried roughly 20 chocolate ice cream brands and varieties. Some of them just don\u2019t pack a punch. After our second taste test, we even replaced some brands\u2019 regular chocolate offering with a more chocolatey chocolate offering. That\u2019s right. We want to be punched by chocolate. Grab a spoon and put on a shirt you can stain\u2014it\u2019s time to dig into the best store bought chocolate ice cream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/span>\"best
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Best Keto<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Enlightened Triple Chocolate Brownie Dough French Ice Cream<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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If you eat keto, this ice cream is a revelation. A lot of keto ice cream is hard; this is soft and airy. In fact, in his ranking of the best keto ice cream<\/a>, Sporked<\/em> contributor Danny Palumbo wrote, it\u2019s \u201cdecadent, fatty, and rich\u201d and kind of tastes like a Fudgesicle. It\u2019s not the best chocolate ice cream if you can eat regular ol\u2019 sugar-packed ice cream, but it\u2019s the best keto chocolate ice cream if you\u2019re watching your carbs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Merc \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

6.5\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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<\/span>\"best
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Best with Cake<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Turkey Hill Belgian<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Belgian chocolate is typically dark and bitter, but we got a nice nutty flavor from Turkey Hill\u2019s chocolate ice cream, with just a little bit of the Belgian bite on the finish. A bowl of this solo might not wow you, but it would make a great accompaniment to another dessert component. Sporked editor-in-chief Justine Sterling<\/a> called it a \u201cmaybe-not-quite-enough-on-its-own-but-good-with-something ice cream.\u201d We say it\u2019s the best chocolate ice cream to eat with cake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Ryan Martin \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

7\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Budget<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Great Value Chocolate Ice Cream<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Walmart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cI like that it\u2019s the Yoo-hoo of ice cream,\u201d Sporked<\/em> senior writer Jordan Myrick<\/a> said when they tasted Great Value. If you like a basic, tasty, and highly affordable chocolate ice cream (seriously, they sell it by the gallon pail for less than six bucks), this is your jam.  Danny likened it to the milk that\u2019s left behind after you eat a bowl of Cocoa Pebbles (our favorite chocolate cereal<\/a>, by the way). It\u2019s the best store bought chocolate ice cream if you\u2019re feeding ice cream to a lot of people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Ryan Martin \/ Walmart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

7.5\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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<\/span>\"best
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Best Dairy Free<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Cado Deep Dark Chocolate Non-Dairy Avocado Frozen Dessert<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Vegan ice cream<\/a> can be pretty hit or miss, but if you\u2019re a chocolate lover, this is the best vegan ice cream you can buy. When they taste tested non-dairy ice cream, Jordan only had good things to say about it: \u201cThis chocolate ice cream is truly deep and dark, just like the name promises. It\u2019s smooth, creamy, and rich. It tastes like it\u2019s made with full-fat dairy and there\u2019s no weird aftertaste.\u201d Vegan ice cream that actually tastes like dairy ice cream is a rarity. If you\u2019re vegan or your constitution just can\u2019t handle dairy, buy this asap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Liv Averett \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

7.5\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best White Chocolate<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Tillamook Udderly Chocolate Ice Cream<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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White chocolate is a hard flavor to nail down. It\u2019s not vanilla but it\u2019s not chocolate either\u2014it\u2019s just creamy and tasty, like a good bar of white chocolate. This Tillamook ice cream, which combines white and milk chocolate, gives white chocolate lovers and, er, brown chocolate lovers something they can agree on. This ice cream is so creamy and fluffy\u2014it\u2019s truly as close as you can get to soft serve without hitting up a Mister Softee truck. If you love chocolate-vanilla swirl ice cream but you sort of wish it was all<\/em> chocolate, this is the best chocolate ice cream at the grocery store. Oh, and it has chocolatey bits! All hail chocolatey bits!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Liv Averett \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

8\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Cheap Dark Chocolate<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Private Selection Chocolate Ganache<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Chocolate ganache is elegant<\/em>. I know that because I first learned about it from Ina Garten, and they don\u2019t call her a contessa for nothing. This chocolate ice cream sent Jordan<\/a>\u2019s taste buds straight to a damn ball. \u201cIt feels like a velvet gown slipping over my tongue,\u201d they said. \u201cThe flavor is nice and dark and deep.\u201d We also loved the dreamy, silky texture. This was a close second for best dark chocolate ice cream (and it\u2019s way cheaper than the ice cream that took that spot).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Ryan Martin \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

8.5\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Over-the-Top<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Ben & Jerry\u2019s Chocolate Therapy<\/strong><\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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If we\u2019re doling out a superlative for an ice cream being, like, a lot<\/em>, there\u2019s a couple of zany guys from Vermont who have quite the contender. Their Chocolate Therapy ice cream is a lot and it\u2019s really, really good. We liked the contrast of the traditional chocolate ice cream and the chocolate pudding<\/a> ice cream swirl, but Jordan thought it under delivered a little because they couldn\u2019t detect any chocolate cookie bits in her bite. Still, everyone agreed that it’s very tasty and highly chocolatey. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Ryan Martin \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

8.5\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Texture<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Haagen-Dazs Double Belgian Chocolate Chip<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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I\u2019ve said it before and I\u2019ll say it again: Haagen-Dazs ice cream is basically perfect. It\u2019s low ingredient, so all you taste is milk, cream, and chocolate. Last time we ranked their regular ol\u2019 chocolate ice cream, but readers hipped us to this Belgian chocolate chip version, which takes everything we love about their original chocolate ice cream and turns it up to 11. You\u2019re getting that smooth, high quality Haagen-Dazs ice cream, but with the added textural fun of chocolate flecks. The experience of eating it is kind of like eating ice cream covered in chocolate shell. It\u2019s incredible. Thank you for the tip, readers! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Liv Averett \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

9\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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<\/span>\"best
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Best Dark Chocolate<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Jeni\u2019s Darkest Chocolate<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Target<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Do you ever crave ice cream<\/a> when it doesn\u2019t make sense to eat ice cream? Not, like, at a funeral, but when the weather is frigid or overcast and moody? Well, we think Jeni\u2019s Darkest Chocolate would be a good option when it\u2019s cold outside because of its nice, warm dark-chocolate flavor. We love the creamy mouthfeel and the way the flavor evolves as you eat it. It\u2019s very<\/em> chocolatey. I\u2019d like this one with some whipped cream to cut that dark chocolate bitterness just a bit. This is the best dark chocolate ice cream\u2014milk chocolate lovers need not apply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Ryan Martin \/ Target<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

9\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best Chocolate Chip<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Alden\u2019s Organic Chocolate Chocolate Chip<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Alden\u2019s chocolate ice cream was number two on our list following our first taste test, but I\u2019m replacing it with the brand\u2019s chocolate chocolate chip ice cream because, well, chocolate chips. You get that excellent Alden\u2019s chocolate ice cream flavor and high quality, but with a little bit of added texture from the delicate chips (these are more like shards or flecks\u2014they\u2019re smaller than chips you\u2019ll find in cookies, that\u2019s for sure). I noted last time that Alden\u2019s ice cream takes forever<\/em> to soften enough for easy scooping, but if you love chocolate ice cream with some texture, this is worth the wait. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Liv Averett \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

9.5\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Best of the Best<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Straus Organic Dutch Chocolate<\/strong><\/dt>\n\n\n\n
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Instacart<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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I\u2019ve never been to the Netherlands, but sitting at home and googling what makes Dutch chocolate different from regular chocolate has to be the next best thing, right? What I learned: Dutch chocolate contains alkali to neutralize the cocoa\u2019s acidity, giving it a smoother flavor. And this ice cream is certainly smooth. In two separate taste tests, it was the best chocolate ice cream we tried, hand down. For Justine, <\/em>it sparked a Proustian sense memory. She was Anton Ego and this was her plate of ratatouille. \u201cI\u2019m back at the county fair and a man gives me an ice cream cone and I\u2019m off to the races,\u201d she said, praising its almost fluffy texture. \u201cIt tastes like childhood.\u201d That seems like a pretty good endorsement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Credit: Ryan Martin \/ Instacart<\/p>\n<\/dd>\n\n\n\n

Rating:<\/p>

10\/10<\/p>

Sporks<\/p><\/div>

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Other chocolate ice cream we tried: <\/strong>Breyers, Edy\u2019s\/Dreyers, Real Good Foods Chocolate Ice Cream, Kroger Chocolate Paradise, Halo Top Chocolate, Trader Joe\u2019s Ultra Chocolate Ice Cream, Haagen Dazs Chocolate, Alden\u2019s Chocolate<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Haagen-Dazs Chocolate Peanut Butter<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The power of peanut butter was irresistible when Rhett & Link were sampling chocolate ice creams during their Ice Cream Taste Test Tournament on Good Mythical Morning<\/a><\/em>. \u201cI just love peanut butter,\u201d Link said, calling Haagen-Dazs\u2019 Chocolate Peanut Butter \u201ca pairing like no other.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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