Why We Ranked Kroger's Store-Bought Strawberry Ice Cream The Worst

You can never go wrong with a scoop of strawberry ice cream. It's fruity, creamy, and the perfect sugary flavor to satisfy a sweet tooth. There are a number of store-bought ice cream brands out there to enjoy the treat at home, but not all are as good as they seem. Chowhound tasted and ranked 10 store-bought strawberry ice cream brands, and we found one that needs to be avoided. Kroger's Deluxe Strawberry Surf was by far the worst ice cream we tried, and one we don't plan on having again any time soon. 

Ice cream seems like a dessert that would be difficult to mess up, but we were proven wrong with Kroger's. Not only did the flavor not taste much like strawberry, but even the texture was more crystallized than it was creamy. We aren't the only ones who found this ice cream inedible, customers who've tried the product have said this flavor is quite bland and artificial. This unfortunately isn't the first Kroger's ice cream flavor we had bad luck with, as the Deluxe Chocolate Paradise also ranked low in our ranking of store-bought chocolate ice creams. So it may be time to give up on this one. While it may seem like a steal for $2.99 per 48-ounce tub, we believe you get what you pay for. 

While Kroger's strawberry ice cream may have been a disappointment, not all store-bought flavors we tried were as bad. Our favorite Häagen-Dazs was packed with strawberry flavor that didn't taste artificial at all. The unpleasant taste from the Kroger's strawberry ice cream may have been due to its ultra-processed ingredients. The product contains high fructose corn syrup, mono and diglycerides of fatty acids, and citric acid among a whole list of other things like natural flavors and food colors. Not only was the flavor bad, but it's not the best option if you want an ice cream with a less processed ingredients list. 

While you wouldn't expect great ingredients from store-bought ice cream, there are a few brands out there that come close. Van Leeuwen contains a shorter list of ingredients that you will actually be able to recognize, and we ranked this brand fourth on our list. Even our No. 1 pick, Häagen-Dazs, has fewer and less processed ingredients, and a for sure better taste. Overall, Kroger's is not the brand to be buying for a sweet treat. If you're really in the mood for a scoop and want an affordable option, it may be best to just take some fresh strawberries and make ice cream at home.