What should I look for in an alternative to crème fraîche?
I have lots of great recipes that call for crème fraîche, but for some reason, it's very difficult to find it in my neighborhood. I hear that sour cream is an acceptable substitute. However, in my view, if whoever originated the recipe wanted to use sour cream, they'd have called for sour cream in the first place! So I don't want to just substitute sour cream for crème fraîche by default.
I have also heard that many types of yogurt can be used, or crema mexicana, or many other products. I imagine that certain products are better in certain recipes than others, in terms of substitution. What are the properties of crème fraîche that can be emulated by which other products?
Best Answer
You can make your own crème fraîche. Just inoculate heavy cream with buttermilk. From The Splended Table:
Ingredients
- 1 to 2 tablespoons cultured buttermilk
- 2 cups heavy cream (pasteurized, not ultra pasteurized or sterilized, and with no additives)
Instructions
Combine the buttermilk and cream in a saucepan and heat only to tepid (not more than 85F degrees on an instant reading thermometer). Pour into a clean glass jar. Partially cover and let stand at room temperature (between 65F and 75F degrees) for 8 to 24 hours, or until thickened. Stir and refrigerate at least 24 hours before using. The cream will keep about 2 weeks in the refrigerator.
The results from doing that are so close to "real" crème fraîche that I can't tell the difference unless I'm tasting them side by side. If you want absolute authenticity, you can order the Real Culture, follow their instructions, then use that crème fraîche to culture many further batches of real Crème fraîche.
EDIT: HA! :) Here's Kenji's $.02 on the subject: Serious Eats
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Quick Answer about "What should I look for in an alternative to crème fraîche?"
Sour cream is the most common substitute for crème fraîche, since both have a slightly sour taste and are cultured. You can substitute an equal amount of sour cream for crème fraîche in just about any type of recipe.Can I use Philadelphia instead of creme fraiche?
There is a product out called Philadelphia Cooking Creme. Some find it to be a great substitute for creme fraiche and it doesn't separate at high temperatures.Can I use cream instead of creme fraiche?
Heavy CreamAdd heavy whipping cream to soups and sauces in place of creme fraiche for thickening and a creamy texture. Cream has a high fat content and won't curdle, so use it as you would creme fraiche in soups and sauces. You can also whip your cream to use as a substitute for creme fraiche.What can you use instead of creme fraiche or sour cream?
There are several good dairy options for replacing sour cream, including Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, cr\xe8me fra\xeeche and buttermilk.- Greek Yogurt. Greek yogurt makes an excellent stand-in for sour cream. ...
- Cottage Cheese. This cheese has a rich history. ...
- Cr\xe8me Fra\xeeche. Cr\xe8me fra\xeeche literally means fresh cream. ...
- Buttermilk.
Is creme fraiche the same as heavy whipping cream?
Double cream has a higher fat content \u2013 around 48-50 per cent, and it's not commonly available here. Cr\xe8me fra\xeeche, on the other hand, is cream that's had a culture added, making it slightly sour in flavour. It's around 40 per cent fat. If you're trying to cook healthily, however, cream is not an everyday ingredient.Alternative Housing Options: How do you want to live for the next 10 years?
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Answer 2
It's true. It is sometimes hard to find crème fraîche. One of the stores in our neck of the woods brings them in from across the ocean weekly on a plane!
My gut feeling is that if you whip the heaviest cream you can find (35%) with 'some' butter milk, you'll get awesomely close to it.
You could also experiment with adding a bit of butter milk to heavy cream and resting it a day or so in the fridge then whipping it up.
If you can find Mascarpone cheese (without the chemicals), it may also substitute well.
I think the bacterial culture in butter milk is same as crème fraîche, but not sure that sour cream or yoghurt would be. In my experience, neither sour cream, nor yoghurt will taste as good as crème fraîche if the recipe calls for it. Even plain cream does better than those two in these cases.
Answer 3
A thick creamy Greek style plain yogurt is a great substitute for baking and the yogurt will last a longer in the fridge
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