Making sour cream

[gardenmommy]

I know I've posted about this before, but I can't seem to find it by searching. I want to make some sour cream, and was hoping that someone here could provide the instructions. I have cream (lots) and cultured buttermilk, and time. Do I just need to mix the buttermilk into the cream and let it stand on the counter? What are the ratios and how long will it take?

[cristeen]

Buttermilk and cream makes Creme Fraiche, not sour cream.

But that being said, it's usable in almost any recipe interchangeably... but it does have a different texture.

I usually do about a cup of cream with a Tbs of buttermilk on the counter overnight.

[gardenmommy]

Well, Creme fraiche would be ok, too. I think I will try that. Overnight= about 8 hours? Is 24 hours too long?

Thanks!

[gardenmommy]

Bump. I am going to try making creme fraiche today. Does anyone else have experience making proper sour cream?

[Aubergine68]

I just use a tbsp of a store-bought sour cream as a starter stirred into a couple of cups of fresh raw cream, and let it sit on the counter for a day or so. It is absolutely lovely.

You can use some of this as a starter for the next batch, but I haven't kept it going longer than two batches. We don't use that much sour cream.

[425lisamarie]

I only ever make soured cream with buttermilk culture. It doesn't have to be exact, just a spoon full or so for a cup or two of cream. You can leave it overnight or an entire day, it just may become a bit more tart.

[dogmom327]

Originally Posted by 425lisamarie

I only ever make soured cream with buttermilk culture. It doesn't have to be exact, just a spoon full or so for a cup or two of cream. You can leave it overnight or an entire day, it just may become a bit more tart.

I do the same thing. Using heavy whipping cream really helps. As much as I'd prefer to use raw cream, the finished product is too runny (raw cultured cream though is wonderful for adding to soups or drizzling over a dish).

[gardenmommy]

Well, I looked it up online. Found something in Mother Earth News about using 1/4 cup buttermilk to 1 cup cream. It is raw, so hopefully the result won't be too runny. Maybe next time I should heat it? I guess I'll find out! Thanks for your help!

[bigknitwit]

slightly OT. but does store sour cream actually still contain live cultures? Can I culture from like I culture Stoneyfield yogurt??

[gardenmommy]

I don't think they are live cultures. Maybe it depends on the brand, although one website I read while searching for this said that you can use vinegar to culture it. That sounded kind of odd to me. Seems like you would just end up with funky tasting cream that way. I let my stuff sit on the counter for a little less than 24 hours; when I put it in the fridge, it looked like it was starting to get pretty thick. I am hoping that chilling really well will make it even thicker.

[yitlan]

I haven't done it in awhile because I only had access to ultra pasteurized cream and it just didn't work well. But if you have good cream (which now I do so I should try again!) I dropped my kefir grains in it and it made a soured cream.

[Magelet]

I bought creme fraiche for the culture to make creme fraiche, (I know that I could also use the buttermilk culture lol, but I figured it would be an extra nice culture, it was dang tasty though I keep forgeting to keep making more even if I don't use it and thus lose my cultures...)

Growing up, we made "creme fraiche" by adding sour cream to cream. *shrugs* it always worked though I think cultured creme fraiche tastes a lot nicer. I don't know how it worked though. I don't know if it has probiotics. but it definitely worked.

re: leaving it out longer, I'm not sure about creme fraiche, but if you leave buttermilk out for about 24 hours if its really hot or about 48 in a warm place, it will seperate into curds and whey. This is great if you want to make unheated farmer's cheese, you just mix in some salt, and strain it, but if you want buttermilk, its not so good. don't know if cream does this.

[425lisamarie]

the other great thing about it is that is does not curdle if it gets too hot. I get boiling it isn't "TF" but it's a better product IMO than using canned cream of mushroom soup or something to thicken and make a richer sauce/soup.