Sour Cream

About

Sour cream is a dairy product made of fermented cream. By adding bacterial culture to fresh cream, it naturally thickens and sours the cream.

Sour cream is rich in fat, and is widely used as a topping, a dip and helps thicken sauces and soups. Some sour cream versions now have introduced light and non-fat varieties.

Information

Other names: Cultured Sour Cream

Translations: Skābais krējums, Grietinė, Frişcă, Kisela pavlaka, Kem chua, Śmietana, Zure room, मलाई, Сметана, Κρέμα γάλακτος, صور كريم, 크림, Zakysaná smetana, Krim, Kulay-gatas, 酸奶油, Crema Agra, Kyslá smotana, שמנת, Павлака, サワークリーム, Sauerrahm, Crema Agria, Сметана, Smetana, Сметана

Physical Description

White creamy substance that's easily compared to ordinary cream. Sour cream differ from ordinary cream by means of culturing specific kind of lactic acid bacteria in it.

Colors: white

Tasting Notes

Flavors: tanngy

Food complements: Dairy products, Baking, Soup

Substitutes: Soy sour cream, Yogurt, Goat cheese

Selecting and Buying

Seasonality: january, february, march, april, may, june, july, august, september, opctober, november, december

Choosing: Check the expiration date on the container before buying. Do not buy Sour cream with broken, torn or damaged container. Sour cream with visible mold should be discarded, as it may be contaminated below the surface and could contain dangerous mycotoxins and aflatoxin.

Buying: you can get sour cream at any local or supermarkets.

Preparation and Use

The uses for sour cream are varied. It adds a tangy, gourmet flavor to appetizers, soups, sandwiches, salads, meat dishes, vegetables, baked foods, candies and desserts. Use it in baking and cooking, or enjoy it as it comes from the carton.

Because of its milk fat content, sour cream adds richness to baked products. In fact, dairy sour cream can replace some of the fat and milk in recipes such as pancakes and biscuits. It also gives distinctive flavor to cakes and cookies.

Conserving and Storing

Sour cream should be refrigerated as soon as you get it home from the store.

For best quality, use sour cream within three or four days after purchase. Canned imitation sour cream and packaged mixes will keep much longer on the shelf. Once opened, some of these products also need to be kept under refrigeration

Social/Political

Sour Cream: used primarily in the cuisines of Europe and North America, sour cream is often used as a condiment. It is a traditional topping for baked potatoes, added cold along with chopped fresh chives. It is used as the base for some creamy salad dressings and can also be used in baking, added to the mix for cakes, cookies, American-style biscuits, doughnuts and scones. It can be eaten as a dessert, with fruits or berries and sugar topping. In Central America, crema, a variation of sour cream, is a staple ingredient of a full breakfast. Sour cream can also provide the base for various forms of dip used for dipping potato chips or crackers, such as onion dip. In Tex-Mex cuisine, it is often used as a substitute for crema in nachos, burritos, taquitos or guacamole. It is one of the main ingredients used in Beef Stroganoff.