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Crème fraîche
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Crème fraîche (French for "fresh cream"), of French origin, is the Western European counterpart to the soured cream more traditional to Western Europe and Anglophone cultures. Originally a French product, today it is available in many countries.
e fraîche is a soured cream containing about 28% milk fat. It is slightly soured with bacterial culture, but is less sour, and thicker, than sour cream. French supermarkets also stock "light" variants, containing about half the standard percentage of fat.
Crème fraîche is produced by a process similar to that of sour cream, with the exception that no ingredients are added.
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Encyclopedia
Crème fraîche (French for "fresh cream"), of French origin, is the Western European counterpart to the soured cream more traditional to Western Europe and Anglophone cultures. Originally a French product, today it is available in many countries.
The dairy product
Crème fraîche is a soured cream containing about 28% milk fat. It is slightly soured with bacterial culture, but is less sour, and thicker, than sour cream. French supermarkets also stock "light" variants, containing about half the standard percentage of fat.
Crème fraîche is produced by a process similar to that of sour cream, with the exception that no ingredients are added. Each processing step requires attention to producing and maintaining high viscosity. Commercially it is commonly fermented to an end pH of around 4.5. The higher fat content and small scale processing result in a retail price which, in the U.S., is at least twice that of traditional sour cream. Nevertheless, sales are growing. In the UK, the price differential is smaller, as mass-produced crème fraîche is readily available, although artisanal, organic and geographically-delimited products may command a premium. Its increasing popularity is an indication of changing culinary habits promoted by growing population diversity and increasing exposure to Continental European culture and cuisine.
Almost all types of crème fraîche may curdle at high temperatures, when cooked for a while, (like sour cream) and cannot be added to stews until the end of the cooking or to casseroles while baked in the oven, unlike the Smetana sour cream. Light crème fraîche contains about 12 to 18 % milk fat and curdles if heated or cooked. It can be used for dipping potato chips or crackers.
Crème fraîche can be made at home by adding a small amount of cultured buttermilk or sour cream to normal heavy cream, and allowing it to stand for several hours at room temperature until the bacterial cultures act on the cream.
History
Crème fraîche was originally produced in Normandy, a geographical region along the coast of France south of the English Channel. The crème fraîche from a defined area around the town of Isigny-sur-Mer in the Calvados department of Normandy is still highly regarded. However, it is now produced in many other parts of France, with large quantities coming from the major dairying regions of Britanny, Poitou-Charente, Lorraine and Champagne-Ardenne. Crème fraîche is particularly useful in finishing sauces in French cooking, although it can be a useful substitute for soured cream products in other cuisines. Crème fraîche is available not only in France, but throughout the rest of the world, some of it locally produced and some imported from France.
Similar products
Clabber is a similar food made in the Southern United States.
Crema Mexicana is a cultured sour cream, often sold in supermarket dairy aisles in regions where crème fraîche is unavailable.
Sources
- H. McGee On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of The Kitchen (p.49). New York: Scribner, 2004. ISBN 0-078-60901-4
- Y. Hiu Handbook of Food Science, Technology and Engineering (p.179-6 to 179-7). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, 2006. ISBN 084939848495
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