ISO: ISO whether or not accidentally frozen sour cream can be saved? No snickering from...

[dawnnys]

Joanie on her Caribbean island or CathyZ or Sandi in Hawaii ;o), but my tub of sour cream fell out of my grocery bag in the car and I didn't miss it until the next morning. With the outside temperature down under 20 degrees F, it froze overnight and looks kind of lumpy, a little like cottage cheese, even now that it has thawed in the refrigerator.

It tastes ok, but will it curdle, etc. if I use it in cooking, or will it look halfway appetizing if I use it "as is" (say, on top of a potato)?

No great loss if I have to throw it, just don't wondering if it will ever get its normal, creamy texture back.

 

[dawnnys]

Oh, I just googled, and see that you can use it, but it won't be creamy. ( How about using...

it as an ingredient in cooking, though? Do y'all think it would stay separated and not blend into the other ingredients well? TIA.

 

[ruthab]

I can SO identify with having something sneak it's way out of the shopping back only to freeze ...

outside, so I couldn't help but chuckle. Never had the experience with sour cream though...have you considered using a stick blender?

 

[sandi-in-hawaii]

No snickering from me - sometimes I'm jealous that you have a huge outdoor freezer...

At least your escapee froze, and is possibly salvageable - if anything fell outta my bag, it woulda been a goner smileys/smile.gif

But I'm only jealous of the convenience of having a huge outdoor refrigerator/freezer - I wouldn't be able to stand the cold. I'm shivering when it hits 60º at night!!!

 

[miainmd]

I don't know about sour cream, but my heavy whipping cream freezes fine --

but when I defrost, it definitely looks different and it won't whip -- but cooks up fine when I make cream scones. I would go ahead and bake with it. Let us know how it turns out!

 

[miainmd]

One site says frozen sour cream can be used for cooking.

"Sour cream, yogurt and buttermilk - All of the cultured, soured dairy products lose their smooth texture when frozen. They become grainy and sometimes separate out their water. They can still be used for cooking. Flavored yogurts may be more stable because of the fruit and sugar. It may taste more acidic when thawed."
http://www.ext.nodak.edu/extpubs/yf/foods/fnw616.htm

 

[miainmd]

Same

"Freeze and store milk one month. Allow room for expansion in the freezer container. Thaw in the refrigerator. Freezing affects flavor and appearance, but milk, buttermilk, sour cream and yogurt are all right for baking."
http://www.extension.umn.edu/info-u/nutrition/BJ9644.html

 

[mimi]

You never know, Sandi...

I'm from Las Vegas and doing just fine here in northern Canada. You can get used to a lot of things for love. )

 

[joanie]

Lol.....DawnNYS...I'd much rather have frozen s/cream which you can cook with to having it.....

go high in the heat we have here...if that happened to me (and it does on occassion) it would be stinky off.
I keep s/cream in the freezer and only cook with it. First I turn it in to cheese cloth to defrost.
hugs j

 

[dawnnys]

Aww, I didn't know that Mimi... nice!

 

[dawnnys]

Thanks everybody - I used it in a sauce and it came out just fine.