The food lab better home cooking through science ( PDFDrive ) 140

HOMEMADECRẩMEFRAẻCHE
Crốmefraợcheismadebyallowingheavycreamtospoilina
controlled way. Bacteria introduced into the cream convert
someofitssugar(mainlythecomplexcarbohydratelactose)
into simpler sugars and acidic by-products.This lowers the
pHofthecream,causingsomeofitsproteinstocoagulate,
making it thicker. Good crème frche has a rich, creamy
texture, stiff enough to form loose peaks, and a tangy,
slightly cheese-like flavor. Store-bought crème frche is
great,butitcanbedifficulttotrackdownandpricey.When
I found out that you can simply mix buttermilk (which has
live bacterial culture) into heavy cream and let it thicken
overnight to create a true crème frche at home, my mind
wasblown.Iliketosharemymind-blowingexperiences,so
hereyougo.Luckyyou!
I played around with the ratios of cream to buttermilk
quiteabitandintheendfoundthatitdoesn’treallymatter
all that much. Add more buttermilk, and you’ll need less
timeforittothicken,butit’llbelesscreamy.Addless,and
it takes longer, but tastes better. One tablespoon per cup
(that’sa1:16ratio)wasabouttheperfectbalanceforme.
It gets superrich and creamy at right about the 12-hour
mark.You can halt the process earlier by refrigerating it to
stopthebacterialaction—thisisusefulifyouwantathinner
Mexican-stylecrema agria for drizzling over your nachos
or guacamole. For those of you worried about cream
spoilingatroomtemp,that’stheidea:it’sthegoodbacteria
from the buttermilk multiplying in there that prevent the
dangerousbacteriafromtakingover.
Andletthemind-blowingbegin.Commencecountdown.