Can You Freeze Sour Cream and How to Freeze Cheese?

Are you a big fan of Mexican food? Well, if you are or even if you are a foodie, you are well acquainted with what sour cream is. The name doesn’t go much with its taste, though, But if you are a foodie, you know how much indispensable that is in your kitchen. However, you have often encountered a scenario where you had to throw away a sour cream jar without using it fully. You might even ask can you freeze sour cream? Well, the answer is yes. Surprised? Here are some tips to clarify your doubts regarding you can freeze sour cream.

What is this hype about sour cream?

Let’s introduce sour cream for the persons out there who aren’t as foody as you are. Even if most of us are acquainted with sour cream, we never really bother to go into the details. We are very much fond of using the milky soaps, but did we ever go out and search about its inventor? We didn’t. Similarly, we have also missed out on sour cream.

Any culture of lactic acid, when mixed with cream, results in sour cream! That is when you get the lovely dollop without which anything from cakes to potatoes seems very dull.

You can even say how it is different from Crème Fraiche or yogurt? Well, they aren’t really much different. They have all curdled milk varieties. In fact, if you want, you can use these interchangeably. So next time someone asks you that can you freeze sour cream, answer with a big yes!

Best tips to freeze sour cream

• It would help if you always keep jarred sour cream in your freezer. It is best to prefer not to keep sour cream kept open for around three weeks or more.
• Even if you freeze sour cream, the chances of it getting rotten increases with time. Don’t freeze it for long. Ultimately it has to travel to the dustbin if you don’t use it soon.
• A common way of preserving it is to preserve this in small portions. Or else you might have to cut open a big chunk of sour cream. That is not desirable at all.
• If you have already thawed your cream, then avoid the freezer. Freezer, due to its cold temperature, encourages bacterial growth. A thawed sour cream will encourage bacterial growth, making it unfit for eating.
• One thing you cannot avoid if you are freezing sour cream is preventing it from texture change. The texture will suffer change if you store it in the freezer for long. So best is if you use the cream in any preparation instead of using it as a dip for your food or topping it on baked potatoes.

If anyone asks you how you can freeze sour cream, don’t forget to add these tips.

But now comes the more figurative question that is how to freeze sour cream.

The answer to this question isn’t very complicated. Read below to solve your queries!

How to freeze sour cream?

You don’t have to worry much if you plan to freeze sour cream.

Normally it is suggested that you should not buy the sour cream for preservation purposes only because it loses texture when you freeze it.

So whenever you do that, keep in mind not to use it as a dip or substitute in any creamy salad.

If you are freezing sour cream, what you will have to do is find an airtight container.

You can even put the cream in muffin tins or ice trays for storage purposes.

Freezing dairy products usually gets a bit tricky. But if you are storing the cream in an airtight container, scoop it out, place the cream in the container, and then put the box in your refrigerator. You don’t have to worry anymore.

But if you think of using a muffin tin or ice tray, wait until it gets frozen completely. It should not usually take more than eight hours. Once it is frozen completely, do remember to separate your frozen blocks and store them in any container or freezer bag.

Steps to freeze sour cream

• First, you need to whip your sour cream and then make use of a whisk. Using that, you will have to first distribute its moisture throughout a container that you are using.
• You will have to keep the cream in any mandatorily air-tight container. Any amount of air will start reacting in it. So you can keep the cream in the original box or a freezer bag or other containers, but if you are using a bag, do squeeze all the air out.
• Many ask how long you can store the cream in a refrigerator. The answer is for not more than six months. So please mark the date when you are storing it.
• Often after freezing, some substance turns into liquid again, or in other words, it melts. That process is called thawing. If you want to thaw your sour cream, then keep it in the freezer for many hours. The cheese’s texture will turn a bit water-like, and it will get separated. If you want to reach smoothness, then use a whisk to whip the cream. You can consider adding corn-starch to it that can give you your desired texture.

Where can you use your frozen sour cream?

If you are worried that you can’t use the sour cream once it is frozen, then don’t worry; here is a list where you can use your frozen sour cream to increase the delicacy of your food.

Take a look at this and give yourself a delight next time when you have to freeze sour cream:

• pancakes
• cakes – preferably coffee cakes
• pies cooked in a slow cooker
• casseroles
• baked or mashed potatoes
• soups

Stop worrying and prepare for yourself a plate of banana oat muffins and use this cream over it. You will get a taste unforgettable in your lifetime.

Can you freeze sour cream dip?

Along with storing sour cream, can you freeze sour cream dip? The answer is yes, and it is perfectly safe for use as well. But like sour cream, the texture of the dip also changes. Here is how you can freeze sour cream dip.

Step 1

You can either use a plastic container or a freezer bag, but make sure both are air-tight. Hence, as it can expand, you will have to keep at least an inch space at the container too.

Step 2

If you are using a container, then use a lid and if you are using a freezer bag, then zip it real tight to prevent air from getting into it.

Step 3

Please label the jar or the bag so that you have a timeline in your mind.

Step 4

If the freezer is kept at zero degrees, you can keep it in a refrigerator for around two months.

Can you freeze cheese?

Cheese is another everyday product that we require to make any recipe of our wish. So often, you have to come across a question can you freeze cheese?

Well before knowing the answer, read to find which cheese is the best and worst for freezing.

Worst cheese for freezing

Handcrafted cheeses do not have the capability to get frozen well. So, it is better to buy it and then eat it as long as it is fresh.

It is best to prefer buying it in small quantities to don’t have to store it.

Soft cheeses like Muenster, Fontina, or Camembert should also be eaten when fresh.

The best cheese for freezing

But you can easily freeze cheeses like Mozzarella Cheddar, Swiss, etc. Here is how. Freezing doesn’t tamper with the quality of your cheese, but it will bring a change in its texture.

This is because, with freezing, small ice cubes in size get formed inside. This disrupts the internal cheese structure hence producing a change in its texture.

Microbes get inactivated when you freeze the cheese, thereby increasing the life of the frozen cheese. In fact, some cheeses like Camembert and blue cheese deliberately add bacteria populations or live molds to get the desired varieties.

But freezing won’t kill but only damage it hence changing the quality.

Can you freeze cream cheese?

Let us find out what to do with cream cheese to store it well:

Freezing unopened cheese

The cream cheese which is still not opened can be preserved in your freezer.

Keep the original packaging and store that in your refrigerator.

The packaging contains a cardboard box and foil wrapping. This is more than enough to keep the cheese in the freezer well protected.

Freezing opened cheese

If you want to freeze a cheese you have already used, you will have to transfer the cream cheese to an airtight container.

You can store cream cheese in a refrigerator for up to two months. Then use a label for storage so that you can have a timeline in regards to that.

Can you freeze cottage cheese?

Sometimes it is said that it is not easy to freeze cottage cheese. However, the answer remains the same.

The way you can freeze cream cheese, in a similar way you can freeze cottage cheese. Also, the cheese’s texture will definitely undergo some change due to some reactions in it.

Often, frozen cottage cheese isn’t very visually appealing—the cohesiveness of cottage cheese changes when it is frozen. You won’t mind using that as your dip when you get the frozen version of cottage cheese. But in some of the dishes, that look works the best. So, it ultimately depends on your personal preferences.

You can very well use cottage cheese which you have thawed in your pancakes.

Before blending, the batter won’t look anything other than the usual. With that, you can use the cheesecake which you have defrosted. A delightful snack is waiting for you.

In fact, freezing cottage cheese isn’t much different from the procedure used in freezing ricotta cheese. Use smaller quantities of cheese instead of using the cheese in big lumps. You can choose either a bag or a container for storing the cottage cheese.

As the storing and freezing cannot go on for a very long time, it is easier to keep a label for your cheese. If you are very well at keeping number details inside your head, you can skip the step if you want.

You won’t compromise with the taste even if you keep the cheese for three months.

Uses for cream cheese

Now that the texture has considerably changed, you still have many recipes for trying with cream cheese.

Undoubtedly, you can gallop down a cheesecake without much ado. Guess what it is made of? It is cream cheese. If you are using this in a cream cheese pound cake, frozen cream cheese is best for use, as the name suggests. In fact, frozen cream cheese can also be a great dip for baked potatoes, or maybe it can also provide good accompaniment to your fried chicken. Savor it without delay!

How to defrost cottage cheese

If you want to defrost the cottage cheese, you can do it easily by following any below-written options.

In fridge

You can place the container having the frozen cheese on the night. This is non-arguably the best way to keep the cheese safe. You can defrost it the next morning by placing the box in lukewarm or cold water.

On counter

If you have less time in your hand, you can use the counter to freeze the cheese. Place the box in lukewarm water and keep on changing the water every 30 minutes. But if you freeze the cheese in this way, then use them in only baked or cooked cheese.

Final thoughts

So you have got the answer to whether you can freeze sour cream and all the freezing details of a lot of dairy products. Even if you have an excess of these, you don’t have to worry anymore. Be a go-getter for your desired dairy product without worrying about wasting it.