Store-bought dairy ingredients like butter, sour cream, heavy cream, yogurt, condensed milk etc., are often very expensive to buy and they are those which are used in a variety of recipes.

So, the best way to cut costs is to just make these items yourself at home! Yes, there are easy ways to make dairy and cream ingredients at home and this article will tell you how!

Dairy and Cream Ingredients You Can Make At Home:

1. Sour Cream Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
  (Or distilled white vinegar)
• ¼ cup whole milk (optional)

Method:

Into a mason jar, add in all the ingredients and stir it well. Then, cover the mason jar with a thin cloth and secure it using a rubber band. Let it sit for around 1 to 1.5 days in room temperature or until thickened. Stir before using and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

2. Condensed Milk Recipe – Make delicious dairy condensed milk and also vegan condensed milk with only 2 ingredients.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups full-fat dairy milk or coconut milk
• 2/3 cup of sugar

Method:

Into a heating pot, add in the ingredients and give it a mix. Stirring continuously over medium heat, let the sugar dissolve. Then once the sugar dissolves, reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for half an hour (30 minutes) until the mixture thickens. Next, remove it from the heat, strain and once cool, pour into an airtight storage container.

To store: Keep in a cool dark place for up to 6 months or in the refrigerator (if you live in humid climate).

3. Heavy cream Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup whole milk
• 3 tbsp Butter

Recipe – cut the butter into small cubes and melt it in the microwave or on the stove using a double boiler. . Slowly stream milk into butter while whisking. Continue whisking until mixture is smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. If separation occurs, set bowl back on the double boiler and whisk until mixture is more homogenized. Use this substitute in places of heavy cream in your favorite recipes. However, it’s important to note that this substitute won’t whip into soft or stiff peaks regardless of how long you continue to whip it. READ MORE – for whipping cream recipe, click here.

4. Cream cheese Recipe –

Ingredients:

2 litres full fat milk
(Or fresh cream)

3 – 4 tbsp lemon juice

Method:

Into a large heating pot, add in the full fat milk (or you could even use fresh cream). Then, turn on the heat and let the milk heat up on medium heat. You can keep the pot covered and wait for the milk to come to a boil. Caution: If you choose to keep the pot covered, make sure to keep checking on it, failing which your milk could rise and overflow if over boiled.

Once the milk starts to boil, immediately add in the lemon juice and turn off the heat. You will soon notice that the milk has broken and has started to curdle. If you do not find the milk curdling well enough, you can add in a little more lemon juice (around ½ to 1 tablespoon should suffice).

Give it a stir and let it cool down completely. Next, you will have to place a muslin/cheesecloth onto a sieve and pour in the curdled milk to get rid of all the whey. Gently lift up the muslin cloth and squeeze out the whey, until the curdled milk is completely dry and lumpy. Thereafter, you will need to tone down the tanginess by pouring a litre of cold water onto the curdled milk. Next, transfer the curdled milk lumps into a food processer (or blender) and blend well until the mixture becomes creamy.

Tip: If you find that the texture of the cream cheese isn’t becoming creamy, then you can add in ½ to 1 tablespoon of the whey (even water will do) and then blend it.

To store: Transfer the freshly made cream cheese into an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator.

Store-bought dairy ingredients like cream cheese, whipping cream, mayonnaise, buttermilk etc., are often very expensive to buy and they are those which are used in a variety of recipes.

So, the best way to cut costs is to just make these items yourself at home! Yes, there are easy ways to make dairy and cream ingredients at home and this article will tell you how!

5. Buttermilk

Two ways to make buttermilk:

Method 1: Using yogurt

Ingredients:

• 1 cup yogurt (unflavoured)
• ½ cup milk

Method: Into a bowl, add in the yogurt and the milk. Give it a good whisk and its then ready to use. You can store what’s unused in the in the freezer for up to 12 weeks months or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Method 2: Using whole milk

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole milk
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• (Or white vinegar)

Method: Into a bowl, add in the whole milk and the lemon juice or white vinegar. Let it sit at room temperature for around half an hour. Then give it a good mix and its ready to use. You can store what’s unused in the in the freezer for up to 12 weeks months or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

6. Mayonnaise

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 large egg
  (At room temperature)
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
• Salt to taste
• A pinch of sugar

Method:

Into a food processor, add in the egg and the Dijon mustard and blend for 20 seconds. Then little by little keep adding the oil while blending.  Soon you will notice that the mixture is thickening. Next, add in the vinegar and blend for another 10 seconds. Lastly, add in the salt and sugar to taste.

To store: Pour into an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

7. Whipping Cream

Ingredients:

• 150 grams unsalted butter
• 150 grams whole milk
• 30 grams powdered sugar
• 5 grams vanilla extract ( optional )

Method:

Into a saucepan, add in the butter and the milk and cook over medium heat stirring occasionally. Do not bring the mixture to a boil, but simply turn off the heat once the butter has melted fully. Then leave it aside to cool and then pour into a blender and blend on high speed for about 1 minute.

Next, transfer the contents into a bowl and leave it to cool. Cover the mixture with a saran wrap (tightly pressed down onto the mixture’s surface) and set it in the refrigerator until it is completely cooled.

Once completely cooled, remove the saran wrap, add in the sugar powder and the vanilla extract and beat using a medium speed hand mixer until stiff peaks begin to form.

Tip: Make sure to chill all the equipment you’ll be using for the preparation of the whipping cream, like beater attachment etc, in the refrigerator for half an hour before you begin (to help speed up the process).

8. VIDEO – watch video to make yogurt at home without a yogurt starter