Homemade Crème fraîche

Years ago, I had the opportunity to cook for a few months at a higher-end resort kitchen in Walland, Tennessee. The site had their own small working produce farm, in addition to some sheep and pigs. What fascinated most about this operation was their willingness to make preserved and fermented products from scratch.  

One of my tasks was to create the crème fraîche that we would use on many dishes throughout the evening at the restaurant. Every couple of weeks, I would wash out these large plastic containers meant to hold 22-quarts of liquid with soapy water, and pour in 16 quarts of heavy cream and 2 quarts of fresh buttermilk into each container. Mix, cover with cheesecloth, sit out at room temperature in a dark room for about three days, and you have homemade crème fraîche! Simply transfer to quart containers and refrigerate whenever you would like to use some. It’s really that easy. The only difficult part can be sourcing some decent-quality buttermilk.

Prep time: 30 minutes

Fermentation Duration: Roughly 60-72 hours, or about three days at room temperature in a dark environment.

Serves: 20

Note: This crème fraîche will last for a week or two in the fridge after being made. While you can make larger commercial-sized batches like what is discussed above in a restaurant, it is easier to keep your batches small, as described in the recipe below. Just remember to maintain a ratio of 8 parts heavy cream to 1 part buttermilk.        

The mixture will thicken even more after it has time to chill in the fridge.