easy raw milk sour cream/creme fraiche

I have access to incredible raw dairy products so taking advantage as best I can, trying to do as much home dairy as I can but had hit a wall with sour cream. if I let it sit it gets sour (not good sour, like sour sour), other methods call for elaborate pasteurization procedures and then culturing. I think it was an article from Wardee Harmon's website that suggested just using finished milk kefir to culture cream and viola. I tried it and it is amazing delicious. Not sour like kefir but cultured and thick and rich. Took one qt of raw milk cream, stirred in 4 tbsp. of finished milk kefir and let sit a day. it firmed up and soured with no separation and no hassle whatsoever. Should be a perfect base for dressings, dips, or on fruit like yoghurt or any recipe that calls for crème fraiche or sour cream.

Great to know, John, thanks.

I have dairy goats, but not the kind that give a lot of cream. I'm working on that, but in the meantime, I make kefir, using grains and raw milk. Do you think if I put the finished kefir with grains removed, into goats milk I would just get more kefir, or would I get some awesome thing akin to the sour cream you are making?

I know I make kombucha without the "mother" the visible thing that seems analagous to kefir grains, but now I am really curious if I need the grains or if the organisms are also in the liquid.

Thanks
Thekla

What I know of Goats milk it is somewhat homogenized as it is. I've never had it though. not sure if you could separate goats milk into cream and whey and then work with that. What I am starting with is heavy cream already separated from cows milk it's pretty thick but not actually solid. After the day sitting with the already cultured milk kefir stirred in it becomes really thick, probably could turn it over and it not fall out! Has a pleasant sour to it, excited to try to make some French onion dip out of it.

You would probably get more kefir, not sure if milk kefir grains have a problem in goats milk, I don't see why they would. If you have raw milk but cant "get" raw milk cream, let it sit in a narrow container in the fridge and skim the top of it after it separates.

Hi John,
Some of the cream rises to the top of the goats milk, but there is a difference between breeds of goats, how much cream they make. Nigerians make lots of cream, average of 5%, but up to 10% at times during the lactation cycle. I'm breeding Nigerian into my herd for the cream. Next year, I'll be able to try your sour cream trick!

Thekla

When you do let us know how it works!