A well-chosen method of whitening can change the character of the soup. It will soften the taste, add velvety to the dish and highlight the aroma of the ingredients. This is a classic technique in Polish cuisine, but it still raises questions, especially when someone has already spoiled their dinner due to curdled cream.
Whitening the soup is not obligatory, but it often improves the taste and satiety of the dish. Adding dairy products in moderate amounts is not a problem in your daily diet. Full-fat creams and yogurts provide calcium and improve the texture of the dish. However, it is worth remembering that each soup after whitening becomes slightly more caloric. Therefore, in light cuisine it is often better to use natural yogurt, buttermilk or kefir. These products have less fat and still provide a pleasant delicacy.
Cream itself is not unhealthy, it is only harmful in excessive amounts. A bit of “eighteen” used to whiten the soup does not determine the health value of the dish. However, it should be avoided by people who are overweight, have high cholesterol or are allergic to proteins. A spoonful of cream per serving of soup increases its caloric value by about 47 kcal. People avoiding lactose can choose plant alternatives, which can also emphasize the velvety texture of the soup.
Most often, we use 18% cream to whiten the soup.its packaging often suggests that it is used for exactly this purpose. It has the perfect balance between fat and light acidity. It works well in vegetable, dill and cucumber soups. If we want a lighter effect, it is a good choice natural yogurtbut it’s worth remembering that it tends to brew faster. Its use requires more thorough hardening.
Milk or 30% cream also goes well with cream soups. Its higher fat content makes it combine well with the hot base. Some housewives also use: mascarpone or a spoonful of sour cream, both ingredients add an elegant smoothness, although they change the taste more than classic sour cream. In turn, soups – such as krupnik, cabbage soup or goulash soup – best tolerate slight whitening, which is only intended to slightly soften the taste, without changing the structure of the dish.
Magda Gessler has one rule: she only whitens the soup with good, 18% sour cream, carefully tempered beforehand.. According to the restaurateur, cream with medium fat content combines best with hot soup, it does not separate and adds perfect creaminess.
Gessler emphasizes that not only the quality of the product is important, but also the method of adding it. The soup should be removed from the heat and the cream slowly combined with a small amount of stock before returning it to the pot. This method eliminates the risk of curdling almost to zero and allows you to maintain the beautiful, elegant appearance of the dish.
the soup will curdle without it. First, pour the cream into a separate container and mix thoroughly. The idea is not only to break its compact consistency, but also to warm it to room temperature. Then add a few spoons of hot soup in a thin stream, stirring vigorously. Thanks to this, the temperature of the cream will rise gradually and without a thermal shock.
Only then can you pour it into the pot. Remove the soup from the burner, as the smoldering fire may cause it to curdle immediately. Add the hardened cream to the soup slowly, stirring constantly. Cream prepared in this way perfectly combines with any base: vegetable, meat, sour or creamy. Thanks to this, the soup remains velvety and its taste is more harmonious and full.
Sources: guster.pl, Terazgotuje.pl
