Most of us are aware that freezing dairy products can be a little bit tricky and the same is true for single cream.
This is a shame because it can be difficult to use up a whole pot of single cream before it goes bad. However, if you are wondering, can you freeze single cream? There is some good news (sort of)…
Single cream can be frozen for up to 3 months. However, it does not freeze particularly well, especially if you don’t follow the correct method for freezing it.
Do Does Single Cream freeze well? No
Can you refreeze Single Cream? No
How To Freeze Single Cream
You can choose from a couple of methods of freezing single cream:
How to Freeze Single Cream In Large Portions
If your recipes call for large amounts of single cream, this is the best method to choose. This is perfect for making creamy curries and sauces.
- Portion Out
Grab yourself enough freezer-safe bags or containers for the number of portions you want to freeze. Pour a portion of cream into each bag or container. Donāt fill the bag or container to the brim. The cream will expand a little as it freezes, so make sure you leave a gap at the top. - Remove Air
Squeeze out any excess air if you have chosen bags. - Seal Bags
Seal the bags or containers tightly. Add a second bag to ensure you get no spills or messes in your freezer. - Label
Label the bag or container with the date and contents. - Freeze
Pop them into the freezer. Just make sure you keep the bags and containers upright while it freezes.
How to Freeze Single Cream In Ice Cubes
This method is perfect if you like to add just a touch of single cream to your sauces, soups or recipes. Each cube will be approximately the size of a tablespoon which means you can easily control just how much single cream goes into each recipe.
- Portion into Ice Cube Tray
Grab yourself an ice cube tray or two. Pour the single cream into each section of the tray. Donāt forget to leave a little gap at the top of each section because the cream will expand as it freezes. - Flash Freeze
Pop the ice cube tray and single cream into the freezer. Keep it flat and allow it to freeze for a few hours. - Remove Cubes
Once the single cream has frozen, you can take them back out of the freezer and transfer the cubes to a freezer bag. - Final Freeze
Label the bag with the date and contents and pop it back into the freezer.
How to Freeze Other Types of Cream
If you have other types of cream, such as double cream or sour cream, that you don’t want to throw out then discover how to freeze them below:
3 Tips for Freezing Single Cream
Now you know how to freeze single cream, we’ve got our 3 top tips which we strongly recommend following when freezing them to have the best results:
Consider Your Uses
Before freezing single cream, you need to consider how you personally use cream. Do you use lots of it in one go or do you tend to use a little at a time to add creaminess to soups or mellow the spice of chilli?
Once you know how you use it, you need to freeze it in suitable portions based on your use.
Expect Texture Changes
Cream will change texture when frozen. This applies to various creams. You can blend it or give it a vigorous stir after freezing to try to mix some of the separation back in.
Freeze Cream in Dishes
You can freeze single cream in cooked dishes such as pasta sauces or quiche, and you can make some (not all) of the texture changes this way.
How Long Can You Freeze Single Cream?
Single cream has a relatively long freezer life when compared to other types of dairy products. You can keep it frozen for between two and four months. Plenty of time to save leftovers for use at a later date.
You Can Freeze Single Cream for Around 3 Months
How Do You Defrost Single Cream?
Defrosting single cream is fairly simple, and for best results, you will need to thaw it out slowly. Take the cream out of the freezer and pop it into a bowl. Put this into the fridge and allow it to defrost for a few hours.
You might notice there is a little separation and that the grainy texture is fairly obvious.
You can help with this by popping it into a blender and giving it a quick blend to mix it back up. This wonāt fix the grainy texture completely but it will help.
If you have used the ice cube method of freezing, you can also just pop your ice cubes directly into your recipe and defrost as it cooks.
Can You Refreeze Single Cream?
It isnāt recommended to try and refreeze single cream, and you wouldnāt get very good results if you tried.
Not only could you find yourself ill due to the bacteria growths, but the cream’s taste and texture would have changed too much to be usable.
Does Single Cream Freeze Well?
Single cream doesnāt freeze very well at all. As with most dairy products, its texture changes completely once it has been frozen.
However, all is not lost. As long as you use any frozen cream in cooking, you shouldnāt notice a difference by the time it is cooked!
Related FAQs
If you’ve still got questions about freezing single cream or single cream in general, then these may help:
Can You Freeze Elmlea Single Cream?
You can also freeze their Elmlea single cream in the same way you can any type of single cream. Just donāt forget that the texture will have changed after it has been defrosted so it wonāt be the creamy texture you are used to.
This is fine if you are cooking your Elmlea cream, but it doesnāt work as well if you want to use it as a pouring cream.
Can You Freeze Cooked Single Cream?
If the core component of the dish is cooked cream (in a sauce for example) then it will not freeze well.
I just followed these steps to freeze single cream and them went to put a cube in my coffee and it all floated to the top and crystallized. Will not be referring to this item again for guidance!
Hi Katie, I’m not surprised it didn’t turn out well.
In the article above, we mention the fact that single cream should be thawed fully and slowly before use (and not placed directly into a mug of hot coffee). We also conclude that single cream doesn’t freeze particularly well.