Matlagningsgrädde

Matlagningsgrädde means "cooking cream". It is a Swedish cream made for hot food. It usually has about 15 percent fat, and lighter versions with less fat are sold too. A small amount of stabilizer keeps it from splitting when it boils, which plain cream with this little fat would do. It tastes like a light, mild cream and has the texture of whole milk mixed with cream.

How to use it

Use it in hot dishes where you want a creamy sauce:

• Cream sauces for Swedish meatballs and gravy (gräddsås).
• Pasta sauces, soups and stews.
• Potato gratins and other baked dishes.
• Fish dishes baked in the oven with cream.

Bring it to a boil and let it bubble to thicken. It reduces like other cream, just more slowly.

Substitutes

Outside Sweden, cooking cream is rare. Use one of these:

• Heavy cream mixed half and half with whole milk. This gives about the same fat and it will not split when boiled. In the UK, whipping cream is the closest match to heavy cream. Double cream is richer, about 48 percent fat, so use a little more milk with it.
• Heavy cream on its own, for a richer sauce. Use a little less or thin it with stock.
• Light cream, single cream in the UK, or half-and-half. These have a similar fat level but can curdle if boiled hard, especially with acid such as wine or lemon. Stir them in near the end and keep the heat at a simmer.
• Crème fraîche, for a tangier sauce that can boil.

How to store it

Keep it in the fridge and use it within a few days of opening. Unopened, follow the date on the carton.

Common mistakes

• Trying to whip it. It does not have enough fat to whip. For whipping, Swedish recipes use vispgrädde, which is whipping cream, about 36 to 40 percent fat.
• Swapping in milk. Milk makes a thin sauce and can curdle.

In recipes

Swedish recipes say matlagningsgrädde or simply grädde for cooking, and vispgrädde for whipping. When a recipe says grädde and the dish is hot, either works, but vispgrädde makes it richer.