Is Sour Cream Plant Based?

Sour cream is a versatile food that makes a lot of dishes interesting with its tangy taste and lustrous texture. It is generally used as a topping on Mexican food and as the base of dips and salad dressings. But a lot of people who switch to a plant-based diet want to find out whether they can still use sour cream in their snacks and meal recipes.

So, is sour cream plant based? No, sour cream is not plant based since it contains dairy. Traditionally, sour cream is made using milk and buttermilk which come from animals like cows and buffaloes. This is why Sour Cream is not suitable for a plant-based diet.

Read on to find out whether there exists an alternative to sour cream that you can include in a plant-based diet. 

Top 3 Sour Cream Substitutes For A Plant Based Diet

Almost all commercially prepared sour cream varieties contain dairy which makes them far from being plant-based. However, this does not mean it is not possible to find sour creams that don’t contain dairy. There are several companies like Follow Your Heart offering delicious sour creams that you can’t distinguish from the dairy counterpart. 

Follow Your Heart Dairy-Free Sour Cream

Boosting a creamy, thick texture, this sour cream is a dairy-free delight that tastes very much like the traditional favorite. It is a vegan, dairy-free food free from lactose and soy and suitable for a variety of diets. The brand uses coconut cream as a base to make the tangy sour cream ideal as an alternative for plant-based recipes. 

This plant-based sour cream is made sustainably in a sun-powered facility with zero-waste technology. It uses a blend of plant-based oils with some other ingredients to mimic the real taste and texture. Two tablespoons of this sour cream contain 90 calories and 2g carbs. It contains no added sugar and no cholesterol. You can use it like the real thing to complement your Mexican dishes, as a topping for mashed potatoes and as a rich base for dips.

Dollop Lama Sour and Creamy Topping

An excellent alternative to dairy sour cream, this cashew topping from The Dairy Free Co. is a 100% plant-based food made using a proprietary process. It uses organic cashews, natural flavors derived from flaxseed and plums and cultures. 

This sour cream can be used as a substitute in recipes or as a dip and gives the same taste and texture. It also contains the fat and protein from cashews to suit a healthy, plant-based diet. 

Homemade Plant-Based Sour Cream 

You can easily make a plant-based sour cream at home using tofu or nuts like almonds and cashews. These ingredients provide a good source of protein and fat while giving the volume and creaminess of sour cream. Making dairy-free sour cream is quite easy. You simply need to blend the ingredients like cashews, tofu, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, salt and water in a food processor until you get the smooth consistency you desire. 

You can also replace cashews with almonds and make some adjustments to match your taste and preferences. This sour cream can be used with tortilla chips or as an ingredient in other recipes. It can be stored in the refrigerator for up to five days.