6 Best Substitutes for Sour Cream in Mac and Cheese

The wholesome, creamy delicacy we all know and love, i.e., his Majesty Mac and Cheese, wouldn’t be what it is without the magic of sour cream. In mac and cheese, sour cream provides its unique tangy sourness, intertwined with its mellow and gentle notes, creating an overall rich sensation in this dish. Still, I happen to run out of sour cream from time to time, and it’s really not a problem because I know what works instead. So, what are the best sour cream substitutes for mac and cheese? 

Greek yogurt, cream cheese, cashew cream, plain yogurt, heavy cream, and cottage cheese are some of the best sour cream substitutes for mac and cheese. 

Mac and cheese is a dish that does excellent under many circumstances, ingredient-wise. It would be a shame not to experiment with this blank canvas and add ingredients that may transform the dish and make it even more delicious. Sour cream is a great mac and cheese ingredient, but so are its substitutes, so in this article, I’ll share with you a few ideas about what to substitute it with. 

Greek Yogurt 

Greek yogurt is by far the best sour cream substitute for mac and cheese. It offers the same tanginess, only a little more pronounced, and texture, and consistency-wise, it is very close to sour cream. You don’t have to adjust the amounts, but simply add the same amount of Greek yogurt as you would do with sour cream. 

Greek yogurt has the same silky richness of sour cream, and it will impart it on your mac and cheese, infusing this wholesome dish with a dash of elegance. I love it for its creaminess and the buttery smoothness it offers.  

Cream Cheese

Pin

We cannot talk about mac and cheese without mentioning cream cheese. Cream cheese is thicker and more dense than sour cream. While cream cheese doesn’t move from a spoon, sour cream slides because it is moister. 

Still, cream cheese has a secret power, which is the melting property. It will absorb into the mac part of your dish, making the macaroni soft, tender, and cheesy. It doesn’t get much better than that. 

The best thing is you can combine cream cheese with any of the substitutes on this list and make yourself a decadent dish. I like mixing cream cheese with heavy cream for sinfully creamy mac and cheese.

Cashew Cream 

If you are looking for a vegan version of mac and cheese, then look no further and make yourself a nice cashew cream. Soak the cashews in water until they soften up, and blend them with a bit of water. You can also add a few drops of oil to make the mixture smoother and mix it with some non-dairy vegan cream. 

Even though I’m not a vegan, I like to surprise myself with a vegan dish. These vegan mac and cheese are absolutely delicious, with a few mushrooms and some cherry tomatoes. Your mac and cheese will taste slightly tangy, a bit buttery, and a whole lot delicious. 

Plain Yogurt 

Pin

If you don’t feel like experimenting all that much and just want to make and eat your mac and cheese, then add a few scoops of plain yogurt as a sour cream substitute. Even though plain yogurt is milder in terms of tanginess than sour cream, it still offers a refreshing note and the same creaminess as sour cream. 

If you want to make up for the tang, you can always put a few lemon drops in your yogurt, and you’ll get an effect very similar to that of sour cream. I use the same plain yogurt amount as I would do with sour cream, but you can use more if you want.

Heavy Cream 

Properly named because it really is heavy, this fatty cream is undoubtedly an excellent substitute for sour cream in mac and cheese. In fact, it may even work better if you ask me. Offering a smooth and silky texture, an extremely creamy consistency, and a luxurious buttery and nutty flavor, it will do more than just well. 

Due to its fattiness, reduce the heavy cream amount by a quarter when using it as a sour cream substitute. So, instead of adding one cup of heavy cream, add three-quarters. You can always add more if you want, even after baking the mac and cheese; just add the heavy cream, mix it in, and bake for a few more minutes. 

Cottage Cheese 

With its soft and grainy texture and gentle flavor, cottage cheese doubles for sour cream just fine. It offers the same gentility of the sour cream with a tad more saltiness and a little less tang. To make things easier, blend the cottage cheese to make it thinner and smoother, and add it to your mac and cheese. 

I like to mix cottage cheese with heavy cream and create a smooth and creamy consistency that is easily absorbable and very delicious.

Which of these do you use when you’re out of sour cream? Write your thoughts in the comments below!