Sour Cream

Why sour cream is rated low

Sour cream comes in low on a low FODMAP diet at the serving it is rated on, which is good news for anyone who tops chilli, baked potatoes or tacos with it. The rating here is inferred, meaning it is estimated from what sour cream is made of, a rich fermented cream, rather than measured at a weighed serving, so the ladder is described rather than numbered. A Small serving reads low. A Large serving reads moderate, so the cap is real: low describes the smaller helping, not the tub. The difference between a topping and a generous scoop is the whole story on this page.

What changes your risk

• The size of the scoop A Small serving reads low and a Large serving reads moderate. Nothing else about plain sour cream changes as much as this, so the spoon does more work than the shopping list.
• Stacking across the whole meal A low rating counts per serving, not per meal. Sour cream on a plate that also carries an onion based salsa, a bean chilli and a wheat tortilla is riding on top of a load that is already high, and the meal, not the sour cream, is what is felt afterwards. Spreading richer foods across the day rather than piling them into one sitting keeps the total manageable.
• What is stirred into it Ready made dips built on sour cream are usually built on onion and garlic too, and French onion, ranch and chive and garlic tubs all belong in that group. Plain sour cream and a sour cream dip are not the same food.
• Lactose-free sour cream Lactose-free dairy is ordinary dairy with the lactase enzyme added, so the milk sugar is already split. It is a genuine option when you want a more generous scoop, and it is still dairy, so it is not dairy-free and not suitable for a milk allergy.
• Heat does not change the load Stirring sour cream into a hot sauce, baking it into a casserole or warming it through does not lower what it carries. Cooking does not break FODMAPs down, so the serving on the plate is still what counts.

What else works

When you want more than a Small serving, lactose-free sour cream is the straightforward swap, and plain lactose-free yoghurt does much the same job on a baked potato or alongside a curry. A sharp grated hard cheese such as cheddar or parmesan gives the same rich finish to chilli or nachos without a dairy portion that climbs. The lookalikes to watch are the ones people assume are equivalent: ordinary yoghurt, cream and ice cream do not behave like sour cream here, and shop bought sour cream dips are a different proposition entirely because of the onion and garlic in them. Soft, fresh cheeses such as ricotta, cottage and cream cheese are not the gentler alternative either.

How to keep it low

Buy plain, full fat sour cream and read the ingredients on anything labelled as a dip, because the onion and garlic are the part that causes trouble rather than the cream. Spoon it onto the plate at the table and return the tub to the fridge, since eating straight from an open tub is how a Small serving quietly becomes a large one. A thin swirl across the top of a bowl of chilli reads as more than the same amount dolloped in one place. When ordering out, ask for sour cream on the side so you decide the amount, and keep a lactose-free tub in the fridge for the meals where you want to be generous.

Common questions

is sour cream low fodmap

Yes, sour cream is rated low, estimated from what it is made of rather than from a weighed serving. That holds at a Small serving; a Large serving reads moderate.

how much sour cream can i have on a low fodmap diet

Stay at a Small serving, which is the rung that reads low. A Large serving moves up to moderate, so the tub is not unlimited even though the food is rated low.

is sour cream dip low fodmap

Usually not, because ready made dips are typically built on onion and garlic as well as sour cream. Plain sour cream is the low rated food here, not the flavoured dip.

can i eat sour cream on the elimination phase

Sour cream is rated low at a Small serving, so it fits during elimination when the portion is kept there. Watch the rest of the plate, since a low rating applies per serving rather than to the whole meal.