This Hack Will Make Your Sour Cream Last Longer In The Fridge

Sour cream. Some people love it; others, like Medium's Patrick Keefe, not so much. With roots in Eastern Europe, sour cream, similar to crème fraîche, is a cultured milk product that was "discovered" when cream that had sat around for a while turned slightly sour thanks to the growth of lactic acid-producing bacteria (via MasterClass).

In some kitchens, a container of sour cream doesn't last long enough to go bad. Lovers of this tangy, rich dairy product always have an open container ready for Taco Tuesdays, baked potatoes, and other staples in our dinner rotations.

For others, sour cream is an ingredient procured only when making the occasional cheesecake or a rich chicken paprikash. These folks have been foiled time and again by the unpleasant surprise of mold growing in their nearly full containers of sour cream stuffed somewhere towards the back of their refrigerators. Luckily, there is a solution. Eat more sour cream. Just kidding, there's an easier and healthier hack: Turn your sour cream on its head. 

According to Delish, storing your sour cream (or cottage cheese, by the way) upside down can make it last longer by inhibiting the growth of mold and other nasties. This is because tipping it over pushes the food into the vacant space, creating a vacuum that helps stop bad bacteria from taking up residence.

CBS News also recommends this storage method, saying this trick works to help extend the relatively short shelf life of cottage cheese and sour cream. One user of the website Thrify Fun says this hack works so well that it's allowed them to use sour cream "long past its expiration date," although we definitely wouldn't recommend doing that.

Looking for some rich, delicious ways to use up that leftover sour cream in your refrigerator? We, of course, are happy to help. Use it to top this gorgeous jewel-toned borscht, or try your hand at this classic chicken paprikash your family will love.