What's the Difference? Half-and-Half, Light Cream, Heavy Cream, and Whipping Cream

It always seems like there's only half-and-half in the fridge when the recipe calls for whipping cream. Can one kind of cream be exchanged for another? Just what is the difference between all these creams, anyway? Read on...

The real difference between all these kinds of cream have to do with their fat content. It breaks down like this (percents are averages):

Half-and-Half: 12% fat
Light Cream: 20% fat
Light Whipping Cream: 30% fat
Whipping Cream: 35% fat
Heavy Cream and Heavy Whipping Cream: 38% fat

As food scientist Harold McGee explains, "The proportion of fat determines both a cream's consistency and its versatility." As the fat content increases, the cream gets thicker and you can do more with it.

Creams with more fat will whip up better into a stable whipped cream, and they will also resist curdling when used to enrich soups. Creams with lower fat content are better used in beverages or for pouring over desserts.

If you can't find the specific cream needed for a recipe and are looking to substitute, it's always a safe bet to go for a cream with a higher fat content than the one called for. This ensures that everything on a molecular level will work out.

If a cream with higher fat not an option (or you're hoping to cut calories from a recipe!), try the cream with the fat content just below the one called for before experimenting with lighter creams.

And, hey, if you want to substitute whipping cream for half-and-half in your coffee, mum's the word.

Related: Tip: Stabilize Whipped Cream

(Image: Flickr member Kyle May licensed under Creative Commons)

Comments (14)

Thanks for posting the corresponding dairy fat percentages! Around here cream is labeled simply "Cream XX%", which has left me dazed in the dairy aisle many times.

Land O'Lakes makes a fat free half and half. Has anybody used it in recipes that call for cream? I wonder if a version of whipped cream could be made from it.

i use that fat free half'n'half for coffee and i pretty much always feel like i'm drinking pure chemicals...how can it be fat free?? and still taste yum and have that creamy consistency??

Fat free half and half is an oxymoron (and gross, too).

It is usually made of skim (nonfat) milk and and corn syrup solids, for thickening, I guess.

Here's the real scam, though - it is NOT lower in calories than regular half and half!!! So really, there is no point in using it - you're not saving calories! You're just replacing fat calories with sugar calories, and what's the point in that?

Just use the real stuff.

Aldyth, I'm thinking that the fat-free half-and-half probably won't work for whipped cream, which needs a good amount of fat in order to get it to whip up and stay firm.

Figuring out how they make fat-free half-and-half would be another good post! Stay tuned for that!

I was dubious about fat-free half and half, but when Cook's Illustrated gave a qualified thumbs up to the Land O'Lakes version, I gave it a try. Not bad. We usually just put milk in our coffee, but I do pick up the low-fat Land O'Lakes version sometimes. I find artificial creamer to be completely vile, so they seem to be doing something different.

I consume a relatively low amount of processed foods, but probably more than a lot of people here.

Here in Canada our fat percentages for cream are quite different but the names are similar which explains why recipes don't always work from country to country.

We have Light 5%,
Half and Half 10%
Table 18%
whipping 30%

http://danamccauley.wordpress.com

Dana - thanks for posting that! Why must we be different, it's just confusing.

They could of course, just list the % of fat on the cream. Instead of the milk / cream distinction we could just have a spectrum of percentage creams. 38% milk! Woo!

Since I'm lactose intolerant, I regularly substitute coconut milk for cream in most recipes with excellent results. It doesn't really work well for the whipping (nor does it really cut down on fat or calories) but it tastes fantastic in most soups and purees!

Hanna,

I totally agree that we should demand that there be an international treaty to rationalize the cream percentages!

Dana

ok, so if you have heavy whipping cream and need half-and-half, could you just dilute the cream with milk (skim, 1%, or 2%) and get half-and-half?

Thank You brenjay;
I'm in the grocery industry but we don't handle a "fat free half & half." While in FL recently I saw some in a store and did a double take thinking "what the heck is that?" I was just telling a good friend of mine about it when she found your post.
I agree, stick to the real stuff
Mr_Mom

You people are so funny! Here you are calling people morons and You are actually the moron because you're missing the whole point of fat-free half and half. It's nothing to do with calories, but cholesterol. Im skinney, but have high cholesterol, so I am very thankful for this fat-free half and half. It's okay, I've been a moron....way too many times. Watch your cholesterol!