The Secret Ingredient You Should Be Using In Your Brownies

Whatever brownie recipe you use, there's one secret ingredient that's sure to kick them up a notch — bam! — and make them extra fudgy.

The secret ingredient for baking truly awesome brownies may come as a surprise to you. And, no, it's not a special herb that will help mellow out your sugar high.

Don't worry…while this ingredient is unexpected, it's not unusual. You might be more familiar with it as a topping for tacos, baked potatoes, and nachos. That's right…if you really want to level up your brownies, just add a little bit of sour cream to the recipe.

So what exactly is sour cream, anyway? Most consumers just know it as the thick, white stuff that comes in little tubs in the dairy section, located somewhere between yogurt and cottage cheese. But how does cream get sour without spoiling and getting all nasty and chunky? If it's going to be stirred into your precious brownie batter, and ultimately devoured by friends and loved ones, perhaps a little more information is called for.

The Spruce Eats informs us that sour cream is made by introducing a certain type of lactic acid-producing bacteria into dairy cream, which causes the cream to thicken without curdling and gives it that distinctive tang…instead of an unusual milky flavor.

Sophisticated foodies might be aware that sour cream has a glamorous French cousin called crème fraîche. However, it isn't as tart and can sometimes be runny, so it will never take sour cream's place in a classic onion dip. And you definitely shouldn't add it to your brownie batter. You'll want to stick with basic sour cream because its consistency is so reliable.

Watch the video to learn more about the secret ingredient you should be using in your brownies!

#Brownies #BakingHacks

What's the big secret? | 0:08
Add half a cup | 1:24
Beyond brownies | 2:04