Smetana (dairy product)

Smetanais the English-language name for the types ofsour creamtraditionally prevalent inCentral,Eastern, andSoutheastern Europe, andCentral Asia. It is adairy productproduced bysouringheavy cream. It is similar tocrème fraîche, but nowadays mainly sold with 9% to 42% milkfat content depending on the country.Its cooking properties are different fromcrème fraîcheand the lightersour creamssold in the US, which contain 12 to 16% butterfat.It is widely used in cooking and baking.
In some of the Slavic languages (Czech, Slovak, Slovenian) the sole word smetana refers to (sweet) cream. An Adjective (zakysaná, kyslá, kisla) meaning soured needs to be added to refer to smetana in english sense.
Smetana is used in Central, Southeastern, and Eastern Europeancuisinesinappetizers, main courses, soups and desserts. For example, it may be blended with soups, vegetable salads,cole slaw,and meat dishes. It is served with dumplings (pelmeni,pierogi,varenyky), or with pancakes (bliny,palacsinta,naleśniki,oladyi,syrniki). It is also used as a filling in savoury pancakes. Smetana can be blended to aLiptauer-likecheese spreadwithquarkorcottage cheese, onions, paprika and other spices, and eaten with bread. Smetana is often used in cooking, as it is high enough in fat not to curdle at higher temperatures. It is used in the preparation of meat stews, such asbeef Stroganoff, vegetable stews,casseroles, or other dishes that require a long cooking time in the oven. Smetana does not melt in the oven.Hungariancooks use it as an ingredient insaucessuch aspaprikas, and inrecipessuch aspalacsinta(crepes) filled withhamor minced meat (hortobágyi palacsinta).  A similar use is common in Eastern European Jewish cuisines, except that smetana is not used with meat dishes due to the Jewish dietary prohibition of mixing dairy products with meat.
The current trend toward reduced fat content is believed to have resulted in an inferior product.To imitate Hungarian-style cooking and the use of smetana (calledtejfölin Hungarian), Hungarian cookbooks recommend using Western sour cream mixed with heavy whipping cream (38–40% milkfat).Unlike sour cream mixed with whipping cream, smetana is nothomogenized.
In Central European countries such as the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland, smetana may refer to sweet cream or soured cream. It should contain at least 10% fat. Smetana that has at least 30% fat is calledsmetana ke šlehání(whipping cream) and is used for the production ofšlehačka(whipped cream).
InUkrainian,BelarusianandRussian cuisines, sour cream is often added toborschtand othersoups, and is used as asalad dressingand as acondimentfor dumplings, such asvarenykyandpelmeni. InPolish cuisinesmetana can be added to traditionalpierogidumplings. It is also used in gravies served with Bohemian (Czech) cuisine, such as marinated beefsvíčková. InSlovak cuisine, smotana (cognate of smetana) is often incorporated intoBryndzové haluškyandPierogi.
Schmand mit Glumse(whipped cream withquark) is used in Prussian and other Germanic cuisines in savory dishes and also for cakes calledSchmandkuchenand desserts.A German medical bookpublished in 1677 recommendedSchmantorMilchraamas the best part of the milk. Schmand is the cream of the milk, or the foam that rises up like the foam on beer.Schmand or Schmant also describes other fatty foamy material and is known as a byproduct of mining (Grubenschmant), for example in vitriol development. The Central European name for fattier varieties of smetana,mileram, is probably a variation of the earlierBavarianname for the product,Millirahm, meaning "milk cream".
When comparing brands or suppliers of smetana, the Polish and Russian practice is to compare the fat content of the varieties. Fat content can range from 10% (runny) to 70% (thick). The most common supermarket smetana is 10% to 40% fat (milk fat only for an authentic product). Thickeners such as gelatine or starch may be added, although this is often considered to be adulteration and may make such smetana unsuitable for many culinary uses.
The word "smetana" comes from the common Slavic "sъmętana", in turn from the verb "sъmětati" – to remove, to dump. Under this name, this product has spread in most languages: inRussia(смета́на, "smetana"),Ukraine(смета́на, "smetana"),Belarus(смята́на, "smyatana/śmiatana"),Finland("smetana" and "crème fraîche"),German ("saure sahne" and "schmand"), Slovenian ("kisla smetana"), Polish ("śmietana"), Bulgarian (заквасена сметана, "zakvasena smetana"), Slovak ("smotana"), Czech ("zakysaná smetana"), and Romanian ("smântână").
In Finland, the name "smetana" is used only for a product with a high fat content (30% or more), while ordinary smetana is called "hapankerma" ("sour cream").
Smântânăis a Romaniandairy productthat is produced by separating the milk fat throughdecantationand retaining thecream. It will not curdle when cooked or if added to hot dishes.Smântână's taste is tangy and sweet; souredsmântânăis considered spoiled.
The word is acognatewith Slavicsmetana(Czech: "cream", Russian: "sour cream").
Smântânăis widely used inRomanian cuisine, particularly in appetizers, main courses, soups and desserts. It is often added tociorbăand othersoups, and is used as acondimentformămăligăand dishes likesarmale.