The Bottom Line
In sum, the difference here is that heavy cream has the most fat—36% or more. Whipping cream has 30-36% milkfat.
Reading the Labels on Different Types of Cream
Checking the packaging or the company’s website is the best way to find out what a cream’s milkfat content is and whether it has any food additives.
If the label doesn’t state the fat content, you can get an idea by checking the nutrition facts. The more grams of fat, the more milk fat.
For example:
Straus Family Creamery’s organic heavy whipping cream is 36% milkfat. It doesn’t have any stabilizers or thickeners, and it’s not ultra-pasteurized. (A high fat content is also the secret behind Amish butter.)
Organic Valley’s pasteurized heavy whipping cream is 40% butterfat. The company also sells an ultra-pasteurized version in nearly identical packaging.
Kroger‘s store brand creams don’t state their milk fat content, but the regular whipping cream has 45 calories per tablespoon, while the heavy whipping cream has 50 calories per tablespoon, indicating a higher fat content. You may find additives such as carrageenan, mono and diglycerides, and polysorbate 80 in their creams.
Can I Use Whipping Cream Instead of Heavy Cream?
In most recipes, yes, you can use whipping cream as a substitute for heavy cream.
If you like to keep a stocked kitchen so you can cook whatever strikes your fancy, pasteurized heavy cream or pasteurized heavy whipping cream will be the most versatile, but they also have a shorter shelf life. Ultra-pasteurized products will keep almost four times as long.
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