Sometimes
Best ratio: Swap 1:1 by volume for pouring and enriching. To thicken a sauce, add a little cornflour, as single cream is thinner and won't reduce down.
Single and double cream differ mainly in fat content — double has around twice as much — and that changes what each can do. You can often use single cream in place of double, but only for certain jobs.
What single cream can and can’t do
For pouring and enriching — over a pudding, stirred into a soup or sauce — single cream works fine, just with a lighter, less luxurious result. Where it falls down is whipping (it hasn’t the fat to hold peaks) and boiling hard, where its lower fat content makes it curdle and split more easily. If you need a single-cream sauce to thicken, help it along with a little cornflour rather than trying to reduce it.
When it works
- Pouring over puddings and fruit.
- Stirring into soups, sauces and scrambled eggs for richness.
- Adding to coffee or a light creamy dish.
When it doesn't work
- Whipping — single cream doesn't have enough fat to hold peaks.
- Boiling or reducing hard in a sauce, where it can curdle and split.
Taste & texture difference
Single cream is lighter and thinner than double, with about half the fat. Dishes come out less rich and less thick, and it's more prone to splitting when heated aggressively.