Kaymak substitutes

Made by the same principle of skimming the thickened top from slowly heated milk, so the texture is essentially identical: dense, spreadable and richly milky. The salt and acid convert it from sweet-course cream into the savoury spread kajmak actually is.

Best for

spreading on bread, melting over cevapi and pljeskavica, grilled meat platters, burek and filo pastries

The closest available product. Add the salt gradually and taste, because a mature kajmak is quite salty and a young one only lightly so. The lemon is optional but adds the faint tang of a matured cream.

Beat together until smooth and spreadable. It spreads exactly right and melts generously over hot grilled meat without splitting. Slightly sweeter and cleaner-tasting than an aged kajmak, so it reads as young kajmak rather than mature.

Best for

spreading on bread, cevapi and grilled meat, stuffed peppers, sauces

The most reliable supermarket build and the most stable in heat. Salt properly: mascarpone unsalted is unmistakably a dessert ingredient.

The best of these on tang, since it has the gentle sourness that young kajmak has and the others lack. It is looser, though, so it slumps into hot bread rather than sitting proudly on it. Draining it in a sieve for an hour thickens it noticeably.

Best for

spreading on bread, dolloping onto grilled vegetables, cold plates, stirring into sauces off the heat

Line a sieve with kitchen paper or a coffee filter, spoon it in and refrigerate for an hour or two; the whey drains and the body roughly doubles. Add off the heat in hot dishes.

Beat smooth. Very close on body, and the most robust of these options on a hot grill plate, where it holds together rather than running to liquid. It tastes slightly more manufactured and less milky than real kajmak, a little tangier and a little firmer.

Best for

melting over hot grilled meat, spreading, baked dishes, sauces

Best choice if the cream has to sit on something very hot for a while. Beat the cream cheese soft before adding the liquids or it stays lumpy.

The cheapest route by a distance. Tangier and much leaner than kajmak, so on bread it reads as a thick yogurt dip rather than a cream, pleasant but noticeably lighter. The butter or cream restores some of the richness.

Best for

spreading on bread, cold plates, dips, serving alongside grilled meat

Strain it overnight in a lined sieve or it will be far too loose. Less good melted, because yogurt can split under real heat, so keep it on the cold side of the plate.

The honest least-bad option. On hot meat it delivers the right richness, but it is butter: it melts to clear oil rather than staying creamy and clinging, and none of the fermented dairy flavour is there. On bread it is simply salted butter.

Best for

emergencies, melting over hot grilled meat, grilled vegetables

Use only when nothing else is available. Whipping it with a little sour cream at least gives some tang and a lighter texture than a straight pat of butter.