Storing Cheese

[meeleend]

[SIZE=-1]Store cheese in your refrigerator, which approximates the[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] temperature of aging rooms. Keep it wrapped tightly in plastic,[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] away from air. Air helps mold grow on cheese. If you get a little[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] mold on the outside, just cut it off. The English say if mold[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] won't eat your cheddar it can't taste very good.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] Bring cheese to room temperature before melting. Melt cheese[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] over a low heat to help prevent toughening and separation of[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] oils and liquids.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] Most ripened or aged cheese is low in moisture content and[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] can be frozen without drastic flavor and texture changes. Thaw[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] slowly in the refrigerator for 24 hours or more. If frozen for[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] several months, the cheese may dry out somewhat and become[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1] crumbly when thawed.[/SIZE]

 

[bowlingshirt]

I prefer to store cheese in my stomach

 

[jennyema]

Actually you should not wrap cheese tightly in plastic. That encourages mold. Plastic is not good for cheese because it seals the cheese in an air-tight environment, thus not allowing for any gasses or moisture to escape.

Cheese is a living thing, and it's very important for it to breathe.

Much better to wrap cheese in waxed paper or special cheese paper.

Cheese will dry out a bit faster this way, but will retain it's falvor and will discourage mold.

 

[VeraBlue]

Actually you should not wrap cheese tightly in plastic. That encourages mold. Plastic is not good for cheese because it seals the cheese in an air-tight environment, thus not allowing for any gasses or moisture to escape.

Cheese is a living thing, and it's very important for it to breathe.

Much better to wrap cheese in waxed paper or special cheese paper.

Cheese will dry out a bit faster this way, but will retain it's falvor and will discourage mold.

Absolutely correct. Short of waxed or butcher paper, parchment will suffice. And, again, loosely wrap it, not tightly.

 

[miniman]

Some people would also say to keep cheese in a larder area rather than the fridge.

 

[ella/TO]

I have found that I wet down a paper towel, small piece that is, with white vinegar. I drape that over the end of the cheese package that's been opened. I then wrap this in plastic wrap. Put it in the cheese drawer of the fridge. This lasts for a good long time

 

[pacanis]

Well I'll be the odd man out here, too.....
Ever since I started keeping cheese in a vacuum bag, I've never had it last so long. No slime, mold, not crumbly.... tastes like it did going in. I don't have a vast array of cheese on hand, so I am only speaking from my experience with extra sharp cheddar, yellow American, Argentino Regganito (or whatever that cheese was, old thread and old cheese by now, too, but I just used some yesterday and it was fine) and pepperjack & Swiss, too, but the last two are usually boughten in smaller quantites and used fairly quickly. I keep them all in the meat drawer in the fridge.
I think it's amazing the way some foods keep better for some than other folks, using totally different methods. It just goes to show you there must be a lot of other variables involved.

 

[BBQ Mikey]

[SIZE=-1]Store cheese in your refrigerator, which approximates the[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]temperature of aging rooms. Keep it wrapped tightly in plastic,[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]away from air. Air helps mold grow on cheese. If you get a little[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]mold on the outside, just cut it off. The English say if mold[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]won't eat your cheddar it can't taste very good.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Bring cheese to room temperature before melting. Melt cheese[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]over a low heat to help prevent toughening and separation of[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]oils and liquids.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]Most ripened or aged cheese is low in moisture content and[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]can be frozen without drastic flavor and texture changes. Thaw[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]slowly in the refrigerator for 24 hours or more. If frozen for[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]several months, the cheese may dry out somewhat and become[/SIZE]
[SIZE=-1]crumbly when thawed.[/SIZE]

This is nonsense, as some have already pointed out. Parchment paper or in a pinch, foil wrap will suffice. Tightly wrapped cheese in plastic makes it sweat, which induces mold to grow faster.

 

[MexicoKaren]

Gosh, you guys. I wish there was a consensus here. I bought a 2 lb loaf of Tillamook extra sharp cheddar cheese today at the new Costco in Puerto Vallarta. I have never seen sharp cheddar cheese here in Mexico, especially Tillamook (I am from Oregon.) I'm afraid to cut into it! It is, of course, encased in wax. Bearing in mind that it is very humid here, should I vacu-seal it after I open it?

 

[sattie]

Well I'll be the odd man out here, too.....
Ever since I started keeping cheese in a vacuum bag, I've never had it last so long. No slime, mold, not crumbly.... tastes like it did going in. I don't have a vast array of cheese on hand, so I am only speaking from my experience with extra sharp cheddar, yellow American, Argentino Regganito (or whatever that cheese was, old thread and old cheese by now, too, but I just used some yesterday and it was fine) and pepperjack & Swiss, too, but the last two are usually boughten in smaller quantites and used fairly quickly. I keep them all in the meat drawer in the fridge.
I think it's amazing the way some foods keep better for some than other folks, using totally different methods. It just goes to show you there must be a lot of other variables involved.

I'm kinda with you on this.... I vacuum pack all my cheese, lasts a heck of a lot longer than when I don't. Plus..... why is all the cheese vacuumed packed when a buy it? I can't recall a single wedge of cheese that has not been packaged this way.

Not to say the claims here are not true, maybe I have grown accustomed to cruddy cheese and don't know when I have been exposed to the good stuff!

 

[mcnerd]

I use my Handi-Vac to vacuum-seal all my cheese and they last much longer. I don't know how a bumble bee flies, but it does, and the same goes for sealing the cheese. It works and that's all I concern myself with.

 

[MexicoKaren]

Well, it seems to me that air and moisture are the enemy, at least in my environment. That's why I vacuum seal everything this time of year, and it works.

 

[Lamb&Guinness]

Don't freeze cheese. I read that in my America's Test Kitchen cookbook.

Also- beware of cheese sold pre-shredded. Drying chemicals are added to keep
the shreds from sticking to each other, so you end up with unnaturally dry cheese.

 

[Jeekinz]

I'm another plastic wrap user. I used to store cheese in small zip bags, those suck. Then I used plastic wrap, which was a tad better but still not the best. Now I use Press and Seal which works the best so far. When I get a vacuum sealer I probobly use that. Like you said, that's how it comes.

 

[jennyema]

There is a big difference between vacuum sealing cheese in an anaerobic environment and wrapping it up in plastic wrap.

Plastic wrap will encourage mold growth. That's just a fact. You can cut the mold off, yes, but why give it a head start?

Wax paper or parchment or foil and then into a ziplock is the best way to store it.

It's ok to freeze harder cheeses but it's texture will suffer, so it's really only appropriate for cooking after it's thawed.

 

[bethzaring]

i have been freezing ricotta and chevre for decades with no changes in texture. You can not freeze cream cheese without major textural changes, but I freeze about 60 pounds of ricotta and chevre yearly with no problems.

 

[sattie]

i have been freezing ricotta and chevre for decades with no changes in texture. You can not freeze cream cheese without major textural changes, but I freeze about 60 pounds of ricotta and chevre yearly with no problems.

Awesome to know! I like to keep ricotta on hand for lasanga or what not, but it always goes bad before I ever get to it!

 

[Jeekinz]

Do you just put the unused portion in it's original container in the freezer? Or do you repack it?

Ricotta is one of those things that when I really need it, I don't have it.

 

[bethzaring]

Do you just put the unused portion in it's original container in the freezer? Or do you repack it?

Ricotta is one of those things that when I really need it, I don't have it.

LOL, I make the dern stuff. It doesn't come with any packaging. I re-use cottage cheese and sour cream containers, just pack it in, leave a little space cause it hooves up a bit, label and freeze.

Does store bought ricotta have any fluid to it? If it does, store the container upside down in the frig. The liquid will seal off any air from getting in around the lid and greatly prolong the frig shelf life.

 

[sattie]

Do you just put the unused portion in it's original container in the freezer? Or do you repack it?

Ricotta is one of those things that when I really need it, I don't have it.

Me too, or it's bad!!!! So the freezing option has my interest piqued!