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Cheese!


Nancy in Pátzcuaro

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Greetings, all--

I am having a bit of dispute with my spouse. He says we should wrap up cheese in plastic to keep it from drying out and/or molding. I say it should be wrapped in foil to keep from smothering it. Our neighbor says we should put the excess in the freezer (he's French and boy does he eat a lot of cheese).

What's the correct answer to this question? The source of the problem is a lovely (and large) chunk of Rembrandt extra-aged gouda, given to us by the above mentioned Frenchman.

Thanks for your help.

N.

Formerly "Nancy in CO"

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Found this online...hope it helps. I never freeze my cheese...I eat it way to fast. My did when I was younger and it was just never the same for me.

Best of success!

Freezing Natural Cheese

Cheese is a naturally preserved food and stores quite well under refrigeration. Freezing cheese is not usually required, and is not an ideal method of storage. All cheeses can be frozen with varying results, but the best candidates for freezing are firm cheeses like Cheddar and Swiss, and hard cheeses like Parmesan. If you do have to freeze cheese, keep the following facts in mind:

Freeze in pieces of one pound or less

Over-wrap cheese to be airtight and moisture-proof

Freeze quickly and store at 0¼F

Label and date the package

Thaw cheese in the refrigerator

Use within a few days after thawing

and another

Cheese keeps best in the refrigerator. If necessary, hard or semi-hard cheese can be frozen if cut in 1-1/2- to 1-pound sizes and packaged in moisture-vapor resistant material. This cheese may become crumbly and mealy when frozen, but will retain its flavor.

Cream cheese, cottage cheese and ricotta cheese do not freeze well. However, if combined with heavy cream, cream cheese can be frozen for later use in dips or as icing on frozen sandwich loaves.

Recommended freezer shelf life:

Hard cheese (such as cheddar and Swiss), 6 months

Soft cheese (such as Brie), 6 months

Whoever said that man cannot live by bread alone...simply did not know me.
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Greetings, all--

I am having a bit of dispute with my spouse. He says we should wrap up cheese in plastic to keep it from drying out and/or molding. I say it should be wrapped in foil to keep from smothering it. Our neighbor says we should put the excess in the freezer (he's French and boy does he eat a lot of cheese).

What's the correct answer to this question? The source of the problem is a lovely (and large) chunk of Rembrandt extra-aged gouda, given to us by the above mentioned Frenchman.

Thanks for your help.

N.

Your fromage-dealing French neighbor friend is partially right - if you do freeze it the best way to store it is to vacuum seal it first and then freeze. Otherwise, cheese should best be stored unwrapped in a dark, cool place.

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I've frozen cheese in the past - including large blocks of chedder already wrapped (so I'm thinking that should have ensured a sealed wrapping) and while i didn't notice a huge difference in the flavor, I definitely noticed a difference in the texture (more crumbly) which I didn't really like.

For storing in the fridge, i usually leave it in the paper that it comes from (so it's just loosely wrapped) or put it in a sort of tupperware container (not one with a tight seal, so some air flow happens) I have the idea that my cheese likes to breath so i don't like to wrap it too tightly. Now, I have absolutely no scientific, culinary or cite-able source for this piece of information...just my own belief that my cheese likes a little air. The tupperware thing works pretty well for me - but then again, i eat it really quickly, anyway. :smile:

Edited by Forest (log)

52 martinis blog

@52martinis

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I have a Food Saver machine. I've been able to put cheese in the vacuum bags and keep it for a very, very long time in the refrigerator. Works like a charm and you don't have to worry about throwing the cheese out or eating it quickly.

Edited by KensethFan (log)

--- KensethFan

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I agree that putting the cheese in a vacuum bag and then in the fridge is the best way to keep it fresh for a long period of time. I never keep it like that (it gets eaten before it goes off) but whenever we bring cheese to our relatives in Israel (a 5 hour flight plus a long car drive away), we always ask the salesman at the market to seal it for us and it makes it through the journey perfectly.

For storing gouda type cheeses for a shorter period of time, I always stick with the wrapping that that same market man puts it in (or, most cheese sellers in Amsterdam for that matter). It is a two-layer wrapping, the outer layer is a cross between greaseproof and newspaper and the inner layer is usually a 'rough' type plastic. I don't really know how to describe it better but it does it's job perfectly.

I think it is important to leave your cheese a little air space so it doesn't get swetty and wet on the outside, but at the same time, make sure youre cheese is entirely covered in whatever wrapper you are using, so it doesn't dry out at the exposed surfaces, especially in the fridge. Maybe loosely wrapping it in clingfilm could be a good option for your cheese.

[eta:] I found some information on a dutch site on cheese (my translation)

Wrapping The cheese is best stored in cheese paper. This paper has an inner layer of special plastic foil, which prevents the cheese from drying out. If the paper is getting soggy and crumpled by use, you can substitue cling film.

Storage You can keep the cheese in the fridge, but the flavour comes out best when you store it in a dry cellar. A cellar usually has a constant temperature of around 15 degrees celcius, which is the perfect temperature for gouda cheese. If you don't have such a cellar, it is wise to take your cheese out of the fridge at least 15 minutes before serving and let it come to room temperature in it's original wrapping. You'll find the flavour much improves this way.

Edited by amapola (log)
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