Tag: cheese101
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Cheese: Asiago
Asiago is an semi-firm cow cheese from northern Italy. It has a mild but addictive taste. It is great for salads, sandwiches and pastas where you don’t need a cheese with bite.
I love munching on it by itself and find myself going to the fridge for a slice more often than I should.
Milk
Cow
Origin
Italy
Aged
Yes, often 3 months.
Aroma
Milky and mild. You can tell it is a cow cheese.
Taste
Milky and not particularly salty.
Texture
Young it is semi-firm and it becomes crumbly with age.
Look
Yellow interior with visible openness.
Serving
I love it as a table cheese and in toasted sandwiches. Asiago melts well so it is very versatile.
Manufacturing and Salting Method
Handmade/traditional cheese making methods are used. The curds are partially cooked, then pressed into moulds, dry salted and finally brine salted prior to a short ageing process.
Wine
Your favourite red or white will go well. I like to pair it with a New Zealand or South Australian Sauvignon Blanc.
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Edam Cheese
Edam is a charming and moreish cheese hailing from Holland. Do a quick internet search and you will be told it is an excellent table cheese but not one for melting/grilling. I think it is excellent for both and it goes with almost everything.
Milk
Cow and or goat.
Origin
Holland
Aged
2 months minimum.
Aroma
Milky and grassy and nutty.
Taste
Creamy, mildly grassy with a mild almondy finish. Not particularly salty.
Texture
Semi firm and elastic with no occlusions.
Look
Pale yellow interior with an inedible red wax coating.
Serving
I love it as everything from a table cheese to salads and grilled on bread to pastas and soup.
Manufacturing and Salting Method
Like most firm cheeses, Edam is made using variations on common methods for forming such cheeses. It is then pressed and brine salted. The cheese wheels are then wrapped in paraffin wax prior to aging.
Wine
I am not a cheese and wine paring expert. I leave that to the folks at cheese.com and they recommend dry whites or a nice Shiraz.
Resources
Please visit https://cheese.com/ and https://www.littlegreencheese.com/
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Jarlsberg Cheese
Jarlsberg is a cows milk cheese hailing from Norway. It is exceptionally versatile and it is just as at home on cheese platters, sandwiches and salads etc as it is cooked, grilled and melted on bread, pasta, pizza, dips etc.
Milk
Cow
Origin
Norway
Aged
Yes, for the most part 3 months. Some varieties are aged longer.
Aroma
Slightly nutty and very mild.
Taste
I get a mild nutty flavour with a buttery finish that is slightly sweet rather than salty.
Texture
Semi firm and smooth. Squeaky on the teeth.
Look
Pale yellow and smooth with a wax rind. Large cavities are visible.
Serving
I like to include this on my tasting and cheese plates and will happily munch on it by itself.
I also like to add slices of it to green salads and it goes great in sandwiches and toasties.
Manufacturing and Salting Method
Handmade or commercialised versions of traditional methods are used. The curds are pressed into wheels and then brine salted. The wheels are then wrapped in cheese wax prior to aging.
Wine
I am not a wine paring expert but the team at cheese.com say to try this with a nice Merlot.
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Montasio Cheese
Montasio is an ancient firm Italian cheese. It instantly became one of my favourites. Here is why.
Milk
Cow
Origin
Italy
Aged
Yes, up to a year but often 3 months.
Aroma
Milky and grassy and nutty.
Taste
Fruity, nutty and grassy. Not particularly salty.
Texture
Young it is elastic and creamy. Aged to a year it is semi firm.
Look
Yellow interior with an edible white rind. Visible openness.
Serving
I love it as a table cheese but its high fat content makes it an excellent cooking cheese. Indeed, one of it’s historical recipes was fried by itself or combined with seasonal vegetables and potatoes.
Manufacturing and Salting Method
Handmade/traditional cheese making methods are used. The curds are pressed into molds and brine salted prior to a short aging process.
Wine
Your favourite red or white will go well. I like to pair it with a New Zealand or South Australian Sauvignon Blanc.
Here are some more cheese posts.
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Cheese: Taleggio Cheese
I love Taleggio for its smell and tangy fruity taste. This cheese has a real presence and it is one of the most pungent cheeses I have tried. I actually like the smell and encourage you to try this cheese and if you don’t like the smell be assured it doesn’t taste like it smells.
Milk
Cow
Origin
Italy
Aged
6 to 10 weeks
Aroma
Very discernible but I wouldn’t say off the nose. Grassy.
Taste
Luxuriously smooth, tangy and fruity with a buttery finish. Rind is thin and edible.
Texture
Semi-soft and creamy. Melts and grills very well.
Look
Pale yellow and smooth. The thin edible rind is the colour of straw.
Serving
I have recently made both the most amazing bruschetta and the creamiest grilled cheese on toast you can imagine with it. I love it smeared on water crackers or rye biscuits/bread just as much though.
If you aren’t cooking with it, don’t forget to bring it to room temperature b
Manufacturing and Salting Method
This is a type of washed rind cheese called smear-ripened. Artisanal tradition dictates storing the cheese in the caves of the northern Italian city of Val Taleggio. After smearing the cheeses with good bacteria, the cheeses are washed weekly with seawater to inhibit mould.Wine
I am not a wine paring expert but the team at cheese.com say to try this with your favourite reds or white.
Enjoy,
PK
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Buffalo Mozzarella Cheese
Once you try mozzarella di bufala you can’t go back. It is the most amazing example of stretched cheeses and the taste is sublime. The buffalo milk imparts a higher acidity to the cheese and gives it its signature tanginess.
It is exceptionally versatile and you can use it raw in salads, melted on pizzas, cooked in lasagna, pasta and the list goes on and on.
Milk
Buffalo
Origin
Italy
Aged
No
Aroma
Milky and fresh.
Taste
Slightly tangy and a touch sour. It has an amazing texture caused by the curds being stretched and plaited.
Texture
Soft and elastic to a point then it tears easily. It melts extremely well and when cooked it can go creamy, releasing its moisture.
Look
Pure white with an edible almost imperceptible rind.
Serving
Here are a couple of serving suggestions that I like to make.
Raw with a drizzle of olive oil, some cracked pepper and basil from the garden.
The world’s tastiest toastie(mozzarella, tomato, chives and cracked pepper).
Manufacturing and Salting Method
The high acidity of the resulting curds allows it to be heated and pulled into long strands and plaited. It is then cooled and pickled in salty whey.
Wine
I am not a wine paring expert but the team at cheese.com say to try this with:
- Beaujolais
- Sauvignon Blanc
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Cheese: Pecorino Caciotta Saracino Cheese
Pecorino Saracino is a briefly aged Italian sheep’s milk cheese in the Caciotta tradition.
It is a enjoyable, light cheese that doesn’t try and steal the show but is tasty in its own right.
Milk
Sheep
Origin
Italy
Aged
4 – 6 weeks
Aroma
Very mild lactic aroma. This just means it has pleasant milky, slightly acidic smell.
Taste
Initially a mild tang, finishing with a very mild milky sweetness. It isn’t very salty and I find it sticks your mouth a little.
Texture
A semi-soft smooth cheese. There can sometimes be the slight presence of tiny cavities.
Look
A very pale yellow cheese with a thin yellow rind.
Serving
I like to include this on tasting/cheese plates and will happily munch on chunks of it right out of the fridge. I also like to add slices of it to green salads and it goes great in sandwiches and toasties.
Manufacturing and Salting Method
Handmade/traditional cheese making methods are used. I believe it is pressed into molds and brine salted prior to a brief aging.
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Cheese: Provolone Piccante
I am carrying on my affair with aged Italian cheese and am spending some time with Provolone Piccante.
It is made from cow’s milk and aged for several months. I have read that it is the type of rennet used that makes for the bitey piquant flavours.
I also learnt a new term. A cheese with an ‘open texture’ is one that has internal cavities formed during the aging process. Provolone is one such cheese.
I think this cheese should be in your top 10 essential cheeses to have tried. 🙂
Taste, Texture and Aroma
As this is a rinded aged cheese, there is a slightly discernible smell that rinded cheeses have. You either love or hate this smell but I wouldn’t call this cheese particularly pungent.
It has an initial sharp/bitey taste that is notably salty. If only aged for a few months I find it has a smooth texture.
Look and Feel
This is a firm, open cheese that is a lovely pale . I suggest you grate it finely when cooking with it.
Uses
I prefer to cook with it but it is also a good table cheese. Try it next time you make pasta or pizza and you won’t regret it. I also recommend shaving it on fresh bread and grated over bruschetta.
Enjoy,
PK
Related Links:
- Recipes using cheese
- More cheese varieties
- All GICICI ingredients
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Dairy Free Cheese: Cheddar Flavour
A friend of mine recently put me on to this tasty dairy free cheese from My Life. I am currently on a cow, goat and sheep’ milk cheese ‘tasting, cooking and of course blogging’ odyssey. So I was very interested in trying this product.
I used to only eat cheddar cheese growing up. So although my cheese tastes have changed a lot, I am not surprised I like this product. I did a taste test at my work where I told the tasters up front it was dairy free cheese. Everyone who tried it said they could tell the difference but that they liked it.
It is akin to a very mild, highly processed cheddar (the production method obviously involves molding it in to shape) that little to no texture. Again though it reminds me of the cheese I at growing up and my kids eat it now too.
I only have two more comments, one is price related the other is a cooking heads up. The first comment is that it is much more expensive than any comparable dairy product. Hopefully this comes down as competition and sales rise. The heads up comment is just a warning that it doesn’t melt at the same speed and in the same way as dairy cheese. You just need to experiment a bit to get it right and I have read it might just need higher temperatures.
Next for me is to try My Life’s Bio Cheese Original Flavour.
Dietary Info: Great for vegetarians, vegans and is gluten free.
Enjoy,
PK
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Cheese: Calcagno Pecorino With Black Peppercorns
I love Italian cheeses and this one is one of my favourites. It is made from sheep’s milk and generally aged for several years. I have read that it hails from Sardinia and Sicily
I am going to use it as a secret weapon in my Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe but this cheese can be used on everything from salads to dips.
I think this cheese should be in your top 10 essential cheeses to have tried. 🙂
Taste, Texture and Aroma
This is a firm, slightly flaky sheep milk cheese with smooth texture. Grated, it literally melts in your mouth.
Whilst the bite of the black peppercorns initially dominates, you pick up a savory, almost grassy taste. It has strong umami flavours created by the aging process. I find it tastes saltier than Parmigiano-Reggiano but it smells sweet and grassy.
Look and Feel
This is a hard cheese with low crumble factor. I suggest you grate it finely when cooking with it and cut flakes for salads etc.
The thin rind (of a wheel of this cheese) and black peppercorns look amazing.
Uses
The cooking and serving possibilities are endless with this cheese. Try it with some crusty bread and you will fall in love with it. 🙂
See the links below for a few more recipes.
Enjoy,
PK
Related Links:
- Recipes using Pecorino cheeses
- Recipes using cheese
- More cheese varieties
- All GICICI ingredients
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