Tell me more ×
Seasoned Advice is a question and answer site for professional and amateur chefs. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 5 down vote favorite

I recently visited Colombia in South America and I'm trying to recreate one of their traditional delicacies.

They give you a lovely thick cup of hot chocolate and together with a few slices of cheese. The idea is you break up the cheese and put it into your hot chocolate. The cheese melts partially and you can then eat it with a spoon.

It sounds quite strange, but actually tasted great.

My question is, that I'd like to try to find the same cheese to make it (in the UK). I've heard that mozzarella is the closest, but it doesn't melt in the same way.

The only Colombian cheese I have found is called Queso Compasigna, which means country/rustic cheese). I believe they have another type of cheese, specifically for dipping in hot chocolate. I'd like to know what cheese it is, possible where to buy it or if not how to make it?

Any ideas if its made with cows or goats milk or what sort of manufacturing process it uses?

share|improve this question
After a bit more investigation, it may be called "Queso Blanco", but the cheese need should melt when placed in hot things, but not sure this one does... – peter.swallow Jan 28 at 13:03

1 Answer

up vote 4 down vote

Queso Blanco just means "White Cheese", which is kind of a catch-all term many locals use for simple cheeses. What is meant by Queso Blanco will likely change from region to region even within Columbia, and the chances of you being able to find it in the UK are pretty unlikely. Most imported Spanish cheeses tend to be the high-quality, specialist ones.

You haven't put what the cheese actually tastes like in your post, so I am assuming it was most likely pretty mild and it is the texture of it that really floated your boat. When I think soft, mild cheese I usually think cows milk, not sheep or goat, although there may be non-cheese alternatives as well in the following list:

  • Panir may work for you, it's soft and will get softer, also pretty mild flavor
  • Tofu: ok, not cheese but texture-wise a soft tofu may work great, and the flavor will work with chocolate pretty well.
  • UK white cheese: any major UK supermarket has a white cheese on sale, usually cheap, usually flavorless. Could be worth a try
  • Curd cheese: this is probably what would be called cottage cheese in the US. It's pretty liquid but if you drained it and compacted it you'd get a crumbly, easy-melting cheese

Let us know how you get on, I'm dying of curiosity!

share|improve this answer
Rather than "curd cheese" (e.g. cottage cheese), it might actually be cheese curds. We put these in poutine here and, much like the description in the question, they melt partially but not all the way when exposed to hot gravy. – Aaronut♦ Jan 28 at 13:43
Good stuff Poutine, it'll take a year of your life away because of the cholesterol, but it's worth it. I've never seen cheese curds in the UK though, not in the US/Canadian sense, they just aren't on the market. – GdD Jan 28 at 13:46
Great suggestions...!I can't exactly remember what the cheese was like, other than it was quite mild. Someone else mentioned it might be called "Queso doble crema", which is again fairly general translating as double cream cheese...not sure what the closest cheese would be to that...? – peter.swallow Jan 28 at 14:13
Ah, this is the Colombian version: alpina.com.co/productos/queso-doble-crema Know I just need a recipe how to make this... – peter.swallow Jan 28 at 14:51
1  
I'm colombian, and yes, Queso Doble Crema is the one. :) – Kary Apr 11 at 2:15

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.