62
votes
Accepted
Is there a reason to not grate cheese ahead of time?
You should only grate cheese as needed, particularly the cheeses you mention. When you grate cheese you create more surface area. That is more surface exposed to air and oxidation, which will ...
- 77k
46
votes
Why is the outside of grilled cheese buttered?
The part that is buttered is the part that comes into contact with the cooking surface (a pan or a toastie maker). By adding fat the surface of the bread is fried rather than merely toasted, giving a ...
- 12.1k
35
votes
Pre-treatment of wet mozzarella balls to reduce moisture for pizzas - thoughts on method?
I think you are overthinking the problem. The biggest issue with homemade pizza, especially Neapolitan style, is that people generally use way too many toppings. Cut back on your toppings (sauce ...
- 77k
33
votes
Why is there so much salt in cheese?
Salt plays several important roles in cheese making. Certainly flavor enhancement is chief among them, but it also works as a preservative (cheese making is a preservation process, after all). It ...
- 77k
31
votes
Accepted
Is cheese seasoned by default?
There are dozens if not hundreds of kinds of cheese in the world.
Several kinds of non-shelf-stable cheese do not contain any added salt, just the natural salt content of the milk. Quark is a ...
- 140k
29
votes
Pre-treatment of wet mozzarella balls to reduce moisture for pizzas - thoughts on method?
I'm going to suggest some corrections and workarounds here. First, if the generic "mozzarella balls" you're buying are so wet you need a whole roll of paper towels, stop buying that brand. ...
- 65.5k
28
votes
Why do you shred cheese before adding it to a sauce?
You're right that the smaller pieces of cheese will melt faster than a whole block when added to a sauce.
The main advantage to shredding or grating cheese is that you create smaller pieces of ...
- 8,363
25
votes
Using Parmesan rind in tomato sauce: how to remove it all before serving?
The old "tie it in cheesecloth" trick seems the most likely solution for the described problem.
The remnants will stay in the bag, and you remove the bag as a whole when ready to serve.
- 19.1k
20
votes
Is there a reason to not grate cheese ahead of time?
While you don't want to grate the cheese and store it in the fridge, as moscafj's answer says, there is a way you can grate all the parmesan, store it, and use it as needed - just keep it in the ...
- 425
19
votes
How can I melt mozzarella balls?
Very simply, with heat from above.
I cannot comment on the microwave, since I have almost never used one, but a pan is clearly the wrong tool for the job, since there you are heating the bread from ...
- 140k
18
votes
Accepted
Processed cheese in pesto
Processed cheese isn't a good replacement for parmesan, it's generally too soft from added oils, and it doesn't have the right flavor. Instead, add more pine nuts, and salt to taste, leaving the ...
- 77.2k
18
votes
Is there a reason to not grate cheese ahead of time?
Short answer: Grated cheese goes moldy quickly.
Long answer: We regularly grate cheese and pack them in vacuum bags in larger quantities. They usually go moldy within a week or two, even in the fridge....
- 281
18
votes
Accepted
How to order cheeses by strength for a cheese tasting event?
As was pointed out in the comments to your other question, there is no objective definition of 'strong' when it comes to cheese.
But good news! Cheese tasting parties don't have to be based on ...
- 12.1k
17
votes
Why is there so much salt in cheese?
Salt in cheesemaking serves five major purposes:
Preservation (same as for salted meat products).
Control of water content in the curd (high salt will draw water out of the curd).
Regulation of ...
- 1,965
15
votes
Accepted
Melting yellow cheese for savory pancakes or crêpes
One simple option is to shred the cheese. The heat moves from the surface of the pancake into the cheese - so a thick slice has to melt all at once, and from the bottom up, and it may not melt in ...
- 11.8k
15
votes
How to make Kraft Mac and Cheese Like Ihop
Based on the nutritional information provided by Kraft and iHop, a good place to start would be more salt and more butter. A standard Kraft recipe is 360 Calories with 12 grams of fat and 710 mg of ...
- 1,067
14
votes
How can I minimize "stringing" of cheddar cheese
Use more mature cheese.
Cheddar runs the gamut from very young, mild, melts like mozzarella in strings, right up to so mature it has salt crystals in it & is crunchy, which barely melts at all.
...
- 29.9k
12
votes
Accepted
Why is cheese wax red?
You haven't seen a lot of waxed cheese, or you've only seen a few specific ones. I can easily find (and have frequently eaten) green, black, and yellow ones, though the yellow in some cases is more of ...
- 19.1k
12
votes
Accepted
How do I remove bloomy rind without wasting too much cheese?
When the cheese is very cold (even frozen), use a sharp knife and it will be easier to cut the rind off more precisely, to waste less cheese.
(I assume you're aware that the rind is edible and indeed ...
- 12.1k
12
votes
How to order cheeses by strength for a cheese tasting event?
Also, you don't only order cheeses from mildest to strongest. You may order cheese in some other way, depending on what you're tasting.
For example, you might taste manchego cheeses at different ages:...
- 65.5k
11
votes
How can I melt mozzarella balls?
Mozzarella balls, particuarly the almost "Fluorescent" white variety, contain a lot of water. To get them to melt successfully, you need to get that water out.
What I do is slice the balls ...
- 6,182
11
votes
How to order cheeses by strength for a cheese tasting event?
"Given two cheeses, which order of eating requires the least amount of effort to be able to properly taste the second cheese eaten?" -- that's the order they belong in. Now that you have a ...
- 776
10
votes
Accepted
Please identify this nut covered cheese
This is most likely the “Castello” rum-and-nut covered cream cheese ring by Arla. The shape, the chopped nuts and slight sweetness are pretty unique.
Arla sells its products in supermarkets, but is ...
- 60.4k
10
votes
Soft goat cheese as pizza topping without mess
A piano wire cutter is great for semi-soft cheese. Get one which is just the wire and the handle, not a "guillotine-style" cutter with a base. Some have a roller integrated to control the ...
- 30.3k
9
votes
What kind of cheese did I buy in Bulgaria...and how am I supposed to eat it?
This is not a traditional Bulgarian product (*). It was created by one specific dairy company ("Jossy") and it is not even listed on their normal web page (http://www.josi.bg). There is one reference ...
- 140k
9
votes
Accepted
Did I accidentally make cheese?
Yes, you did; although in a non-traditional manner :) You created an acid-set cheese. These are made by adding an acid (e.g., lemon juice or vinegar) after heating the milk (e.g., paneer) or by ...
- 4,051
9
votes
Accepted
If a cheese sold as pasta-cheese does not melt, is it "cheese"?
That's a processed cheese product. It may be allowed to be called cheese in some places, but that's a matter of product labelling regulations where you happen to be.
The melting is a different issue. ...
- 45.2k
9
votes
Soft goat cheese as pizza topping without mess
Perhaps the cheese you're working with is a bit different but with the soft goat cheeses I've used it should be possible to:
cut the front of the packaging
gently press the cheese log from the back ...
- 191
8
votes
Melting yellow cheese for savory pancakes or crêpes
The method that you describe says you put all the cheese in a row, if you make that row thick it's going to have a hard time melting. Instead of a thick line spread the cheese out evenly across the ...
- 77.2k
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