I can recall opening the refrigerator many months back, only to be overcome by waves of stinky, ammonia.  It didn’t take long for me to uncover the culprit, poorly wrapped and definitely “overripe” soft cheese just begging for the trash!  What I have learned since is that with proper attention, cheese can have itself a long and healthy life.   To elaborate more on this and share some useful tips on cheese storage, I asked our cheese expert Gina Freize of Venissimo to chime in.  I know that you’ll find her suggestions very helpful.

HOW SHOULD I STORE MY CHEESE?

You’ve purchased your absolute favorite fromage & didn’t eat it all right away (strange, but I guess it can happen).  Now what?  How can you keep your cheese in the best possible condition? 

First, let’s start with a little history.  Cheese was an invention of necessity.  Thousands of years ago, refrigeration was hard to come by.  So farmers had to come up with a way to preserve their highly perishable milk.  With the discovery of rennet, which separates the curds (solids) from the whey (liquids), plus the addition of salt (to preserve & flavor), cheese was born.  Because harder cheeses have less liquid remaining, the longer they will last.  The softer the cheese, the less time it will last because it still contains a lot of whey (liquid) which promotes bacteria growth. 

Cheese is a living thing.  What happens to living things when you wrap them tightly in plastic?  They die.  It’s really fascinating to observe how quickly a cheese kept under tight plastic wrap transforms.  Most of the wheels we have on display are unwrapped & re-wrapped almost every day so they can breathe.  Those that aren’t start showing mold growth or slimy rinds rather quickly.

At Venissimo, we are true fans of special cheese wrap that we have imported from France.  It has a paper outer layer plus a very thin wax paper inner layer.  This allows the cheese to breathe, but not dry out.  In a pinch, wax paper is a great option.  And I must say that a simple tupperware can also work quite well.  Just beware that the stinkiest cheese in the box will infuse the others.  Blue cheeses have traditionally been wrapped in foil to inhibit rampant blue mold growth, so that is always an option.  In any case, the best location is a drawer in the fridge with a bit of humidity.  And please, never ever freeze your cheese!  Unless you plan on simply using it for cooking, cheese loses a lot of its character & some texture when frozen (think of it like a fresh baguette – it’s just not the same after being frozen as when it’s fresh).   

So what happens if you do discover mold growth on your precious cheese?  For the harder cheeses, just cut or shave away the moldy parts & gobble away.  For the softer cheeses, your nose will tell you.  If you smell a strong whiff of ammonia, the cheese is on its last legs & sadly cannot be shaved nor saved.  

The moral of the story:  buy just what you need & buy often!

by Gina Freize, Venissimo

To learn about everything cheese, please visit www.venissimo.com  

Tags: cheese, Venissimo