How to store cheese: Expert tips to keep it fresh and tasty
Cheese is an integral ingredient in many favourite dishes. It finds its way into sandwiches and casseroles, and there are plenty of fans who enjoy nibbling it straight from the package. It might seem that after opening, you should just put it in the refrigerator. However, there are ways to preserve its freshness and taste for longer.
Cheese is a key ingredient in the kitchen, used to prepare many favourite dishes. Unfortunately, it often happens that it spoils too quickly. Many people don't realise that cheese is very sensitive to storage conditions. Too much humidity can lead to moulding, and excessive exposure to air makes it hard and dry. As a result, it ends up in the bin. However, this is a problem that can be easily reduced.
How to properly store cheese?
Erika Kubick, a former cheese seller and cookbook author, shared the most common mistake made when storing cheese. It concerns keeping it in the plastic packaging from the shop.
- Cheese is alive and breathing, which means it needs oxygen and humidity to stay fresh and tasty. Now, I know it’s convenient to just keep your cheese in the plastic wrap it came in, but it’s just as easy to take care of it properly. Proper cheese storage is very simple and only takes a few minutes of actual effort — explains the expert in an interview with the British portal www.express.co.uk
Keeping cheese in plastic cuts off the air supply, which can make it less tasty and hard as a brick. Plastic also creates a moist environment, which encourages mould growth. The best way to preserve cheese's freshness is to remove the plastic packaging as soon as possible after returning home. This applies to both plastic wrap and a box.
The best way to store cheese is wrapped in parchment paper or special cheese paper, which is reusable. It's important to wrap it tightly to prevent drying out in the refrigerator.
Additional tips
If you notice that the cheese has become hard, simply cut off that part with a knife. This will extend the cheese's freshness. If you're concerned that the strong aroma of aged cheeses will penetrate the paper and spread in the refrigerator, use resealable bags.
- Wrap the cheese in parchment or butcher paper.
- Then place it loosely in a resealable bag.
- Before sealing, make sure there's a little air in the bag so the cheese has access to oxygen and moisture.
Using these methods, cheese should remain tasty, fresh, and maintain the perfect texture much longer than usual. The exact shelf life of cheese depends on its type. Fresh cheeses like ricotta will always have a shorter shelf life, while mould-ripened and blue cheeses can remain fresh for weeks.
