And other cheese mistakes you should avoid, according to an expert cheesemonger.
He shared with us a slew of tips and tidbits about cheese storage.
The first is not buying fresh cheese.
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“If you’re making a cheese plate, trim the outside edges that have touched the plastic.
That will help improve the flavor greatly,” he says.
You should avoid buying cheese wrapped inplastic wrap.
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“When cheese ripens, it gives off ammonia.
Hook explains that for natural rind cheese, the impacts of plastic are just as unappetizing.
“There’s ambient water in cheeses.
The refrigerator will keep it from getting too warm,” Hook says.
Finally, be sure to use that cheese drawer.
It really does improve the quality of your cheese.
“Most cheese drawers have a setting where you might limit the airflow to the cheese.
Airflow causes friction, and friction causes dehydration.”
“The flavor in cheese is in the fat.
When you eat cold cheese, the oils in the cheese aren’t able to coat your entire pallet.
They stay tight, and they pass over the top of it.”
Soft cheeses include things like cream cheese,cottage cheese, goat cheese, and shredded cheese.
After allowing hard cheeses to come to room temperature, a cheese tray can stay unrefrigerated forabout two hours.
Discard soft cheeses left out for more than two hours.
