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Freezing Cheese? - BarbaraS - 01-16-2013
OMG, what was I thinking? I have so much leftover cheese from the Holidays and cooking and don't know what to do with them, besides eat them all.
What cheeses are "safe" for freezing for a little while?
I've frozen mozzarella, but after it defrosts it becomes a bit grainy. I have unopened Gruyere and Cabot's Cheddar, but have chunks in wax paper of Havarti, Jarlsberg, Asiago, and Pepper Jack. Can I freeze any of these for a bit?
TIA,
Barbara
Re: Freezing Cheese? - Gourmet_Mom - 01-16-2013
I freeze all of mine. I don't know about all that you mentioned, but I was happy with the pepper jack and Cabot's. Regarding the rest, I would figure it would be fine. I figure the more firm the cheese, the better it freezes. That being said, I successfully froze Brie. That's pretty soft! As for the Asiago, I assume it has a similar fridge life as Parm. I keep it for long periods in the fridge.
Re: Freezing Cheese? - Cubangirl - 01-17-2013
Since I got my Foodsaver I've not had to throw away any cheese. Some in fridge, some in freezer. I wrapped some ricotta salata in paper, then food savered it and kept in the coldest part of the fridge for a year (heck, to be honest I didn't see behind some water bottles and it was as good as new. I hate grating cheese, especially fontina, so grate it all when I first need it and then freeze the rest, works well. Freeze Farmers cheese as well. Costco Jarslberg lives in the freezer, until needed.
BTW, for cheese I use a bit of weekly, I use the fridge verion of the Food Saver with vacuumable ziploc bags (e.g. pre-sliced Havarti, etc.) and they do great (works wonderful for deli meat cuts as well).
Re: Freezing Cheese? - cjs - 01-17-2013
Most of the harder cheeses don't freeze well without getting grainy, but you can overcome that by grating it first. I can't think of any cheese I don't freeze.
Re: Freezing Cheese? - Lorraine - 01-17-2013
I'm with Jean. We do lots of Cheese Displays, Leftovers get grated and frozen.
Re: Freezing Cheese? - BarbaraS - 01-17-2013
Great information!! Thanks!
Barbara
Re: Freezing Cheese? - Lorraine - 01-17-2013
If I have lots of goat cheese, I will add heavy cream and fresh herbs, and freeze it. Thaw it in the fridge, whip it a bit, it's great on potatoes or sandwiches. We have little flavoured comes (1 1/2 inches) that we pipe it into for a passed appetizer. You could use it on crostini or crackers.
Re: Freezing Cheese? - cjs - 01-17-2013
Oh Barbara, here's another great idea for your leftover cheese - don't know why I didn't think of it before. This is from "I Have Leftovers....What Do I Do Now?"
Fromage Fort
Making use of leftover (and past its prime) cheese
Fromage Fort (which means strong cheese) is a combination of leftover cheeses that are combined and used as a spread. There are many recipes for this, but the one I use is from Jacques Pepin, and I freeze this mixture if I don’t use it quickly enough. You can use any type of cheese, but be careful of the fuller flavored quantities; they can overpower all the other flavors.
These quantities are approximates:
1/2 lb. miscellaneous cheese pieces
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup dry white wine
Freshly ground black pepper
salt
Put about 1/2 pound of cheese pieces in the bowl of a food processor; add 1 garlic clove, about 1/4 cup wine and a big grinding of black pepper.
Salt is not usually needed, but taste the mixture and add if necessary. Processes for 30 seconds or so until the mixture is creamy but not too soft, and then pack it into small containers. The fromage fort is ready to use now, either served cold or spread on bread and broiled; the broiling brings out the wonderful aroma.