I've been hectoring consumers for a long time about storing cheese properly at home. Make sure it can breathe. But don't let it dry out. Do this, not that. People would ask whether they needed to buy fancy cheese paper or invest in a cheese vault, and being gadget-averse myself, I always said no. You can provide suitable storage for cheese with materials at hand, I told them. But then I spoke at length to Mark Goldman, owner of Formaticum, the cheese-paper company, and our chat has me rethinking my methods. I've edited the conversation for length and clarity but here's the gist of it:
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Mostly I wrap cheese loosely in wax paper so it can breathe and then put it in a lidded container for humidity, but I do occasionally use your cheese paper and cheese bags. Are they both made from the same material?
Goldman: The paper is classic French cheese packaging, made by combining a sheet of paper with a thin sheet of low-density polyethylene. This is an important distinction. All plastic is not created equal in terms of how it impacts food. Low-density polyethylene is not commonly used for food packaging because it's not a complete barrier. Plastic food film like Saran wrap is designed to be a full barrier, but cheese doesn't want that. Cheese needs some porosity. And the chemicals they treat that plastic with to make it stretch and stick have been shown to impact fatty foods, which act like sponges and can absorb those plasticizers. Low-density polyethylene has no flavor impact on the product it wraps. In concert with the paper, which keeps some humidity in, it works perfectly for cheese.
And the bags?
The bags are the next iteration of combining paper and plastic. Spray-coating paper with plastic is pretty common, but my supplier figured out how to apply the plastic so it's not a complete barrier, so it still has porosity. Butcher paper is a complete barrier; it's designed to hold bloody meat. For cheese, we want some oxygen exchange. The bag material is easier to work with than the sheets and more durable; a bag can be re-used multiple times for the same type of cheese.
Any idea how much extra life you get from storing cheese in your materials instead of plastic film?
I supplied my product to a company in Australia a couple of years ago for some shelf-study tests. They manufacture home-refrigeration units and were testing a new type of drawer with better humidity. They found that cheese kept three times longer in the bags versus plastic food film.
Once you've wrapped the cheese, where in the fridge should you put it?
It shouldn't make any difference. The biggest problem of most home refrigerators is that they are extremely dry. If cheese is wrapped properly in paper or a bag, that's an ample barrier to dryness. It doesn't need to go in a food-storage container; that's redundant. Some people do that to keep their cheeses organized, but it doesn't extend cheese life.
Any cheeses you don't recommend wrapping in cheese paper?
Anything you buy in brine, like feta or fresh mozzarella, you should keep in that brine.
What happened to that material you showed me a couple of years ago made from eggshells?
It wasn't made from eggshells but it uses calcium carbonate. We had problems with the supplier but we're re-launching it. The next version will come on a roll with a tear strip so you can tear the size you need. The material is reusable and recyclable, and I hope to have it out for the holiday season. It keeps Parmigiano-Reggiano pretty much forever.
You obviously researched best practices before you started Formaticum in , but have you learned more about cheese storage since then? Any recent epiphanies?
I've definitely learned a few more tricks that I practice in my home that aren't part of packaging science. It's always best to remove all the rind before you wrap. The rind serves no purpose. We understand why a shop wants to keep it on and divide it equally'it's part of the weight of the cheese'but it serves as a vector for introducing molds that can colonize the paste once it's wrapped. The rind is the biggest source of surface mold growth.
Even bloomy-rind cheeses like Brie? You remove those rinds?
If it's a soft cheese with an edible rind, no. But I don't like to eat other rinds. I've seen too much of how cheese goes through warehouses.
How about a washed-rind cheese like Taleggio? You would cut that rind off before you wrap it?
I don't eat the rind on Taleggio. I would eat the rind on Epoisses because of the way it's packaged; it's been kept hermetically sealed. But larger-format cheeses that travel internationally, I shy away from eating those rinds.
What about hard cheese like Comté? You cut the rind off before you wrap it? Really?
Absolutely. On a cheese plate, people like to see the rind because it helps them understand what they're looking at and how that cheese relates to the larger wheel. But the rind is dirty packaging and I don't want to have a cut piece of cheese up against it. As soon as I get cheese home, I remove all the rind.
Wow. Never done that. I consider the rind part of the cheese's identity and beauty and always tell people to leave it on. Please weigh in on this in the Comments section below, cheese pros and enthusiasts. Do you view rinds as soiled packaging that needs to go?
1. IT SUFFOCATES THE CHEESE
Plastic wrap cuts off the air supply, essentially suffocating your specimen. A suffocated cheese will eventually die, leading to tragic off-flavors and textures that are weird in all the wrong ways.
2. IT TRAPS IN MOISTURE
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Cheese needs the right amount of humidity. If there's too much moisture trapped inside the wrapper, the rind will become slimy, moldy, and the wrong kind of smelly.
3. IT LETS IN LIGHT
Because it's clear, plastic wrap lets in a lot of light, which can oxidize aged cheeses. This destroys their sexy complexities and leads to a nasty, crayon-like flavor.
1. IF YOU'RE BUYING CHEESE THAT WAS STORED IN PLASTIC, CHECK THE DATE FIRST.
Of course, a lot of retailers wrap cheese in plastic, both for convenience and to make it easier for consumers to see the cheese they're considering. While cheese needs oxygen to breathe, it's very good at holding its breath for short periods of time. Check the date to make sure it's only been in plastic for (ideally) a week or less. If there's only a sell-by date, use your best judgment by checking fordiscolored spots on the paste or cracks in the rind.
2. SLIP OFF THAT PLASTIC WRAP AS SOON AS YOU GET HOME
When you get home for the cheese store, slide off that plastic wrap and let your cheese breathe for a few minutes. If the cheese is firm and tastes a little like a refrigerator, take a non-serrated chef's knife and slightly scrape off that little glossy layer on the paste.
3. WRAP YOUR CHEESE IN SPECIALTY CHEESE PAPER, OR ELSE PARCHMENT PAPER AND A ZIPLOC.
Specialty cheese paper provides airflow and humidity, which keeps your cheese healthy and happy. When you're tucking it in for storage, make sure not to leave any parts exposed, because the fridge will dry them out and make them crusty. I prefer Formaticum's cheese paper (see disclaimer at the bottom). Alternatively, wrap the cheese in parchment or butcher paper. Then, loosely wrap it in a Ziploc bag. Before closing the zipper, make sure there's still some air in the bag so your cheese has plenty of oxygen and humidity.
4. IF YOU FIND MOLD ON YOUR CHEESE, JUST SCRAPE IT OFF.
Remember when I said that cheese was alive? That's because it's fermented, so there are all kinds of mold and bacteria crawling all over it. Sometimes the wrong ones hop onto the wrong places, and you'll start to see white fuzzies on the inside of your cheese. It's not going to hurt you, so before you toss that wedge, just scrape o' that mold and even change the wrapper if you want to be extra careful. The only exception to this rule is fresh cheese: if those get moldy, it's best to throw them away.
Now that you know how to store your cheese, let's talk about how long it will last. This all depends on the type of cheese as well as the size of the individual piece. The smaller the piece, the faster it will go bad. Keep in mind that a wheel of cheese stops ripening and begins to deteriorate as soon as it's cut, so it's best to buy only as much as you need for the week, eat it fast, and then buy more.
Here's how long each type of cheese typically lasts.
Fresh Cheeses, like ricotta: 1-3 days
Because they're so fresh, these cheeses are best consumed as soon as possible after opening the package, otherwise they'll get sour. The exception here is feta stored in a brine, which stays preserved for several months thanks to that salty bath.
Bloomy-Rind Cheeses, like brie: 5-10 days
The ripeness of these cheeses determines their shelf life. Intact wheels of brie will continue to ripen until you cut the rind, a'er which it starts to deteriorate. If it's a young wheel, you might have an extra week. If it's close to the expiration date, eat it up.
Washed-Rind Cheeses, like Taleggio: 1-2 weeks
The shelf life of stinky washies really depends on how much moisture is in the cheese. Squishy boys, like Époisse, have a lot of moisture, so they'll go bad more quickly. Firm washies have less, so they'll last longer.
Aged Cheeses, like Gruyère: 3-6 weeks
The harder the cheese, the more durable it is. I've even kept big wedges of Parmigiano in my fridge for a couple of months, and they've survived virtually unharmed. Still, their flavors will dull with time, so the sooner you eat them the better. Just check for mold every week or so.
Blue Cheeses, like Stilton: 1-2 weeks
Like the previously mentioned varieties, the shelf life of blue cheese depends on its texture. So' ones will last about a week, while firmer ones will keep longer.
DISCLAIMER:
This post was not sponsored by any brand or company, and all opinions expressed herein are my own. I do, however, work as a digital marketing consultant and content creator for Formaticum. I truly believe in their products and highly recommend that everyone try them for all their cheese storage needs. If you click on any of the above links and make a purchase of Formaticum on Amazon, I will get a commission on it. Consider it a donation to the Cheese Church!
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