{"id":1876,"date":"2023-09-12T04:26:47","date_gmt":"2023-09-12T04:26:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/the-definitive-guide-to-5-kinds-of-cheese-rinds-and-which-are-edible\/"},"modified":"2023-09-12T04:26:47","modified_gmt":"2023-09-12T04:26:47","slug":"the-definitive-guide-to-5-kinds-of-cheese-rinds-and-which-are-edible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/the-definitive-guide-to-5-kinds-of-cheese-rinds-and-which-are-edible\/","title":{"rendered":"The Definitive Guide to 5 Kinds of Cheese Rinds and Which Are Edible?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I\u2019ve taught cheese classes since 2015. No matter what I\u2019m teaching, whether it\u2019s a Cheese 101, Tiki Cocktails & Cheese, or a more intensive training there is one question that people always arrive with: \u201cCan I eat the rind?\u201d It\u2019s a good question, especially given that most of us grew up with the rindless cheeses of the world like blocks of cheddar from the grocery store or shredded low-moisture mozzarella. My answer is invariably, \u201cYou always can. But, whether or not you\u2019d like to is up to you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rinds are formed naturally or by the cheesemaker and are there to protect the cheese but sometimes to flavor it. Rinds provide a textural contrast to the cheese but ultimately whether you choose to eat them or not is a personal decision. \u201cI almost always eat the rind, unless the cheese is a firm cheese that is aged for a long time\u2014like a year or more,\u201d says Saxelby Cheesemongers<\/a> owner Anne Saxelby in her book <\/a>The New Rules of Cheese<\/a>. \u201c<\/em>If you\u2019re not sure about eating the rind, just try a little bite with the interior (also known as the paste) of the cheese and see what you think. You might be surprised!\u201d Not only can some rinds be eaten, some which are very hard such as the rind Parmigiano Reggiano can be used in cooking, learn more in Everything You Wanted to Know about Parmigiano Reggiano Rinds<\/a>. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Even professional cheese folks have different preferences when it comes to rinds, and ultimately, the only way you know what you like is to taste what\u2019s in front of you.\u00a0 And not all cheeses have rinds. Fresh cheeses like chevre, burrata, feta, and vacuum-sealed cheddar do not, and that is as it should be. <\/p>\n

Types of Cheese Rinds<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Photo by\u00a0Margaret Jaszowska<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bloomy<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cThe primary microbe on the surface of white mold cheese is Penicillium camemberti<\/em>,\u201d says scientist Pat Polowsky in his website Cheese Science Toolkit<\/a> \u201cThis mold can exhibit lipolytic activity; meaning it breaks down the fat in the cheese.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bloomy rind cheeses like brie, camembert, and robiola have a soft white mold rind, which sprouts or blooms in the short time the cheese is aging or ripening. The affineur (cheese ager) pats down the fuzzy sprouts into a layer that will become the cheese\u2019s rind, transforming the cakey fat and protein structure into something gooey and unctuous.<\/p>\n

This type of rind is intended to be eaten\u2014it adds texture and mushroomy flavor to the cheese. I always eat this rind unless the cheese is overripe and there\u2019s intense ammonia coming from the rind. When you shop from small cheese counters with trained mongers who cut your cheese to order, this won\u2019t usually be an issue.<\/p>\n

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\"Some SICK Epoisses at the Fresca Italia table\" &nbsp;by&nbsp; the tablehopper &nbsp;is licensed under&nbsp; CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

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“Some SICK Epoisses at the Fresca Italia table”<\/a>\u00a0by\u00a0the tablehopper<\/a>\u00a0is licensed under\u00a0CC BY-NC-ND 2.0<\/a><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Washed <\/strong><\/h3>\n

Washed rinds have been washed in a culture solution that turns that beautiful velvety white rind into something sticky, orangey, and rather smelly. One of the primary cultures associated with washed rinds is Brevibacterium linens (B. linens),<\/em> a compound that generally gets most of the credit for the funk. However, recent studies have shown that B. linens <\/em>may be getting too much of the credit\u2014often, local bacteria strains take over, even if B. linens<\/em> have been introduced.<\/p>\n

Some washed rinds can have light crystallization on the rinds, giving them a subtle crunch. If you don\u2019t enjoy that, you obviously don\u2019t have to eat it. But I do find that I enjoy the rinds of most washed rind cheeses. Examples of washed rind cheeses include soft cheeses such as taleggio, Winnimere, Epoisses and hard rind cheeses including Gruy\u00e8re. Some washed rind cheeses can have a potent aroma, but the flavor may still be mild. Don\u2019t be scared of trying a cheese with stinky rind!<\/p>\n

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\"Barely Buzzed, Cheese with Espresso Rind\" &nbsp;by&nbsp; artizone &nbsp;is licensed under&nbsp; CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

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“Barely Buzzed, Cheese with Espresso Rind”<\/a>\u00a0by\u00a0artizone<\/a>\u00a0is licensed under\u00a0CC BY-NC-ND 2.0<\/a><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Flavored<\/strong><\/h3>\n

From Cabra Romero, a Spanish goat milk cheese coated in rosemary, to Barely Buzzed<\/a>, a cheese from Beehive Cheese in Utah rubbed in espresso and lavender, some cheeses have flavors added to the rind. These are intended to be eaten and will usually be quite tasty. Common coatings include herbs and spices. <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\"Parmigiano<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n

Natural<\/strong><\/h3>\n

This can range from the pliable rinds on cheeses like tommes that look and smell like a cave wall to the firmer rinds on cheeses like Comt\u00e9 or Parmigiano Reggiano. Once a cheese is aged a year or more, I generally find it too hard, but that\u2019s personal preference. It\u2019s worth giving the rind a bit of a nibble and seeing what you think. The only rind I absolutely never eat is Parmigiano Reggiano rinds, which are far too hard. I throw those in the freezer and use them for stock, soups, or to flavor pots of beans.<\/p>\n

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\"Gouda Cheese\" by eelke dekker is licensed under CC BY 2.0

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“Gouda Cheese”<\/a> by eelke dekker<\/a> is licensed under CC BY 2.0<\/a><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Inedible<\/strong><\/h3>\n

This could include the bark on Jasper Hill\u2019s Harbison<\/a>, the colorful wax layer on some goudas, paper, foil, etc. It\u2019s important to remember that these are food safe\u2014in other words, you won\u2019t become ill if you accidentally ingest a bit\u2014but they\u2019re intended to be discarded.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve taught cheese classes since 2015. No matter what I\u2019m teaching, whether it\u2019s a Cheese 101, Tiki Cocktails & Cheese, or a more intensive training there is one question that people always arrive with: \u201cCan I eat the rind?\u201d It\u2019s a good question, especially given that most of us grew up with the rindless cheeses … Okumaya devam et “The Definitive Guide to 5 Kinds of Cheese Rinds and Which Are Edible?”<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":1271,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[395],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1876","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-milk-and-diary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1876","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1271"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1876"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1876\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1876"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1876"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sutyo.com\/tr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1876"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}