I'd like to take you back to a very dark time in my life. It was a day I hope I'll never have to repeat again. As I remember it, it was a fairly warm day. Time Magazine had named German Chancellor Angela Merkel as its 'Person of the Year' and McDonalds had just opened it's first stand alone coffee kiosk, McCafe.
It was December 9th, 2015. The day I had to sacrifice an entire block of cheese to the research and development lab in my house. The kitchen.
I love cheese. I'd say it's the kind of love that a lot of people would call "unnatural", but heh, there's no such thing as an unnatural love of cheese. No matter how great your love of cheese it is NOT unnatural. And don't let anyone tell you any differently. I used to do commentary in the middle of The Jerry Springer Show so I'm pretty well versed in cheese. Jerry and his band of chair throwing curiosities came upon a bit of a stumbling block one episode. This one show in particular, was titled, "I Married My Horse". It was about a man. Who married his horse.
After a bit of a stink, some hoopla, and several lawyers the show was banned for airing.
Had that show been titled "I Married My Cheese" I'm sure we'd all have been a lot more understanding.
But I had to sacrifice an entire block of cheddar cheese because I wanted to see if wrapping it in different materials would have any affect on how long it could be stored before going mouldy.
They actually sell "cheese paper" for wrapping cheese but that shit's pricey. So I figured I'd take every method of wrapping cheese I could find on the Internet and give them all a shot.
I cut my block of cheese into 4 equal sections and wrapped each of them a different way.
- In plastic wrap.
- In tin foil.
- In wax paper which was then put inside a plastic bag.
- In wax paper alone.
Each of these methods has an advantage and a disadvantage.
- Plastic wrap keeps cheese from drying out but also traps in moisture which makes mould growth faster and easier.
- Tin Foil is doesn't wrap as tightly as plastic wrap slowing mould growth.
- Wax paper allows the cheese to breathe therefore reducing moult growth, plus allowing gasses that build up and can alter the taste of your cheese, to escape. Putting the wax paper wrapped cheese in a plastic bag that isn't entirely sealed will help keep it from drying out.
- Wax paper alone allows the most breathing and will therefore reduce the growth of mould. BUT cheese is more likely to dry out.
Now, as far as I'm can tell any of these methods will work just fine if you only want to store your cheese for a week. But what if you want it to last a few weeks? Even a month? What then?
So on December 1st I packaged all of the cheese up, stuck it in the back of the fridge and forgot about it.
When you handle cheese you aren't supposed to touch it with your bare hands because of the bacterial carry over. You're supposed to use surgeons gloves.
Since I'm not insane and assume you aren't either, I just touched the cheese with my fingers like a normal person would when wrapping it up.
On February 8th I unwrapped my science experiment to very surprising results.
Here's how they fared.
- Wax Paper alone - Grew absolutely NO mould at all. But was as hard as a brick. This cheese was now a weapon.
- Wax Paper in plastic - This cheese grew a fair amount of mould and a lot of it pretty deadly looking.
- Tin Foil - Cheese wrapped in tin foil grew what seemed to be mostly surface mould and a lot of it.
- Plastic Wrap - Grew the least amount of mould (other than the wax paper wrapped cheese) over a 2 month period.
But the most surprising thing about this experiment was the OTHER side of the cheese. The side that was actually touching the shelf of the fridge. The bottom of it.
The underside of all the cheeses had far less mould growth than the top of it.
It would seem this could have to do with three things. Light/temperature/air. The underside of the cheese was pressed flat against a dark, cold surface that would keep more air out than the top of the cheese. The glass shelf of the fridge would be slightly colder than the actual air and conduct more cold. Since my fridge is a glass front fridge, with a light on inside of it 24 hours a day (LED light) the cheese in wax paper and plastic wrap would be subjected to a certain amount of light all day.
I have no idea which or which combination of things created the almost mouldless underside of the cheeses, all I know is that it happened.
Breaking open the cheeses all of them looked the same. Mouldless.
HOWEVER you can't see mould until it's gone completely haywire. So just because you can't see mould inside hard cheese doesn't mean it isn't there.
Mould grows inside hard cheeses through little branches from the surface inwards and they tend to extend slightly less than an inch.
So if you had a big block of cheese with mould on it, it's recommended that you cut off 1" all around the mould. If your cheese is only 1" thick, like mine here, you're out of luck.
If your cheese only has mould on the cut end though, you're perfectly safe to just cut off an inch worth and eat it. Not the mouldy inch, the rest of the cheese.
And let's face it. We've all taken a hunk of mouldy cheese and cut off all the mould and then eaten the little sliver left inside during a moment of cheese craving weakness.
I know right now there are several of you getting ready to type "It's fine! You're just eating penicillin!" so let me cut you off right now. Penicillin mould is a bright blue/green mould that came off a cantaloupe in the 40's. That's what penicillin is made of. You can in fact grow your own Penicillin but it's grown on bread or citrus peels, not Kraft Cheddar Cheese.
Since this isn't a post about making your own Penicillin I won't go into it further but suffice it to say, much like puff pastry, there are some things you should probably just buy pre-made.
The results of my cheese experiment? I'm not really sure. I guess plastic wrap looks like the best option, which is funny because it's the #1 way most people advise against.
By comparing these 4 methods I'll probably just continue to store my cheese the way I always have. In my stomach.
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thanks you Karen, your sacrifice shall not be forgotten.
glutton that i am, i had to have the 1.3 kg block of feta from BJs. i almost panicked cause i didn't know what to do with all this cheese and knew that once it's open i gotta figure something out.
i chopped off a hunk that goes into my daily tomato salad for the fridge, the rest i put in the freezer. i hope it's ok.
growing up the way i did, i don't have much issues with mold. if it doesn't kill ya, it makes you stronger, i say
:0B
Try Debbie Meyer Greenbags. http://www.debbiemeyer.com/ I love them. They are reusable (about ten times, I believe) and they extend the life of cheese, veggies, fruit salad and anything else I've tried putting these bags. I've been using them for years. There are knock-offs, but I know the Debbie Meyer bags work. If there is a Bed, Bath & Beyond, a coupon can be used. They can be ordered online. Love them.
For the methods you tried, what about putting the plastic wrapped cheese in a paper lunch bag to keep out the light?
British cookbook author Delia Smith recommends a double wrap of waxed paper. I have been doing this for years and it works really well.
I cut off the moldy part on a chunk of cheese and give it to the dogs, who adore it. No waste, just happy pets.
What's in bread mold that will kill you? And picking it off isn't good enough?
I like he wax idea Karen! Do that! It's very....ummmm ... Cheesy-ish
Btw, meant to wish happy Family Day to my fellow Canucks in Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia Heritage Day, Louis Riel Day in Manitoba and Islander Day in PEI . . . whew! Who knew there were so many things to celebrate in 6 provinces in just one day. Too bad about the rest of the country. Sucks to be you. I'm still in my jammies and it's almost half past noon. ?
I seem to remember my mom freezing blocks of cheese during my childhood. There was no clingfilm back then so wax paper AND foil is what she used. When the refrigerated portion was all gone (in a few days), she took another block from the chest freezer to replace it. We never witnessed moldy cheese.
My Third World self has never heard of 'cheese papers'. :-)
My mom used to just cut off the mould way back in the '50s and I do the same thing, although I have to hide that from my husband. Amazing how we all channel our mothers, sometimes even the stuff we didn't like, but that's another story. So far, neither of has croaked. I also used to pinch the mould off bread but decided that was going a little too far . . . have to maintain some standards, low as they may be . . .
LOVE THIS post! As a Wisconsin girl it was a bit painful to see all that delicious cheese sacrificed, but since it was 'for science' I can accept it. It's good to know that plastic wrap is winner. You will find at *least* three varieties of cheese in our fridge at all times [it's a law in Wisconsin. no... no it isn't - but it should be].
Thank you, Karen, for the never-ending "research" you do for us readers. I'm always amazed at your continual curiosity about everything from soup to nuts!
I bet you had this same trait even as a little kid. Instead of playing and dressing her up pretty, I picture you taking apart a talking doll (like Chatty Cathy) just to see how the doll talks. lol!
I also appreciate that you keep your experiments and research real .... e.g. not having us donning surgical gloves when cutting cheese AND not using that vacuum seal appliance every time we want cheese.
I once had a new, unopened package of cheese go completely moldy in a rather short period of time. THAT was a bummer, it was at the back of the cheese drawer and was overlooked.
I use a vaccu-suck for beef roasts, pork, flour, and if I ever had enough cheese to store (and not eat up) I would use it for that too! At this point I guess you could say the sucker is a must have here, and if the present one broke, a new one would appear on the counter very soon! It is great for when you buy a bunch of almost anything while on sale. When we got the first one it was a novelty, and anything not moving got sealed! My eldest son was still at home then, and I would seal his sandwich, cookies, an apple, etc, anything I could, and sneak them back in the bag before he left for work! For some reason he seemed to not appreciate this! Car keys were not exempt either! Sigh...the good old days. Anyway, interesting experiment Karen!
For some reason I'm feeling hungry for an extra sharp, grilled cheese sandwich for lunch. I try not to touch the cheese as I'm cutting it (and stuffing it in my mouth) and I keep it as much as possible in the wrapper it came in and store it in a vintage glass refrigerator dish. Seems to work pretty well. I love your ring too.
I too use a plain ole white paper towel. Remove the plastic wrapper, wrap the cheese in the paper, put it on a plastic bag. I shove the cheese wrapper in the plastic bag too cuz I don't always remember which cheese is which just by looking at it. Everytime I take the cheese out of the fridge I rewrap it using a new paper towel. It stays mold free for a good bit of time. I store it in a drawer that allows a 'deli' setting....as opposed to the veggie or fruit setting. I think the sugar cube in an earlier post is used to absorb moisture. I have Debbie Myers plastic ware that works pretty dang good at keeping food/fruit/veggies fresh way longer than normal. If I had some of this bad ass plastic ware thats shape to hold a sandwich I'd use it for the cheese too instead of a plastic bag.
No one said anything about blue cheese. Is that mould?
I used to put it in plastic wrap but now put it in a sandwich size rubbermaid container. I haven't had mold since.
And thank you for confirming that you can't just cut the mold off and eat the rest. I can't stomach doing that but so many people say otherwise. And I love cheese. It is a condiment in our house.
This was so interesting. Love, love your blog <3
Thanks Cindy! ~ karen
I got this hint a few months ago at a ladies group I belong to. Tried it and am loving it for my longer term cheese storage. I get a flat tupperware type container. Place a folded up white paper towel in the bottom. Add 1 sugar cube and your cheese. The paper towel helps keep the moisture down and the sugar cube must inhibit mold growth. In over 2 months I had no mold. It does help to change out the paper towel each time you feel it get damp, which for me is every week or so, or about once every 3-4 times of opening and getting out cheese. It helps to only store 1 cheese per container. Each cheese develops from a different mold and I think that they can cross contaminate each other with less than good results.
I also love cheese. But alas, my husband's cancer diet does not include cheese or actually any animal fat at all. So cheese made into a dish for a meal is out. So I eat a lot of just plain old cheese while he is not looking, since he so wishes he could have some too
That's an interesting one. I'll add that to the list of my next cheese storing experiment. Hope you're husband's getting back on track! ~ karen
Some years ago I had (well truth is I still do but ever since this happened I control it better) an unnatural fondness for croissants. I would buy them fresh, frozen, frozen and uncooked so I could cook them and have them fresh, well you get the picture. One day I went to have a croissant, the VERY LAST ONE, and horror of horrors, there was a spot of mould on it. Just a tiny spot and as you suggest, I rationalized this with "how bad could it be, if I just tear off that bit there, I'm sure it will be fine. After all isn't that where they discovered penicillin so in effect I'm just eating penicillin and if anything it should fight off any infection I might be harbouring."
Do NOT try this experiment at home or anywhere for that matter, it is NOT penicillin and I was NOT fine. I didn't die, obviously, but I sure didn't feel good for a day or two. Cheese on the other hand, I just scrape it off and good to go ;-)
LOVE the turquoise ring! Better than cheese...and I do love cheese.