8 Cheeses You Should Always Have in Your Fridge
There are a lot of dairy products in my refrigerator. Currently stocked with whole milk, half and a half, heavy whipped cream, two types of yogurt (store bought Greek and a homemade recipe I tweak), sour cream, butter and all my various cheeses. (I usually also have some labneh , but I just ran out.) Cheeses are a category of their own. I need at least eight at any given moment.
I don’t need eight specific cheeses, but I do need at least one from each of the following categories. (If you follow me on Twitter, you may have seen me tweet that I need seven cheeses, but someone pointed out that I’m short on cream cheese.) These are the cheeses I need to be satiated and function. They are adapted to my lifestyle and desires, but I think it would be helpful for everyone to identify and categorize their specific cheese needs.
My cheese needs are as follows:
- Snack Cheese: These are my string cheeses, my babybells, my sticks, and the pre-wrapped “snack portions” of tillamooka that I pop into my mouth as a snack before getting up or when I feel hungry but don’t know what eat.
- Cooking Cheese: This is cheese that is mixed and melted into dishes. It is usually packaged and pre-ground, but Velveeta also counts.
- Salad Cheese: Ah, my crumbs. This is usually pre-crushed blue cheese, although it can be good feta and sometimes overlaps with our next category (finish cheese).
- Finishing Cheese: This is the cheese you use to finish the dish . It is usually “good” and full of flavor like parmigiano reggiano, pecorino romano and cotija. The finish cheese can sometimes be used as salad cheese.
- Sandwich Cheese: These are (obviously) sliced cheeses that go on sandwiches. I usually have two – a dubliner (block or precut) and a white american (both honoring my heritage in their own way).
- Hangry cheese: It’s just cottage cheese. This satisfies a more pressing need than snacking on cheese, as it can be put in the mouth.
- Cream Cheese: She’s in a category of her own.
- Treat Cheese: This is usually a small portion of something aged and covered in crystals (I really love aged gouda now), but sometimes it’s a very sticky sample of washed rind. I usually eat it with a very good apple.
It’s just me, and while I value my own opinion, I’d love to hear yours. How many cheeses are in your refrigerator? How much do you need to work? How much do you want ? Tell me about your cheese categories, your cheese preferences, your cheese dreams . Determine your cheese needs and then demand that they be met.