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White cheese includes a wide variety of cheese types discovered in different regions, sharing the sole common characteristic of their white hue. The specific type of white cheese can vary significantly depending on the geographical location.
In Latin America, queso blanco (Spanish) or queijo branco (Portuguese) refers to various white cheeses, with the specific type varying by region.
Queso blanco is considered an easy cheese to make, as it requires no careful handling and does not call for rennet or bacterial culture. It is usually made by heating whole fresh milk to near-boiling, adding an acidifying agent such as vinegar, stirring until curds form, then draining the curds in cheesecloth for three to five hours. Such cheeses are also known as "bag cheeses," as the curds are normally hung in a bag of cheesecloth to drain. As it is highly perishable, it must be refrigerated or used immediately once the whey has drained out.
Queso blanco and queso fresco may be eaten alone or added to other dishes. They are often used as a topping for spicy Mexican dishes such as enchiladas and empanadas or crumbled over soups or salads. Meltable versions are used to make quesadillas. [1] It is used to make cheesecake in some parts of the world.
The following cheese names may refer to queso blanco in the Spanish-speaking world or be considered similar to any of its local varieties: asadero, [2] halloumi, [3] Indian paneer, [4] farmer cheese, [4] pot cheese, [4] quark from Central and Eastern Europe [4]
In Brazilian cuisine, white cheese goes by the name queijo branco (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈkejʒuˈbɾɐ̃ku] ). Minas cheese, a Brazilian cheese, is usually fresh.
On the Caribbean coast, the most popular cheese is salty and goes by "queso costeño." It can be either hard and salty or soft and low in salt. People mainly have it with breakfast, in dishes like "mote de queso," or grated in foods like arepas and bollos (especially the hard and salty kind). There's a variation known as "queso de capa de Mompós."
Mexican cuisine features two main variations of white cheese. queso blanco, traditionally made from cow's milk, and queso fresco (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈkesoˈfɾesko] ), which may include a combination of cow's and goat's milk. While certain types like Oaxaca cheese melt when heated, the majority simply become soft when exposed to heat. [1] If it is pressed, and more water is removed, it becomes known as queso seco.
In regions such as Guerrero, Zacatecas, and San Luis Potosí, goat's milk cuajada (curd) is utilized in desserts like gorditas de cuajada and panes de dulce.
In Jalisco, where it is commonly known as panela, this cheese variety is employed in crafting pan de cuajada and tamales de cuajada.
Many Mexican home cooks make their own instead of purchasing it; when made for the evening meal, it is often prepared in the early afternoon and left to drain until evening. [4]
In Dominican Republic cuisine queso blanco is a firm, salty cheese used for frying: queso frito . [3]
In Nicaraguan cuisine, queso blanco is a firm cheese used for frying: queso frito . Cheese is one of the most popular dairy products in the daily diet. You can find various kinds, including cuajada fresca (fresh curd), cuajada ahumada (smoked curd) with and without chili, and cuajada ahumada with spices. The smoking process varies. They shape small balls, put them on a wooden grill called tapezco, and light a fire underneath using firewood that produces lots of smoke. Another way is to bake them in an oven for 10 minutes until they turn golden and get that smoky flavor. People enjoy these cheeses with güirila or corn tortillas, or use them as fillings in tamales. They also mix cheese into corn masa in revueltas and use it as a filling in griddled quesadillas, or add rapadura de dulce or sugar for fillings in oven-baked empanadas.
In Peruvian cuisine, several recipes mix queso fresco and spices to make a spicy cold sauce eaten over peeled boiled potatoes, such as papa a la huancaína or ocopa .
In Puerto Rican cuisine, queso blanco is a firm cheese used for frying and typically paired with guava paste. The cheese also goes by queso fresco and queso blanco del país. Although still popular, it has been losing consumers due to higher-quality cheese becoming available on the island.[ citation needed ]
Venezuelan cuisine has a large diversity of white cheese (quesos blancos), varying in texture and flavor, usually named after a geographical region. Examples include queso blanco duro (hard white cheese called llanero), queso semi-blando (semi-soft cheese, called paisa or palmita), or very tender types like guayanés cheese or queso de mano. The hard version is grated as a side for the national dish pabellón, and it's also used as a topping for pasta and as a filling for arepas and empanadas. The softer types are used as fillings for arepas and cachapas.
Quark, a type of fresh cheese in Central and Eastern Europe, is known by different names in various regions, such as tvorog (Russian), topfen (Austrian), biezpiens (Latvian), and varškė (Lithuanian).
Domiati, a soft, white, salty cheese, is primarily produced in Egypt and some Middle Eastern countries.
Fromage blanc is a fresh cheese from France and Belgium.
Greece offers a range of white cheeses. Among these options are feta, a brined curd cheese. Manouri, a semi-soft, fresh white whey cheese, is crafted from goat and/or sheep milk whey remaining after cheese production. Mizithra, another choice, is an unpasteurized fresh cheese. It's a Greek traditional delicacy made using milk and whey sourced from sheep and/or goats.
Italy has a variety of white cheeses. Among them, Asiago cheese is a cow's milk cheese known for its varying textures according to its aging, from smooth for the fresh Asiago (Asiago Pressato) to a crumbly texture for the aged cheese (Asiago d'allevo) of which the flavor is reminiscent of Parmesan. Another Italian cheese is Mascarpone, a cheese made from cream, coagulated by the addition of citric acid or acetic acid. Mozzarella, originally from southern Italy, is a fresh cheese traditionally made from Italian buffalo and later cow's milk by the pasta filata method. There also is Ricotta, a whey cheese made from sheep (or cow, goat, or Italian water buffalo) milk whey left over from the production of cheese.
In Philippine cuisine, kesong puti , a soft, white cheese, similar to queso blanco and cottage cheese, is made from unskimmed carabao's milk, salt and rennet.
In Portuguese cuisine, queijo fresco (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈkeijʒuˈfɾeʃku] ) refers to a popular mild, soft, creamy, white unaged cheese used throughout the Iberian Peninsula. In the Azores queijo fresco is typically served with the fresh pepper sauce pimenta de terra. [5]
Caș is a type of semi-soft white fresh cheese made from sheep or cow milk, produced in Romania. Another type of white cheese traditionally made in Romania is telemea, a salty variety, made of sheep or cow milk.
Beyaz peynir is a salty, white cheese made from unpasteurized sheep (or cow) milk. The cheese has a slightly grainy appearance and is similar to Greek feta cheese.
Sirene, / Sirenje (Bulgarian: сирене, pronounced [ˈsirɛnɛ]; Macedonian: сирење, pronounced [ˈsireɲe]; Serbian/Croatian: сир, sir, Albanian: djath i bardhe) or known as "white brine sirene" (Bulgarian: бяло саламурено сирене, [ˈbjaɫo sɐɫɐˈmurɛno ˈsirɛnɛ]; is a type of brine cheese made in South-Eastern Europe, especially popular in Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia and other Balkan countries.
Halloumi or haloumi is a cheese that is thought to have originated from Cyprus, though some contest that it originated in Egypt. It is made from a mixture of goat's and sheep's milk, and sometimes also cow's milk. Its texture is described as squeaky. It has a high melting point and so can easily be fried or grilled, a property that makes it a popular meat substitute. Rennet is used to curdle the milk in halloumi production, although no acid-producing bacteria are used in its preparation.
Curd is obtained by coagulating milk in a sequential process called curdling. It can be a final dairy product or the first stage in cheesemaking. The coagulation can be caused by adding rennet, a culture, or any edible acidic substance such as lemon juice or vinegar, and then allowing it to coagulate. The increased acidity causes the milk proteins (casein) to tangle into solid masses, or curds. Milk that has been left to sour will also naturally produce curds, and sour milk cheeses are produced this way.
Mizithra or myzithra is a Greek whey cheese or mixed milk-whey cheese from sheep or goats, or both. It is sold both as a fresh cheese, similar to Italian ricotta, and as a salt-dried grating cheese, similar to Italian ricotta salata. The ratio of milk to whey is usually 7 to 3.
Goat cheese, goat's cheese or chèvre is cheese made from goat's milk. Goats were among the first animals to be domesticated for producing food. Goat cheese is made around the world with a variety of recipes, giving many different styles of cheeses, from fresh and soft to aged and hard.
Asiago is a cow's milk cheese, first produced in Asiago in Italy, that can assume different textures according to its aging, from smooth for the fresh Asiago to a crumbly texture for the aged cheese. The aged cheese is often grated in salads, soups, pastas, and sauces while the fresh Asiago is sliced to prepare panini or sandwiches; it can also be melted on a variety of dishes and cantaloupe. It is classified as a Swiss-type or Alpine cheese.
Ricotta is an Italian whey cheese made from sheep, cow, goat, or Italian water buffalo milk whey left over from the production of other cheeses. Like other whey cheeses, it is made by coagulating the proteins that remain after the casein has been used to make cheese, notably albumin and globulin.
Paneer, also known as ponir, is a fresh acid-set cheese common in cuisine of the Indian subcontinent made from full-fat buffalo milk or cow milk. It is a non-aged, non-melting soft cheese made by curdling milk with a fruit- or vegetable-derived acid, such as lemon juice.
Sirene, also known as "white brine sirene", is a type of brined cheese originating from Bulgaria. It is made of the milk of goats, sheep, cows, buffalo or a mixture thereof. It is slightly crumbly, with at least 46–48% of dry matter containing 44–48% of fat. It is commonly produced in blocks, and has a slightly grainy texture. It is used as a table cheese, in salads, and in baking.
Telemea is the name of a Romanian cheese traditionally made of sheep's milk. Nowadays the term encompasses cheese made out of cow's milk, and in some cases of goat's, or buffalo's milk.
Akkawi cheese is a white brine cheese named after the city of Akka.
Kesong puti is a Filipino soft, unaged, white cheese made from unskimmed carabao milk and salt curdled with vinegar, citrus juices, or sometimes rennet. It can also be made with goat or cow milk. It has a mild salty and tart flavor. When an acidifying agent is used, it resembles queso blanco or paneer. When rennet is used, it resembles buffalo mozzarella. Moisture content can also vary, ranging from almost gelatinous to pressed and firm. It can be eaten as is, paired with bread, or used in various dishes in Filipino cuisine. It is usually sold wrapped in banana leaves.
Caprino is an Italian cheese traditionally made from whole or skimmed goat's milk. The name of the cheese derives from the Italian word for goat, capra. With modern methods of production, the cheese is made from cow's milk as well or a combination of both cow's and goat's milks. The two major styles of caprino are fresco ("fresh") and stagionato ("aged").
There are many different types of cheese. Cheeses can be grouped or classified according to criteria such as length of fermentation, texture, methods of production, fat content, animal milk, and country or region of origin. The method most commonly and traditionally used is based on moisture content, which is then further narrowed down by fat content and curing or ripening methods. The criteria may either be used singly or in combination, with no single method being universally used.
Beyaz peynir is a brine cheese produced from unpasteurized sheep, cow or goat milk. The cheese has a slightly grainy appearance and is similar to lighvan, feta, sirene and other Balkan white cheeses. Vegetable rennet is added to the sheep's milk as a clotting agent. Once the curds are produced, they are pressed, chopped, and strained before being cut into blocks that are salted and placed in a brine solution for approximately six months.
Cheeses in Mexico have a history that begins with the Spanish conquest, as dairy products were unknown in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. The Spanish brought dairy animals, such as cattle, sheep, and goats, as well as cheesemaking techniques. Over the colonial period, cheesemaking was modified to suit the mixed European and indigenous tastes of the inhabitants of New Spain, varying by region. This blending and variations have given rise to a number of varieties of Mexican cheeses. These are most popular in the country, although European cheeses are made, as well. Almost all cheese in Mexico is made with cows’ milk, with some made from goats’ milk. More recently, efforts have been made to promote sheep's milk cheeses. Most cheeses are made with raw (unpasteurized) milk. Cheeses are made in the home, on small farms or ranches, and by major dairy product firms. Between 20 and 40 different varieties of cheese are made in Mexico, depending on how one classifies them. Some, such as Oaxaca and panela, are made all over Mexico, but many are regional cheeses known only in certain sections on the country. Some of the least common are in danger of extinction.
Mallorca cheese is a Spanish cheese made exclusively on the island of Mallorca, one of the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. It has Protected Designation of Origin and is made from the pasteurized milk of cows, goats and/or sheep which live on the island. The cheeses are slightly tapering, flat cylinders which measure 12–20 cm (5–8 in) across and 7–9 cm (3–4 in) high. They weigh from 750 to 4 kg. Mallorca cheese is produced in three types:
Queso de mano is a type of soft, white cheese most commonly associated with Venezuelan cuisine. It is most often used as a filling for arepas and cachapa. The taste and consistency of the cheese most closely resembles that of mozzarella but is built up in layers.
