Cheese is a favorite product of most people. To this day, there is debate about in which part of our planet this exquisite delicacy was invented. Its history goes back thousands of years, and the first mentions date back to 8 thousand years BC. Currently, there are more than 2000 varieties of dairy products, among which everyone can find a product to their liking. And in order not to lose its piquant taste and unsurpassed aroma over time, you need to know how long cheese can be stored in the refrigerator.
Let's find out!
How long does cheese last in the refrigerator?
The duration of storage directly depends on the type, quality and compliance with the recommended rules established by GOST and SanPiN.
The general requirements are:
- Lack of sunlight.
- Relative humidity of at least 85%.
- Temperature – 0-4°C.
Based on the above points, a refrigerator is the optimal storage option with the exception of the top shelves or door.
The period of safe use differs significantly for different types of dairy products according to classification, so we will dwell on each of them separately.
Hard and semi-hard cheeses
Hard rennet varieties have a crystalline structure, they are hard and crumbly, they ripen longer and therefore have a slightly longer shelf life compared to semi-hard varieties. The latter are more popular in everyday life, often used for cooking (pizza, spaghetti, etc.) or as a separate snack.
It is allowed to store solid types in the refrigerator in a closed container for up to six months, after opening - up to 14 days. Semi-hard varieties are recommended to be kept in the refrigerator for no more than 4 months, and after opening, consumed within 1-2 weeks.
Hard and semi-hard cheeses include Russian, Gouda, Poshekhonsky, Dutch, Maasdam, Lambert, Vityaz, Edam, Tilsiter, King Arthur, French Roquefort, Italian Parmesan and Dor Blue, English Cheddar.
Soft cheeses
The creamy, curd consistency and the lack of additional processing significantly reduce the shelf life of soft cheeses. In a closed container it is 1.5 months, in an open container – 3 days.
Soft ones include Adyghe, Castello, Philadelphia, Camembert, Brie, Kaymak, Mascarpone, Ricotta, Roqueforti, Gorgonzola, Serra da Estrela, Cremette.
Brine cheeses
Brine cheeses are made from the milk of various animals (cow, goat, sheep), and their mixtures. Maturation occurs in a special brine or whey, giving the product a specific salty taste and layered consistency.
It is stored in a vacuum from 2 weeks (Suluguni, Ossetian, etc.) to 2 months (cheese cheese). The opened package of the delicacy must be consumed within 7-10 days. To preserve its properties, it must be completely placed in brine or salted water.
Brine varieties include feta cheese, Suluguni, Imereti, Mozzarella, Ossetian, Burrata, Stracciatella, Feta, Halloumi, Chanakh, Sirtaki, Chechil (pigtail), Fetaxa.
Processed cheeses
Processed cheeses include sausage and spreadable cheeses. Often the composition contains flavor enhancers and vegetable fats.
Based on this, the shelf life can be 1 year. Once opened, store in the refrigerator for a maximum of 1 week (pasty sausages) and up to 2 weeks (smoked sausages).
These include: President, Hochland, Almette, Violette, Friendship, Amber.
Blue cheeses
A wheel of soft cheese with white or blue mold can be stored in the refrigerator for no longer than a month.
To ensure maximum shelf life, wrap it in aluminum foil or wax paper and place it in a container with a lid. This is also done to prevent the spread of mold spores and the absorption of a specific smell by other food.
Brie, Dor Blue, Gorgonzolla, Roqueforti, Camembert - all these are delicacies with mold.
Homemade cheeses
The homemade product is stored in the refrigerator for no more than 3-5 days.
It is recommended to first place a self-made product in a glass or enamel container.
Special types of cheeses
Tofu is produced from soybeans using special technologies.
The storage period in vacuum packaging is 2-3 weeks. After opening, it must be placed in a container with water, changing the water every day, for no more than 7 days.
If you decide to freeze tofu, remember that it may turn yellow in the freezer from low temperatures, but will return white immediately after proper defrosting.
Grated and sliced cheeses
Vacuum grated and sliced cheeses can be kept in the refrigerator until the expiration date.
If the package is opened, it is recommended to consume the milk product within 3-5 days.
General rules and recommendations
It is recommended to place the cheese in a cool and humid place. The best option is a refrigerator. In this case, it is worth considering the following nuances: what to put the product in and where to place it in the refrigerator.
First of all, you should figure out at what temperature to store cheese in the refrigerator so that it does not mold. The optimal temperature regime is +6…8 ℃. Manufacturers recommend storing some varieties at a temperature of 0...+4 ℃, while expensive French cheeses are best stored in warmer conditions.
Air humidity at the storage location should be between 85-90%. If the moisture level is low, the product will dry out quickly, and if the moisture level is high, it will spoil.
If there is high humidity in the storage area, place a piece of refined sugar next to the cheese. Sugar will absorb excess moisture and extend the shelf life of the product.
The optimal place to store cheese in the refrigerator is shelves or drawers for vegetables and fruits. It is not recommended to place the product near the freezer compartment or in the doors. Frequent temperature changes reduce shelf life.
To preserve the cheese, after purchasing it, wrap it in parchment (wax paper) and seal it with tape. This will prevent mold from forming and the product from drying out. Be sure to use a marker or sticker to mark which variety is stored in the package and indicate the date of purchase. This will help control the expiration date.
It is recommended to store cheese in paper, which is used in specialized stores. An alternative option is wax or parchment paper.
You can use a glass or enamel container to store cheese . But it is not recommended to use plastic packaging, since the product will acquire the taste and smell of plastic. To protect hard cheese from drying out, wrap it in parchment and place it in plastic. When packaging the product, avoid creating a vacuum. In this form, you can take the cheese with you on the road, for example, when traveling on a train.
To prevent the cheese from drying out, place it in a plastic bag. However, be sure to first wrap it in parchment or gauze soaked in salted water.
If a small spot of mold appears on the cheese, carefully cut off the affected area. Wrap the remaining whole product in clean wax paper.
Cheeses of different varieties should be stored in individual packages and separately from other products . This will prevent the mixing of flavors and protect the product from rapid spoilage and loss of taste.
Can cheese be stored in the freezer?
Using the freezer as storage space is possible, but not recommended. Exposure to low temperatures leads to a decrease in organoleptic properties, deterioration of consistency, and loss of taste. The frozen product is subsequently used exclusively as part of dishes (fillings, soups, sauces).
If you suddenly have a large supply of cheese that has expired, put it in a special freezer bag, foil or cling film. Then place the bundle in the freezer for no more than 2 months. This method should be used in exceptional cases. Defrosting should occur smoothly; there is no need to immediately place the product in heat.
Cheese storage methods
Basement storage
Experienced cheese makers advise storing products in basements equipped with climate control systems and shelves. In underground rooms, constant air temperature and humidity are maintained. Thanks to ideal storage conditions, cheese retains its beneficial properties and taste for many months. Ordinary cellars are suitable only for short-term storage of dairy products. Shelf life is the same as in the refrigerator.
In the freezer
Of course, you can use the freezer to store cheese. However, unexpected consequences may arise. For example, the product will lose its taste, its structure will change, and the content of nutrients will decrease. Frozen cheeses are used only for making soups, sauces, and dressings. If you have a lot of cheese that is about to expire, wrap each piece in aluminum foil or plastic wrap. Place the bundles in the freezer.
The shelf life will be no more than 2 months. Slowly increase the temperature before use. First, put the food in the refrigerator. And only then – take it out.
At room temperature
Cheese is hardly stored at room temperature. In warm conditions, the shelf life is reduced to several days. It is recommended to place the dairy product on a wooden shelf in a dark place. Monitor air humidity, which should not exceed 85 percent. Wrap each piece tightly with a natural cloth soaked in saline solution.
Shelf life of cheese depending on packaging
Packaging has a significant impact on the shelf life of the delicacy. For example, in a paraffin coating it is stored for a month longer than in a polymer shell.
Closed packaging
Closed vacuum packaging, the head in wax or polymer film allows you to preserve the product until the expiration date specified by the manufacturer, subject to the required temperature conditions.
Open packaging
Cut cheese by weight without coating, not packaged in a special wrapper, is not recommended for long-term storage in a refrigerator, since it absorbs foreign odors, gets airy, and can dry out.
Therefore, the terms are minimal: 1-5 days depending on the type.
Place it in a special dish - a cheese pan - to prolong the possibility of eating it.
Wrapped cheeses
A fresh cut product, packaged in a store or independently wrapped in wax paper, foil, or cling film, should retain its taste for the period indicated on the package.
How to properly store the product
1. To prevent the cheese product from becoming dry, it should be wrapped in a damp cloth or food grade film. You can also store it on a wooden board, covered with a lid. 2. The upper section or place for fruit in a refrigeration unit is ideal for storing cheese. If the temperature is above 8 degrees, the taste of the product will deteriorate. 3. Only dry varieties of cheese can be stored in a warm room. Soft wet dairy products of this type quickly lose their suitability for consumption. 4. Since the cheese ripens throughout the storage period, it is prohibited to store it in hermetically sealed packaging. Wooden or ceramic utensils are best suited for this. 5. To preserve the product better, it should be left in a large piece. If the sliced cheese is not consumed on time, it should be covered and used as food as soon as possible. 6. If the vacuum packaging of cheese is opened, it is advisable to pack it with foil. This will protect it from foreign odors, chapping and drying.
What to do with dried or moldy cheese
Many people doubt whether it is possible to eat cheese that is moldy or dried out. If we are talking about soft, melted, pickled varieties, such a product should be thrown away immediately, since mold pores penetrate deep inside, multiply quickly in a favorable environment and can lead to serious poisoning.
If the hard or semi-hard variety has dried out, the best option would be to grate it and add it to your favorite dishes, such as garlic and mayonnaise snacks, pasta or pizza. You can try to save a piece of moldy cheese. To do this, you need to look at the color of the mold that has formed. If it's black, throw it away immediately. A green, yellow or white tint indicates the initial stage of the lesion, so you can cut off the damaged part with a margin of 0.5 cm and treat the cut with a strong saline solution.
Is it possible to preserve cheese for a long time?
The most important factors are conditions, temperature, humidity percentage and ventilation. Hard cheese can retain its beneficial properties the longest. You need to buy cheese in sealed packaging, which preserves the product for the longest period of time. If the package is open, then the cheese must be transferred to a glass jar with a lid. This provides a vacuum.
Cheese is one of the products that spoils quickly and changes in temperature greatly affect this product. Cottage cheese is the most resistant to these changes. If these indicators are not observed, then the product will lose its useful elements.
Use in cooking
We use goat cheese both as an independent product and as one of the components of various dishes. For example, sandwiches with this product and whole grain bread will be very tasty for breakfast. You can use it to prepare various sauces and cold appetizers. It is often added to Italian pasta and pizza. It goes well with vegetables, so salads prepared with it have a refined touch that adds piquancy to the finished dish.
You can consume this product with wine and beer, and sometimes it is also used to make desserts.
Making goat cheese at home
This product can be prepared quite simply at home. There are a variety of recipes and features for its preparation. For example, in France - the largest supplier of goat cheese - almost every housewife has her own original recipe for its preparation.
For the simplest technology for its manufacture you will need:
- goat milk – 2 liters;
- sour cream – 2 tablespoons;
- cottage cheese – 2 tablespoons;
- vinegar – 1 tablespoon;
- salt – 1 teaspoon.
Heat the milk over low heat to a temperature of approximately 40 degrees. Add cottage cheese and salt to it and boil. While boiling, add sour cream and continue cooking, stirring constantly for about fifteen minutes. If by the end of this time the milk has not curdled, you need to add vinegar to the mixture. After the curd has formed, it must be strained to remove excess whey. To do this, place gauze in a colander and drain the liquid. The resulting mass should be covered with cotton or linen cloth and placed under a load in a cool, dark place. After about an hour, the goat cheese will be ready to eat.
Recipe for warm salad with goat cheese
To prepare you will need:
- sweet bell pepper – 1 piece;
- zucchini – 1 piece;
- goat cheese – 100 grams;
- garlic – 2 cloves;
- vegetable oil – 25 ml;
- sun-dried tomatoes – 20 grams;
- olive oil – 120 ml;
- pitted olives – 100 grams;
- greens (frise salad, basil, thyme);
- phyllo dough
For the salad you will need baked peppers. It must be washed, cleaned, put garlic and thyme inside, sprinkle with olive oil, wrap in foil and put in the oven for about 40 minutes. After cooling, peel and cut into strips. Salt, pepper, add thyme and a little olive oil. Let it brew.
Blend the olives with ¼ of the garlic and olive oil in a blender until smooth. Cut the zucchini into small strips and add salt.
Cut the dough into four pieces and brush with sunflower oil. Place basil, goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and olive slices in the middle of each. Wrap the dough and place the resulting bags in the oven for 4 minutes. Bake at 180 degrees. Mix zucchini and pepper strips and season with tapenade (a mixture of olives and garlic), place bags of goat cheese next to them and garnish with frisee salad, also seasoned with tapenade.
Is it possible to eat cheese if it has mold on it?
We all consume it periodically, simply without noticing the outbreak that is just beginning to form. This means that if the cheese, of course, is not yet half a month old and if you are not too squeamish, then you can simply cut off the moldy crust and use a piece as soon as possible, and preferably in a dish that requires heat treatment.
This life hack is not very suitable for people with very sensitive digestion, but for others, such a product is unlikely to cause food poisoning.
Soft varieties with mold after freezing are edible for a month, at temperatures up to 10°C - only a week. Roquefort, Camembert and Brie varieties last no more than a week in the refrigerator. At the same time, to achieve such a shelf life, ventilation is required every two days. Remove the bar from the packaging for an hour.
Most often, blue cheeses are characterized by a specific aroma that must be preserved, so the packaging must be sealed. In addition, the opened piece will lie in the refrigerator for several days, but the contents of the chamber will have time to become saturated with a specific aroma.
Mold is not always of noble origin. Improper storage leads to the formation of mold, which is harmful and dangerous to the body. Excessive consumption can lead to intoxication of the body. Noble mold characterizes the taste and aroma of the product, and also has a beneficial effect on the digestive system and overall health.
Harm and dangerous properties
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Goat cheese has a slightly increased acidity, so it is not recommended to use it during an exacerbation of gastritis, peptic ulcer or gout. It is contraindicated in case of milk protein intolerance. Of course, a low-quality product can also pose a danger to the body, so you should always make sure it is natural and fresh before purchasing. Also, freshly prepared natural cheese may contain harmful microorganisms and dangerous bacteria, such as salmonella or tubercle bacilli.
Beneficial features
Due to the content of a large number of useful elements in its composition, goat cheese brings valuable and nutritional properties to the body that help it function normally.
This product is rich in calcium, which is a natural builder of bone tissue, strengthens it, and serves as an excellent prevention of cancer of the mammary glands and colon. At the same time, it is able to normalize blood pressure and ensure normal functioning of the central nervous system. It also effectively fights caries, thereby improving breathing and eliminating bad breath.
The benefits to the body when consuming goat cheese are significant. He is capable of:
- improve the functioning of the digestive system;
- normalize microflora in the intestines;
- strengthen the immune system and promote the body's natural defenses against environmental influences;
- normalize metabolic processes in the body;
- fight high blood pressure.
In addition, goat cheese is an excellent dietary product. It is much easier to digest compared to cheeses made with cow's milk, thanks to the saturated fatty acids contained in its composition. It is also capable of increasing metabolism, which will undoubtedly lead to the loss of extra pounds.
This is a hypoallergenic product and can even be used in baby food. It is unique in that it is approved for use even by those who are lactose intolerant.
It is also useful for the female body. Regular use of it in food helps to normalize female microflora, which certainly prevents fungal infections, as well as candidiasis or vaginitis. It is also able to relieve discomfort and pain symptoms during the menstrual cycle.
Goat cheese is virtually free of harmful cholesterol. Which in turn has a positive effect on the functioning of the cardiovascular system and is the prevention of thrombosis and atherosclerosis.
This product, and especially its hard varieties, contain a large amount of vitamin D, which is necessary for pregnant women, the elderly and small children. It promotes the normal and correct formation of the skeleton, improves the functioning of joints, and, together with calcium, strengthens bone tissue. The use of this product has a wonderful effect on the condition of the skin and prevents the risk of developing diseases such as psoriasis or eczema. It will be useful in cold seasons, when the body lacks vitamins. It will be an excellent prevention of vitamin deficiency, due to the content of a huge amount of substances necessary for the body.
Pros and cons of freezing cheese
Freezing is considered one of the most common options for long-term storage of this category of fermented milk products. However, experts are categorically against this approach, supporting their decision with the following arguments:
- Freezing leads to a significant destruction of the consistency of the dairy product, and it is not possible to restore it after defrosting the product.
- After the freezing/thawing procedure, the cheese becomes brittle. In this form it can only be used as a topping for a dish. But cutting it into beautiful portioned slices will no longer work.
- During the freezing process, cheese partially loses its taste and aroma.
If we talk about the advantages of freezing, then thanks to this heat treatment it is possible to preserve the fermented milk product for a long time. This method of storing cheese is used in pizzerias and restaurants, and this does not at all affect the taste of the finished dish.
Therefore, in extreme cases, cheese can still be frozen in order to extend its shelf life. By the way, freezing the product does not affect the beneficial properties of the fermented milk product in question.
What determines the shelf life?
Cheese is a product of milk processing and is therefore considered a perishable product. It can rightfully be called a “living” product.
Even after the cheese is made and packaged, the ripening process continues.
However, sooner or later it will develop into a rotting process, or the cheese will simply dry out and become moldy.
The shelf life of different cheeses depends on several factors:
- varieties - different types of cheeses have different shelf life;
- technical production conditions and their compliance by the manufacturer - even the same variety can be produced using different methods;
- compliance with storage and transportation conditions - only when all the rules are followed, the expiration date declared by the manufacturer is valid.
Chemical composition and nutritional value of goat cheese
The energy value of goat cheese is 290 kcal. The product contains about 21.3 grams of protein, 21.7 grams of fat, and approximately 0.7 grams of carbohydrates.
Goat cheese is a healthy source of vitamins and microelements. The vitamin component in it is represented by B vitamins (thiamine - about 0.03 mg, riboflavin - 0.4 mg, pantothenic acid - about 1.2 mg, pyridoxine - 0.2 mg, folic acid - 39 mcg, cobalamin - 0. 6 mcg), vitamin A – 0.4 mg, vitamin E – approximately 0.4 mg, vitamin H – 4.2 mcg, vitamin C – 2 mg and vitamin PP – approximately 3.62 mg.
The mineral complex is presented:
- sodium – 1900 mg;
- copper – 60 mg;
- zinc – 3.5 mg;
- iron – 1 mg;
- phosphorus – 410 mg;
- potassium – 180 mg;
- magnesium – 50 mg;
- calcium – 740 mg.
