Cheese

International Cheeses on the board

Cheese is a dairy product that is made from milk from many different animals milk. There are many types of cheese, such as cheddar, Swiss, and provolone.

Many things affect the form, texture, colour and flavour of a cheese. These include the milk (cow or goat), if the milk has been pasteurized, the amount of butterfat, bacteria and mold in the cheese, how the cheese is made, how much fat is in the cheese, and how old the cheese is.

Origin

People have been making cheese since before history was written down. It is not known when cheese was first made. It is known that cheese was eaten by the Sumerians in about 4000 BC.^[1]

Classification

There are many different ways to classify cheeses. Some ways include:

Some cheeses on the wood board

How long the cheese was aged
The texture of the cheese. These include Hard, Soft and Softer.
How the cheese was made
What type of milk was used to make the cheese. This is mainly what animal the milk comes from, such as cows, sheep, and goats. The diet of the animal can also affect the type of cheese made from its milk.
How much fat is in the cheese
What color the cheese is (common colors are yellow, and white)

There are also man-made foods that some people use instead of cheese. These are called Cheese analogues.

Different types of cheese include:

A heart-shaped goat milk cheese from France.
Feta cheese
Paremesan Cheese
Emmental and Boursin cheese
Crumbly cheese
Smoked cheese and Brie Cheese
Swiss Cheese
Bleu de Gex Blue Cheese
Gorgonzola Cheese
Pecorino cheese
Camembert cheese
Mozzarella Cheese
Le Cendrillon Alexis de Portneuf
Berkswell Cheese
Parmigiano-Reggiano
Époisses
Blue Cheese
Cacio Cavallo
Edam Cheese
Manchego
Goat Milk Cheese

Cheese Media

A platter with cheese and garnishes
Cheeses in art: Still Life with Cheeses, Almonds and Pretzels, Clara Peeters, c. 1615
Different hard cheeses
A piece of soft curd cheese, oven-baked to increase shelf life
Cheese in a market in Italy
Cheese display in grocery store, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
In industrial production of Emmental cheese, the as-yet-undrained curd is broken by rotating mixers.
Cheese factory in Zaanstad, the Netherlands
Parmigiano-Reggiano in a modern factory
Saganaki, lit on fire, served in Chicago