What’s The Best Way To Store Cheese So It Doesn’t Spoil?

When it comes to cheese, there are many different varieties that you can choose from and each one is different from the next. The problem most people tend to run into, however, is how to store their cheese. It is almost always unrealistic to expect that you will eat an entire piece of cheese in one sitting, unless of course you are hosting a cheese party. The thing is that if you don’t finish the cheese, most people don’t know what to do with it. There can even be confusion about whether you should leave the cheese in its original packaging until you eat it or rewrap it as soon as you get home from the store.

Where To Store

The first thing you need to think about when it comes to storing cheese is where you should store it. Almost everyone stores cheese in their refrigerator and this is of course one of the best choices. You should try to store it in the warmest area of your fridge as depending on the type of cheese you have, it may not need temperatures that are as cool as other foods.

What To Use

One of the most common ways people store their cheese is in plastic wrap and this is actually one of the worst ways possible to store it. That’s because when you wrap your cheese too tightly, harmful bacteria are more likely to grow. If you wrap it too tight, you also run the risk of natural odors (such as ammonia) not being able to dissipate and the plastic may even add some flavor to the cheese.
Instead the very best option is to wrap your cheese up in cheese paper. If you are like most people and don’t have cheese paper on hand, another option is to wrap your cheese up in some wax or parchment paper and then put it loosely inside a plastic bag or plastic wrap. The layer of plastic will prevent the cheese from drying out while still giving enough air for ammonia to dissipate.

How To Wrap It

To wrap up your cheese start with a piece of wax paper. Make sure that the wax paper is much larger than the piece of cheese you are wrapping; it should be three to four times the length of the cheese and around twice as wide. Put your cheese on the wax paper around two-thirds up making sure that the cut side is down. You want the sharp narrow to be on the right side. Take the bottom right corner of your wax paper and bring it up the cheese so it is tight then bring the right side over and secure it in place with a piece of tape.

The pointy end should now be fully wrapped. Take the top right part of the cheese and fold it down and then repeat the process so you have all but one side of the cheese wrapped. Wrap that side like a present and tape it in place. If you want, you can put it in a plastic bag but don’t close it all the way.