Smoked cheddar cheese is one of our most popular cold-smoking dishes and is also suitable for beginners to cold-smoking. Transform an aged cheddar cheese into a gourmet product – subtly smoked, with savoury flavours from infused herbs and spices - at a fraction of the price!
INGREDIENTS:
Cheddar cheese* (homemade or store-bought)
Herbs or other flavouring (optional)
METHOD:
1. Cut cheddar cheese into pieces (i.e. 1kg into 4-8 pieces). TIP: The narrower the cheddar cheese is cut, the stronger the smoke flavour is absorbed.
2. Place cheddar cheese pieces directly onto clean, dry wire rack/s in the smoking vessel so that each piece is separated to allow smoke to penetrate the entire surface area of each piece.
3. Cold smoke cheddar cheese for 30 minutes in a small smoking vessel (or 60 minutes in a large (200L) smoking vessel). NOTE: smoking time provided is for Aussie Smoke Bloke cold smoke generators – other cold smoking units will take longer, adjust time as required according to your manual.
4. Remove smoked cheddar cheese pieces from the smoking vessel and place onto a wire rack or plate.
5. Place smoked cheddar cheese pieces into a separate fridge (i.e. beer fridge), uncovered, for 30-60 minutes (until any moisture has been reabsorbed). Ensure cheddar cheese surface is dry before vacuum sealing.
6. Sprinkle with dry flavouring i.e. herbs.
7. Vacuum seal smoked cheddar cheese. Label clearly with smoking date and best before date (i.e. store-bought best before date).
8. Store smoked cheddar cheese in the refrigerator.
9. Wait 2-5 days before opening and serving smoked cheddar cheese. TIP: 10+ days tastes even better!
10. Always re-wrap opened packets of smoked cheddar cheese tightly before storing in the refrigerator to prevent spoilage. Smoked cheddar cheese can also be frozen but this changes the texture when thawed (cheese often crumbles).
SMOKED CHEDDAR CHEESE FLAVOUR IDEAS:
Add dry ingredients to smoked cheddar cheese right before vacuum sealing. Note down quantities used in your cold smoking log book to repeat tasty batches of flavoured smoked cheddar cheese!
- Apricot, Chilli & Lime (finely diced dried apricots, chilli flakes and dried lime zest)
- Black Pepper (whole, cracked or finely ground)
- Bush Tomato (whole, powdered or try a bush tomato spice blend)
- Chilli (powdered or flaked, or a chilli spice blend)
- Chilli & Lime
- Cranberry (dried cranberries)
- Garlic (dried garlic flakes or powder, a little parsley is nice too)
- Ginger (finely ground or finely minced crystallised ginger)
- Lemon & Garlic
- Lemon, Garlic & Herbs
- Lemon Myrtle
- Mango
- Onion & Black Pepper
- Onion & Oregano (OUR FAVOURITE)
- Paprika
- Pepper Berry
- Pink Peppercorn
- Rosemary
- Sage & Saltbush
- Thyme
- Tomato & Basil
- Tomato & Oregano
- Wattle Seed, Currants & Pepper
SMOKED CHEDDAR CHEESE SERVING IDEAS:
- Serve at room temperature i.e. remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before serving (keep covered with cloth to prevent surface drying out).
- Use a separate serving utensil for each cheese on a platter.
- Drinks: lager, chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon or shiraz go well with cheddar cheese.
- Serve with green tomato relish.
- Serve with fig jam.
- Serve with quince paste.
- Serve with pickled onions and chutney i.e. Ploughman’s lunch platter.
- Smoked cheddar cheese + one accompaniment (i.e. relish or pickles) + one type of wine (i.e. Cabernet Sauvignon).
- Display mild to strong flavoured cheeses separately, partnered with wine and/or accompaniments with each cheese variety.
- Cheese duo platter: smoked cheddar cheese (with walnuts and dried apricots) + blue cheese (with dried cranberries). Served with smoked honey.
- Cheese trio platter: brie (with red grapes) + blue cheese (with sliced pear) + smoked cheddar (with quince paste). Served with a sliced baguette or crackers.
- Cheese quartet platter: camembert (with plum paste) + gruyere (with smoked almonds) + blue cheese (with walnuts) + smoked cheddar (with fresh dates). Served with sourdough or fruit bread.
- Pre-slice smoked cheddar cheese for snacks/lunchboxes – serve with apple, celery, cucumber, dried apricots, pretzels, freshly sliced tomato and crackers (or dip).
- Antipasto platter – served at the beginning of a meal or event i.e. smoked cheddar cheese (with a few other soft cheeses), dips, crackers, ham/salami, olives, pate, pickles and vegetable sticks.
- After dinner platter – served after mains (before dessert) i.e. smoked cheddar cheese (with a few other soft cheeses) and a sliced baguette or crackers.
- Arancini.
- Bread
- Bread and cheddar cheese pudding.
- Broccoli and smoked cheddar cheese soup.
- Bruschetta.
- Burgers.
- Burritos.
- Cannelloni.
- Carbonara.
- Cheddar bacon muffins.
- Cheddar cheese apple pie.
- Cheese melt.
- Cheese scones.
- Cheese straws.
- Chicken strips.
- Croissants.
- Croquettes.
- Eggs benedict.
- Empanadas.
- Fritters.
- Garlic bread.
- Ham and cheese sandwiches (fresh or toasted).
- Jalapeno poppers.
- Lasagna.
- Leek and smoked cheddar cheese tart.
- Macaroni cheese.
- Mashed potatoes.
- Nachos.
- Omelette.
- Pasta.
- Pasties.
- Pizza.
- Potato bake.
- Potato rosti.
- Quiche.
- Risotto.
- Sandwiches.
- Scrambled eggs.
- Soda bread.
- Soup.
- Stuffed chicken.
- Stuffed eggplant, potatoes or zucchini.
- Tacos.
- Tortillas.
*CHEDDAR CHEESE VARIETIES:
- Can use homemade or store bought cheddar cheese for cold-smoking.
- Mild Cheddar: usually aged for 3-6 months, also known as young cheddars. Mild cheddar has a smooth, pliable texture with a mild, buttery flavour. Suitable for slicing and grating.
- Tasty Cheddar: usually aged for 6-12 months, also known as semi-matured or matured cheddar. Tasty cheddar is more textured (creamier) and has a stronger flavour than mild cheddar.
- Vintage Cheddar: aged for at least 12 months. Vintage cheddar has a rich, sharp cheddar flavour and a dry, crumbly texture.
- Club Cheddar: a blend of cheddars and other matured cheeses. Club cheddars are soft and crumbly yet creamy.
- English-Style Cheese: variations of the cheddar method i.e. leicester, lancashire and gloucester.
LINKS:
- Aussie Smoke Bloke Cold Smoke Generator www.aussiesmokebloke.com
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