What it is:
Cheese that’s shredded into fine strands or powder-like pieces. It melts quickly, spreads easily, and is perfect for finishing dishes.
Common Types of Grated Cheese
Parmesan (Parmigiano-Reggiano) – Sharp, nutty; used on pasta, risotto, salads, soups.
Pecorino Romano – Saltier and sharper than parmesan; great for carbonara and cacio e pepe.
Asiago – Mild to tangy depending on age; good on salads, pastas.
Grana Padano – Similar to parmesan but slightly milder.
Cheddar (grated/shredded) – Used for tacos, nachos, casseroles, mac & cheese.
Mozzarella (shredded) – For pizza, lasagna, baked pasta.
Monterey Jack – Melts well; used in Mexican dishes, casseroles.
Best Uses of Grated Cheese
Pasta toppings
Pizza
Casseroles
Soups
Salads
Baked vegetables
Omelets and scrambled eggs
➤ 2. Sliced Cheese
What it is:
Cheese cut into uniform thin slices. Perfect for sandwiches, burgers, cheese boards, and melting on top of foods.
Common Types of Sliced Cheese
Cheddar – Sharp or mild; used in sandwiches and burgers.
Swiss (Emmental/Jarlsberg) – Nutty; good for sandwiches and melts.
American Cheese – Creamy, melts perfectly on burgers and grilled cheese.
Provolone – Mild, smooth; used in Italian subs and melts.
Havarti – Buttery and soft; great for sandwiches or snacks.
Gouda – Creamy young Gouda works well in sliced form.
Mozzarella (fresh or low-moisture slices) – Perfect for caprese, paninis, pizza toppings.
Best Uses of Sliced Cheese
Sandwiches and subs
Burgers
Grilled cheese
Wraps
Breakfast sandwiches
Cheese platters
🧀 Key Differences at a Glance
Feature
Grated Cheese
Sliced Cheese
Texture
Fine shreds or powder
Thin, flat pieces
Melting Speed
Melts fast
Melts slower & smoother
Best For
Topping, mixing into dishes
Sandwiches, burgers, layering
Flavor Impact
Spreads evenly
More concentrated bite
OTHER SOURCES
Types of Cheese
The development of take away, ready meals and other convenience foods has resulted in a demand for cheese as an ingredient.
This is not a new concept, although in many cases the making of cheese sauces or even Welsh rarebit was considered only as a useful means to use up the 'leftovers'.Good food requires good raw materials and this is as true of cheese used as an ingredient as any food product.
Ash Manor provides such a service in the form of sliced, cubed and grated cheese suited to customer requirements.
Specialised equipment enables this company to produce the desired cheese quality in the form most suited to the recipe. Types of Cheese: popular-cheeses.
Mozzarella – Soft, stretchy; perfect for pizza, caprese, and pasta.
Ricotta – Fluffy, slightly sweet; ideal for lasagna, pastries, and pancakes.
Cottage Cheese – Mild curds; used in salads, breakfasts, and desserts.
Feta – Brined, crumbly, tangy; great for salads, pastries, dips.
Mascarpone – Rich, creamy; key for tiramisu and creamy sauces.
Burrata – Mozzarella shell filled with cream; luxurious for salads and bread.
🍶 Soft-Ripened Cheeses
Creamy centers with a white, edible rind.
Brie – Buttery, mild; delicious on bread or baked.
Camembert – Similar to brie but earthier and stronger.
Triple-Crème Cheeses – Extremely creamy (e.g., St. André).
🧂 Semi-Soft Cheeses
Smooth, flexible, often mild to aromatic.
Havarti – Buttery, mild; melts beautifully.
Muenster – Mild interior with orange rind; great for sandwiches.
Fontina – Nutty, creamy; ideal for melting (fondue, pasta).
Port Salut – Mild, soft, slightly pungent.
🧱 Semi-Hard Cheeses
Firm but sliceable; versatile for cooking and snacking.
Cheddar – Sharp to mild; widely used in sandwiches, burgers, sauces.
Gouda – Mild to caramel-like when aged.
Edam – Smooth, mild; excellent for snacks and sandwiches.
Jarlsberg – Similar to Swiss, slightly sweet and nutty.
🧀 Hard Cheeses
Aged longer; lower moisture, stronger flavor.
Parmesan (Parmigiano-Reggiano) – Salty, nutty; perfect for grating.
Pecorino Romano – Sharper and saltier than parmesan.
Grana Padano – Mild cousin of parmesan.
Manchego – Spanish sheep’s milk cheese; buttery and nutty.
🧀 Blue Cheeses
Cheeses with blue mold veins; bold and tangy.
Gorgonzola – Soft, creamy, sweet to sharp.
Roquefort – Strong, salty, sheep’s milk; a classic French blue.
Stilton – Crumbly, robust; great with fruit and wine.
Danish Blue – Creamy, milder blue.
🔥 Processed & Specialty Cheeses
Meltable or flavored cheeses.
American Cheese – Smooth melt; burgers, sandwiches.
Cream Cheese – Spreadable; used in dips, cheesecake.
Cheese Spreads – Mixed cheeses blended for easy spreading.
⭐ Popular Cheeses by Use
Best for Melting
Mozzarella
Cheddar (young)
Gruyère
Fontina
Monterey Jack
Best for Snacking / Cheese Boards
Brie
Gouda (aged or young)
Manchego
Stilton
Aged Cheddar
Best for Grating
Parmesan
Pecorino Romano
Asiago
Grana Padano
OTHER SOURCES
There are numerous types of cheeses, and we've sought to provide information on five of the more commonly sought or popular cheeses.
Goat Cheese- made from goat milk. It is sometimes called ‘chevre’. Goat cheese comes in a wide array of forms. It can either be made firm or semi-firm in
Cheddar Cheese - originates from an English village called "Cheddar". It is a firm cheese made from cow’s milk and is one of the most popular types of cheese in the world
Blue Cheese - is a common categorization of cow's milk and/or goat's milk cheeses with a blue or blue-green mold. The blue mold in these cheeses is due to mold spores
Swiss Cheese - is the general name for numerous tpyes of cheese that were initially prepared in Switzerland. It is also known as Emmental. Swiss cheese is made from cow’s milk
Feta Cheese - is one of the oldest cheeses in the world, and is said to be a genuine product from Greece.
Gouda is a Dutch cheese traditionally made from cow’s milk, though goat or sheep versions also exist. It is named after the city of Gouda in the Netherlands, where it was historically traded—not necessarily produced. Gouda refers not just to one cheese, but a family of cheeses varying by age, texture, and flavor.
Melting on burgers, grilled cheese, omelets, casseroles
Medium-Aged
Sandwiches, potatoes, quiche, soups
Aged
Cheese boards, grating, pairing with wine/whiskey
Smoked
Charcuterie, mac & cheese, pizza, fondue
🧂 Pairings
Great with:
Fruits: apples, pears, grapes, figs
Nuts: almonds, walnuts
Meats: prosciutto, salami
Bread: rye, sourdough, dark wheat
Condiments: honey, mustard, fig jam, apple butter
Beverage Pairings:
Young: lager, pilsner, wheat beer, chardonnay
Aged: porter, stout, bock, red wine (Cabernet, Merlot), bourbon
🧑🏫 Quick Fun Facts
True Dutch Gouda is protected under PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) when labeled Noord-Hollandse Gouda.
The city of Gouda still hosts a traditional cheese market with people wearing historic costumes.
Young Gouda melts like mozzarella, while aged Gouda behaves more like parmesan.
Small variations in the cheesemaking recipe produce a vast variety of cheese. In the Gouda type of cheese, some of the whey is removed and replaced with water, thus it is known as a washed curd cheese. Once the curd is compacted under this watery whey mixture, it is cut and moulded. There is no texturing as for the Cheddar type of cheese.
The result is a supple, mild cheese with a buttery taste.
Some might say the texture was more of a plastic nature. It is a different texture to the traditional cheese of the UK and typical of that found on the Continent of Europe. The cheese matures with a range of flavours as complex as any, especially if it is made from raw organic milk.The starter cultures used for this type of cheese often contain bacteria that produce gas.
This collects in the curd and cheese as it matures, producing small holes in the finished product. Few of these cheese are wrapped. The rind is left to form naturally but they are frequently cleaned and waxed before being sold to the retailer or consumer.
The exact origin is unknown, but cheese is believed to have emerged shortly after humans began domesticating milk-producing animals such as sheep and goats around the Fertile Crescent (modern Middle East). The earliest cheese was likely created accidentally when animal-skin containers carried milk, and natural enzymes—especially rennet from animal stomachs—caused it to curdle.
These early cheeses were simple, sour, and salty, resembling yogurt or soft curds, useful for preserving milk in hot climates.
🏛 Developments in Early Civilizations
Mesopotamia
Ancient Sumerian tablets and artwork from around 3000 BCE depict cheese-making.
Early records mention priests, temples, and royalty consuming cheese.
Ancient Egypt
Tomb murals show cheese production.
Cheese found in Egyptian tombs suggests salted, crumbly, white cheese—similar to feta.
Ancient Greece
Greek mythology credits the shepherd Aristaeus with teaching cheese-making.
Homer’s Odyssey describes Cyclops Polyphemus curing cheeses in caves.
Ancient Rome
Rome refined cheese-making techniques, developing pressing, salting, aging, and flavoring with herbs.
Roman soldiers helped spread cheese knowledge across Europe.
🏰 Middle Ages (5th–15th Century CE)
After the fall of Rome, monasteries became centers of agricultural and culinary innovation. Monks perfected cheese aging (“affinage”) and created many famous European cheeses, including:
Roquefort (France)
Parmesan (Italy)
Gouda and Edam (Netherlands)
Cheddar (England)
Gruyère (Switzerland)
Cheese evolved from an everyday food to a regional specialty with controlled aging caves, improved hygiene, and increasingly diverse textures and flavors.
🌍 Renaissance to Industrial Age (16th–19th Century)
European exploration spread cheese to the Americas and beyond. Cheese became part of global diets, adapted to local livestock and climate.
The Industrial Revolution brought:
Mechanized production (late 1800s)
Standardized recipes and sanitation
First cheese factory (Wisconsin, USA, 1850s)
Development of commercial rennet and cultures
This era shifted cheese from artisanal household product to a mass-produced food.
🧪 20th Century Innovations
Scientific food technology introduced:
Pasteurization
Controlled starter cultures
Refrigeration and large-scale cold storage
Processed cheese (notably patented by James Kraft in 1916)
Cheese production diversified dramatically, blending tradition with industry.
🌎 Cheese in Modern Times
Today, thousands of cheese varieties exist, and many countries have strong cheese identities:
France: Brie, Camembert, Roquefort
Italy: Parmesan, Mozzarella, Gorgonzola
Netherlands: Gouda, Edam
United Kingdom: Cheddar, Stilton
Switzerland: Emmental, Gruyère
United States: Colby, Monterey Jack, mass-market processed cheeses
Trends such as artisanal, raw-milk, farmstead, and small-batch cheeses have resurged, blending ancient techniques with modern science.
📋 Timeline Summary
Era
Key Development
8000–5000 BCE
First accidental curdling & milk preservation
3000–1000 BCE
Cheese documented in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece
100 BCE–500 CE
Refinement & spread through Roman Empire
500–1500 CE
Monasteries create iconic aged cheeses
1600–1900 CE
International spread & first factories
1900s–today
Pasteurization, processed cheese, global industry
Cheese is one of the most assorted and delicate foods in the world. The taste of cheese can be mild, buttery, spicy, rich, creamy, sharp, salty or subtle. Its texture can be firm, flaky or so soft that it needs to be eaten with a spoon. The aroma can be mild to intense. Cheese can serve as the perfect escort for wines, an excellently pleasing finish to a gourmet meal.
Cheese appeared for the first time in approximately 7000 B.C., which was about the time persons, began to raise farm animals. Legend has it that a desert nomad was carrying milk in a pouch made from a sheep’s stomach. Rennet or rennin which is a coagulating enzyme was formed in the lining of the pouch. Combined with the sun’s heat it caused the milk to separate into solid white lumps and a pale watery liquid.
Inquisitive, and no doubt starving, the nomad drank the whey and tasted the curd. The nomad found the whey drinkable and the curds edible.It is said that cheese was first manufactured in the Middle East. The most primitive type of cheese was a kind of sour milk. This type of milk came into being when it was found out that domesticated animals could be milked.
Cheese making was done with ability and knowledge and reached an elevated standard. By then the ripening process had been developed and several treatments and conditions in regards to storage resulted in different flavours, textures, aroma and colours, which are the main characteristics in types of cheeses. In the middle ages, monks became trendsetters and developers and it is to them we should be obligated to for many of the classic assortment of cheese on the market today. During the Renaissance era cheese went through a decrease in fame. It was said to be unhealthy, but reclaimed favour by the 19th century, the era that saw the beginning of the progress from farm to factory production.
According to Greek Mythology what perhaps happened is one day a shepherd realized that milk curdled when placed with certain herbs or the juice of specific fruits. This curdled milk tasted more enticing than ordinary milk and lasted longer. The shepherd perfected his cheese making skills as cheese became the first man-made food. As cheese is just the concentrated milk, it made sense to ancient man that the excellence of the milk determined the quality of the cheese.
So man began to move his animals to the fertile meadows full of wild herbs, flowers and grasses. The early days of cheese making were not restricted to cows, goats and sheep. Cheese was made from mares and donkeys also.
It is said that the Greeks established the advance of cheese making procedures from basic to newer methods. However, Romans were accountable for coaching the rest of the world in how to make cheese. Nutrition, maturing, temperatures and salting of cheese are written in Roman texts. Cheese today is one of the most interesting, diverse, wholesome and delicious foods known to man. Thanks to Romans, Greeks and others before them. Types of cheese.. different-types-of-cheese.
