The equivalent of 37,268 elephants is produced each year in cheese in Quebec
For the curious, an elephant weighs an average of 6 tons ... So 223 608 000 kg of cheese are produced each year in Quebec! Cheese is among the most adored food of Quebecers. In fact, the annual average cheese consumption of a Quebec family is 28.7 kg. With hundreds of varieties, cheese production in Quebec greatly rolls the Quebec economy with its quality products. Despite our love of this delicious product, are we all connoisseurs? Let us help you go further with the main categories of cheese and the characteristics that differentiate them.
Soft cheese
- • Interior not pressed or cooked
- • Creamy, smooth and melting texture
- • Humidity level between 50% and 60%
- • Between 20% and 36% fat
- • Ideal with fresh grapes, in a sandwich or tasting
- • 2 subcategories
Soft cheese with a bloomy rind
- • Area is seeded with mushroom to create the "bloomed" crust
- • Made by letting curdled milk flow into molds
- • Ripened for about 1 month
- • More uniform color and shape as a result of ripening
- • E.g. Our Bries and our Camemberts
Soft cheese with washed rind
- • Made by letting the milk curdle, then cut it and mold it
- • More compact but still soft
- • Washed and brushed with brine and sometimes a little alcohol
- • Ripened for two to four months
- • Mixed crust cheese is washed at the beginning of ripening
- • E.g. The Emperor and the Champlain
Semi-soft cheese
- • Made by mechanically pressing the curd
- • Firmer and more compact than soft cheese
- • Humidity level from 45% to 50%
- • Ideal for fondue, pasta, quiche or pizza
- • 2 categories of semi-soft cheese
Interior-ripened
- • Divided and then drained, thanks to high mechanical pressure
- • Heated to reduce humidity
- • Refined in the mass: matured from the center to the border
- • Crust sometimes washed or covered with a protective film of plastic or paraffin
- • E.g. The Cabouron
Surface-ripened
- • Mechanically pressed
- • Matured on the surface: matured from the outside to the center
- • Refined in a cold room where the cheese is flipped and washed several times with a salt water solution
- • E.g. Oka
Firm cheese
- • Generally without rind
- • Possessing a soft and elastic texture
- • Drained and pressed to be cooked or semi-cooked
- • Humidity level between 35% and 45%
- • Refined in the mass for three to six months
- • Sometimes not refined (e.g. fresh cheddar, curd cheese.)
- • Ideal with fruit or nuts, bread, pasta, omelettes and baked dishes
Blue-veined
- • Manufacturing process is similar to soft or semi-firm pasta
- • Mushrooms are added to curdled milk
- • Refining for several months in a humid environment
- • The wheels are pierced with long needles to facilitate the circulation of air, thus the development of mold veins
- • Ideal with meat, pasta or cooked vegetables
- • Incorporates well with sauces and dips
Fresh cheese
- • Made by letting the milk curdle in the open air
- • Humidity level higher than 60%
- • Liquid, creamy or silky texture
- • Ideal on crackers, sandwiches or salad
- • E.g. Fresh cheddar or ricotta
For more information on cheese, visit Our Cheeses.
* Content from the Our cheeses website.