I like cheese. A lot.
I once applied for a hosting job and they asked me why I wanted it. I told them cheese. I wanted to be able to afford better cheese. I can't remember if I got the job but I can remember the first time I tried La Casearia Carpenedo Affinatori's Blue 61, an award winning blue cheese infused with fine wine and cranberries.
As opposed to regular blue cheese you find at the back of your fridge that's infused with spilled milk and a random olive.
A tiny sliver of that favourite blue cheese of mine is about $25 so I don't buy it often. One of the perils of being cheap is not owning the things you love. Like expensive blue cheese and Gucci loafers. Except you do own the Gucci loafers because you caved and you can't wear cheese on your feet. Although some people's feet smell like that's exactly what they wear on them.
I think I'm supposed to be talking about feta cheese right now. It's a far more affordable delicious cheese that can be purchased willy nilly without much of a care. My favourite is classic Greek feta which is a combination of sheep and goat's milk.
I also like goats.
But for some reason I rarely make it to the end of the feta block before it goes gross. One smell and I can tell it's gone funky. And that really is the best way to describe the smell of feta that's gone off. Funky.
It took me years to figure out that I could do something about this. To make your feta last for as long as you want all you have to do is store it in a salt water brine. When you buy feta in a bucket actually, it comes in a brine but sometimes it isn't enough to totally cover the cheese, so whether you buy your feta in a plastic wrapper or a tub this method will work for you to keep your feta funk free for ages.
Dissolve 1 Tablespoon of salt in a glass of warm/hot water.
The reason you want your water warm is so the salt dissolves easily.
Let the water cool to room temperature.
While it's cooling, lick the cheese.
Would you like to save this stuff?
We'll email you this post, so you can refer to it later.
You heard me. Lick your cheese.
Then taste your salt water brine. If they taste like they're the same saltiness you're good.
If your brine is way saltier than your cheese, add more water to it.
If your brine is less salty than the cheese, add more salt.
Once the brine mixture isn't hot anymore, pour it over your cheese which you've placed into a container.
Your cheese is now ready to go in the fridge where it can remain for at least the next month.
Unless you prefer to store it all in you belly where it will remain for approximately 12 - 36 hours depending on your constitution.
Have a good weekend everyone, I'll see you back here on Monday!
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Beth
Our city had black trash, green recycle and brown yard/plant waste containers. We also don't have basements or cellars in our area so long term produce storage is difficult. But since we get local fresh produce all year round it's not a bit problem.
Sondra
I used to buy feta at a co-op in Hanover, NH about 40 years ago where they stored LARGE chunks of Feta in super large wooden barrels with lots of salt. These barrels were sitting at room temperature and the clerk would cut off a slab for the customer! Ah, I observed the trick of water and salt and have been doing that for years except I put mine in the refrigerator.
Another tip about keeping large quantities of cheese from spoiling, besides salt and freezing some cheeses, is to wrap hard cheeses like cheddar in a vinegar soaked (could use flavored) paper towel, changing/refreshing the paper towel weekly and place in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. Will extend the life of the cheese by weeks or even months without growth of mold - my cheeses gets eaten before I pass the month mark. Happy cheese eating!
Barbara Balkin
Karen, just wondering--why not just take a delicious 'bite' or even a good mannerly 'slice' of the cheese, rather than licking? That way you get to actually EAT the yummy stuff, not just 'test' it! Just sayin'.
Pati Gulat
Cynthia Jones, you just described ME,from the spontaneous part, right on down to the kindness part ! Yea, we can most CERTAINLY be friends !!!!
Mindy
Hahahahahahhahaha. I almost always lick my cheese.
Pati Gulat
Adore feta ! I used to live in Turkey and we ate the Turkish equivalent allot... I never have to worry about storing it tho cos it never lasts long enough around here !
IRS
Karen, assuming that I don't want to lick my cheese (boy, that sounds rude as a phrase taken out of context) because the other people in the house who also eat it would not be pleased, what would happen if the salinity of the brine was not the same as the cheese? I think a tablespoon of salt in only a glass of water would make a very salty brine - certainly enough to control bacterial growth, which I am assuming is the whole point of the brine. So if the brine is more or less salty than the cheese itself, does it really matter? I suspect that you are pulling our collective legs with this, so you can get your jollies snickering at the thought of all of us cheese lickers.
Karen
Yup. I'm partly amusing myself with the thought of everyone licking their cheese. But the truth is you want the brine to have the same saltiness as the cheese so you don't change the flavour of it. If the brine is too salty for instance it'll make your cheese taste too salty. And if it's too weak, that will weaken the saltiness of the cheese. So it is amusing but also useful. Like Sesame Street. ~ karen!
Nancy Blue Moon
As for blue cheese..they can put anything they want in it but I'm still not eating anybody's yucky moldy cheese..
Karen
Oh Nancy. And I thought we were such good friends. I'm sorry but I now must shun you. (for a predetermined and I think reasonable period of 2 days) ~ karen!
Nancy Blue Moon
well..since you like it so much..I'll go check and see if there is any moldy cheese in the fridge and send it off to you girlfriend...hahaha she said with an evil smile...
Karen
I can't reply because you still have a day and a half of cheese shunning left. ~ karen
Nancy Blue Moon
biotch..lol...
Pati Gulat
ROTFLMBO !!!!!!