We’ve all struggled with chopping by way of a fragile wedge of soft-ripened cheese like Brie or a squishy ball of mozzarella. They’re gooey and scrumptious however generally is a catastrophe in your charcuterie board. Each cheesemonger we spoke to on the matter stated that it’s a typical pitfall to take a cheese cleaver or perhaps a paring knife to those mushy cheeses, however these blades will most actually lead to a large number. The gooey bits inevitably ooze out and find yourself on the board as a substitute of your crackers.
Whereas the cheese will nonetheless style simply as delicious, it’ll be messier to eat and fewer presentable. On the finish of the day, Jessica Sennett, cheese educator and founding father of Cheese Grotto, says that “working in opposition to the feel to acquire an ideal slice is a idiot’s errand.” If you wish to deal with your cheese proper and maintain your cheese plates wanting neat and appetizing all through a celebration, skilled cheesemongers suggest utilizing wire slicers or skeleton cheese knives, that are specifically designed to cleanly lower mushy cheeses.
Cheesemonger-Advisable Instruments for Slicing Delicate Cheeses
Zyliss Cheese Knife
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Shannon Bonilla, American Cheese Society licensed cheese skilled at Wisconsin Cheese, says that “mushy cheeses naturally persist with your utensils” as a result of they’ve extra moisture. “A cheese cleaver with a big blade floor can be much less excellent,” she warns, and recommends utilizing a knife with holes, which has much less floor space for mushy cheeses to stay to. This Zyliss cheese knife is simply $10 and comes with its personal blade cowl to maintain it secure in your drawer. She particularly likes that it has a “pronged tip to assist with serving.”
Artenostro French Cheese Knife, Set of two
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In order for you a extra traditional look to the deal with, this set of dinner party-worthy cheese knives comes beneficial by Sennett. The set contains one knife with a inexperienced deal with and one with a black deal with. The handles are additionally riveted for additional sturdiness and the offset blade makes it simpler to glide by way of a fragile cheese.
Fox Run Marble Cheese Slicer
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As mild as it’s possible you’ll be with a skeleton knife, some cheeses are just too delicate for knives. For “ultra-delicate cheeses that may get squished with a knife,” Bonilla suggests utilizing this cheese slicer constructed right into a marble slab. It makes use of a taut wire to softly and cleanly slice mushy cheeses. She says it’s a “nice method to make cuts with out crushing your treasured ball of mozzarella.”
Stainless Metal Cheese Slicer with Wire Cheese Cutter, 4-Pack
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These handheld wire slicers take up barely any area. The 4-pack has two slicers with Y-shaped handles and two with U-shaped handles. Sennett emphasizes that “minimal floor space” is vital when slicing mushy cheeses, including that these wire slicers introduce the least quantity of floor space potential. Plus, they’re solely $2.75 apiece, dishwasher-safe, and might be tucked away right into a drawer if you’re not utilizing them.
Maybe one of the best ways to slice any sort of cheese is whichever manner will get it to your mouth quickest. However for those who’re one to maintain a tidy charcuterie board, cheesemongers suggest grabbing a skeleton knife or cheese slicer.