What determines how well cheese melts
I have had my fair share of eating cheese and experimenting with them. Sometimes they come out heavenly while other times, it turn out to be a huge flop. Usually when it flops, it's because I am expecting the cheese to melt and it doesn't.
So my question is, what properties of cheese determines how well the cheese melts? This way I can determine in the future whether a cheese I am about to experiment with is meltable. Are there physical indicators that I can see and feel that can help me determine a cheese's meltability?
Is there a special way to increase how well cheese melts? I have noticed that some cheese melt slightly on the outside but the inside turn rubbery and doesn't melt.
Best Answer
Three factors influence how well cheese melts:
The amount of moisture,
The amount of fat,
How it was set.
The meltiest cheeses have a lot of moisture and fat and were set with rennet and not acid. Both moisture and fat leave space between the casein proteins that allows them to move. Otherwise they are packed together and don't flow as well.
Aged cheeses have lost more of their moisture to evaporation. This means that they have to been heated to a much higher temperature before they will melt.
To quote Harold Mcgee: "Melting behavior is largely determined by water content. Low-moisture hard cheeses require more heat to melt because their protein molecules are more concentrated and so more intimately bonded to each other." (On food and Cooking, 64).
Aged cheeses with a high fat content will often leak some fat when they finally do melt- making an oily mess. J. Kenji Lopez-Alt had some good suggestions for dealing with this problem.
Acid set cheeses, such as Indian paneer and latin Queso Blanco, don't melt much when heated dry because the acid denatures the casein in such a way as to cause it to bind more tightly.(although they will dissolve into hot liquids sometimes.)
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Quick Answer about "What determines how well cheese melts"
The age of a cheese also affects how it melts. During aging, the casein molecules get attacked by ripening enzymes, which break the casein into small pieces. When an aged cheese like Cheddar melts, these little pieces of casein flow without tangling, and the cheese melts smoothly.What makes some cheese melt better than others?
Younger cheeses tend to melt more easily than older ones, so a younger cheddar will melt much better than an aged one. Older cheeses like aged cheddar are actually poor melters and can become grainy or oily when melted. How it's made: Certain cheeses will also have a harder time melting based on how they are made.Why do certain cheese not melt?
The acidity of a cheese will also have an impact on how well it melts. Cheeses with a neutral acidity, meaning 7.0 on the pH scale or a little lower, don't tend to melt. "It's the same thing with a really, really low pH cheese, so very high acid," explains Montgomery, giving feta cheese and cottage cheese as examples.Which cheese melts easily?
Cheddar. Shredded cheddar is here for all your oozy dairy needs. Whether you're topping some chorizo chili or making a classic grilled cheese, shredded cheddar melts extremely well. It also brings that slightly sharp quality to the table to keep things interesting.How do you make perfect melted cheese?
Here's the how to melt cheese the slow and steady way: use low heat\u2014introduce a double-boiler, even\u2014to avoid overcooking. If you want to speed up the melting a little more, try grating the cheese instead of cranking the temperature\u2014the thin and uniform shape will melt faster and more evenly. Add Booze!How you've been melting cheese WRONG your entire life - BBC
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Answer 2
Acidity level determines whether it will melt. Has nothing to do with moisture levels, fat etc. If your cheese wont melt it is either a very low acid fresh type cheese, or something went horribly wrong when it was made (cheddar for example, should always melt...if it doesnt, then something is wrong with the cheese when it was made).
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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