Is aged cheddar supposed to look moldy?

LadyM

I know mold is a part of the creation process with some cheeses, but I'd just like some assurance that the big green blotches of mold discoloring the cheddar is normal before I actually eat any. (The package was opaque so I only saw the mold once I opened it.)

If it is normal, am I supposed to cut off the mold or eat it or, uh, what?

Edit for picture:

matt has a problem

You can cut the mold off, but no, there is not supposed to be green mold on the outside of it and you are not supposed to eat the mold. Once cut off though, the rest of the cheese is fine.

bsjezz

green mould like that is not the kind of mould you want on a cheese, not that you want any mould on cheddar. that's the kind of naturally occuring mould that will probably affect the flavour of a lot of the cheese. ie unless you generously cut the surfaces off it, it'll taste crap

NightDragon

Agree'd with the above poster.

It'd also probably be a good idea to repackage the entire piece of cheese in a ziploc-kinda bag after cutting the moldy bits off, too...because if you put it back into its original packaging, it'd probably just get the mold spores all over it again, and make it re-mold faster.

I'm picky as hell though, and if the entire package was brand-new, and like that, I'd probably just get a new one. :P

ceres

That cheese looks no good. I'd just get rid of it.

matt has a problem

Eugh, yeah, now that there's a picture, that cheese has gone extremely bad. Don't even try cutting mold off that, just throw it away.

Deathwing

As someone for whom aged cheddar is practically a main food group, there should definitely not be mold that color on even a multi-year aged block of cheddar. At "best", it would taste something like cheese wrapped in sweaty gym socks, or worse.

Personally, I don't think I would even bother trying to save that block, i'd take it back to wherever it was bought and complain (or just toss it) - it's in godawful condition.

Meatflag

In general, mould on cheese, if intentional, runs throughout the cheese in veins. If unintentional, it forms on the outside first. There are exceptions to this, but whatever condition the cheese is in when you buy it should give you a good indication.

TychoCelchuuu

You'd do better to avoid that cheddar. Any time your cheddar is that moldy you should just switch to Colby. alternatively, go back and get some jack. Or if you're that kind of feller, get some mozzarella. Or if you're in the mood, a brick of gouda. Of course, if it were me I would go for brie. And at some point you oughta try some ricotta. And you can't miss swiss.

If the plan for the cheese was to be some sort of gift, like maybe you were going to pay a leper back, you could go with...

Parmigiano Reggiano.

Willeth

TychoCelchuuu wrote: »

You'd do better to avoid that cheddar. Any time your cheddar is that moldy you should just switch to Colby. alternatively, go back and get some jack. Or if you're that kind of feller, get some mozzarella. Or if you're in the mood, a brick of gouda. Of course, if it were me I would go for brie. And at some point you oughta try some ricotta. And you can't miss swiss.

If the plan for the cheese was to be some sort of gift, like maybe you were going to pay a leper back, you could go with...

Parmigiano Reggiano.

And if none of it is yours, it's nacho cheese

LadyM

Arrrgh, and I just bought it TODAY. Well, I guess I will be digging up the receipt and returning some seriously moldy cheese to the store.

I bought two other blocks of cheese from the store today, also in opaque wrapping, same company, intending to use them as Christmas gifts. Now I'm . . . afraid.

Willeth

LadyM wrote: »

Arrrgh, and I just bought it TODAY. Well, I guess I will be digging up the receipt and returning some seriously moldy cheese to the store.

I bought two other blocks of cheese from the store today, also in opaque wrapping, same company, intending to use them as Christmas gifts. Now I'm . . . afraid.

Judging by the pattern of mould on the cheese, I'm guessing that it wasn't sealed properly. The clean line down the centre suggests that the packaging was open on the back seam. If your other cheeses are sealed you should be fine.

EDIT: Actually that's bollocks, the seam is clearly perpendicular to the mould line in the photo.

Hevach

I'd open the other blocks, too, and see if they all have to go back.

What brand was it? There are cheap brands (which are sometimes priced as expensive brands around holidays when a lot of people who normally buy stuff like Kraft singles are buying fine cheeses to give as gifts) where "aged cheddar" and "old cheddar" are the same thing.

LadyM

The company is Kerrygold, from Ireland. The moldy block was aged 6 - 12 months, one of the sealed cheeses is cheddar aged two years, and the third, uh, I forget the exact type, but some kind of cheese from Blarney Castle I think.

Yeeeah, I think I'm going to open the other ones just to be sure.

kaliyama

LadyM wrote: »

The company is Kerrygold, from Ireland. The moldy block was aged 6 - 12 months, one of the sealed cheeses is cheddar aged two years, and the third, uh, I forget the exact type, but some kind of cheese from Blarney Castle I think.

Yeeeah, I think I'm going to open the other ones just to be sure.

You mean the stuff you buy at safeway off the rack? What city do you live in? I may be able to point you in a better direction for cheese gifting.

MichaelLC

Don't eat it.

Kerrygold is pretty good, so surprised it's moldy. Sometimes it just happens; we get cheese from the distributor or right from the farm that has mold on it.

Zombiemambo

Mold is allowed to love cheese, too.

LadyM

I'm in Seattle. My Christmas budget is very, very small this year, though.

Anyway, the good news--the other two blocks were all right so at least I can have cheese tonight. (Yay!)

MichaelLC

LadyM wrote: »

I'm in Seattle. My Christmas budget is very, very small this year, though.

Anyway, the good news--the other two blocks were all right so at least I can have cheese tonight. (Yay!)

Good to hear.

I can make some recommendations if you'd like to get them more cheese.

LewieP's Mummy

The mould you see is just the spores on the outside, what you don't see is the mycelium - network of roots type of thing - spreading through the cheese block. The only mouldy cheese you should ever eat is stuff that is meant to be mouldy - blue Stilton, blue Brie, dolcelatte type cheeses.

ceres

Since the answer has been given I'm locking this thread so people stop bumping it and I don't have to think about this nasty ass cheese anymore.