Freezing food is a way to make it last longer and avoid waste, but can you freeze cheese?
With food inflation still high, families are trying everything they can to save money on food. This could be anything from swapping to a cheaper supermarket, making sure you always take your supermarket loyalty card shopping with you, or opting for frozen food instead of fresh.
With the average price of a food shop staple like cheddar cheese at its highest level ever (£9.70 per kilogram in May 2023), according to the Office of National Statistics, it’s never been more important to make sure you’re getting the most out of the cheese you buy.
However, we throw away 6.6 million tonnes of food a year in the UK and, according to sustainability charity WRAP, almost 75% of that is food we could have eaten. At a time when food prices are still so high, avoiding food wastage is a great way to make the most of your food shop. And a key part of avoid food waste is to make use of your freezer.
Can you freeze cheese?
Whether you can freeze cheese depends on the type of cheese you have and how you plan on using it, as some cheeses freeze better than others.
Goodto.com’s Food Editor Jessica Dady explains: “Hard cheeses and semi-hard cheeses are preferable when it comes to freezing, particularly Cheddar, Emmental, and Parmesan. Keep in mind though that freezing cheese can alter its texture so it won't be as 'perfect' as when you first bought it, but it will still do the job of making your food flavoursome.”
With the risk of texture change, you might prefer to only freeze cheese that you plan to use in cooking rather than eating in its natural state.
Jessica adds: “When it comes to freezing cheese it's best to grate it before storing it in an airtight freezer-safe container or freezer bag. Grating the cheese means it will take up less room in your freezer and is much easier and quicker to defrost than a large block. It also ensures less waste as you can grab a handful to defrost at a time, instead of large chunks that you might not use fully."
I tried freezing grated cheddar cheese for the first time, when I was trying out this mum’s cheese hack, and found it tasted exactly the same as freshly grated cheese when it was defrosted. I first tried it using these food bags from Ikea. The grey bag was going in the fridge, and the white bag was to test it out in the freezer. I laid it flat, distributing the grated cheese in a thin layer rather than a dense clump, which meant it defrosted really quickly. I’ve since tried it with a reusable freezer bag, like this from Amazon, and it worked just as well.
You can freeze unopened cream cheese in its original container too - although you may notice it separates a little when it’s defrosted. But giving it a quick stir should bring it back together.
Food editor Jessica Dady adds: “Cheese can be kept in the freezer for two to three months. It can easily be defrosted overnight in the fridge but if you plan on cooking with it, you don't necessarily need to thaw it and can just add it to your chosen dish before popping into the oven.”
Cheeses to avoid freezing
It’s usually best to avoid freezing cheese with a high water content, like ricotta or cottage cheese, if you want to keep them tasting their best. Similarly, softer cheeses like Brie and Camembert are best kept in the fridge and eaten fresh rather than frozen. According to President Cheese, it’s all because of ice crystals that form when food is frozen. It says: “When cheese is placed in the freezer, the moisture inside starts to form ice crystals. As this moisture expands and contracts, it breaks down the molecular structure of cheese. This process can hurt both texture and taste, causing cheese to become crumbly and lose its flavour."
If you want to make more use of your freezer to prevent food waste, check out our ultimate guide to foods you didn't know you could freeze, as well as the everyday foods you can't freeze.
