Best way to store Brie

[anonymous-user]

My Girlfriends mum has just brought me back a lovely wheel of Brie from France, does anybody have any tips on storing it and how long it will last. It's still in the orignal waxy packing.

Any tips other than give it here I'll eat for you, most appreciated!

[A911DOM]

Take off what you think you'll use now and freeze the rest!

[Frankeh]

I thought freezing cheese fks it up?

[mike325112]

Frankeh said:

I thought freezing cheese fks it up?

Yes it does big time. You will be left with a big wheel of something with the consistency of chalk...

[A911DOM]

Maybe it doesnt work so well on the softies, but Ive not had a problem with it in the past?

[fastfreddy]

mike325112 said:

Frankeh said:

I thought freezing cheese fks it up?

Yes it does big time. You will be left with a big wheel of something with the consistency of chalk...

Not strictly true. Depends on the type of cheese. I've had some Camembert we bought before Christmas out of the freezer this week and once it's defrosted and left to come up to room temperature, it is very difficult to tell apart from one bought fresh.

If I had a large cheese (that sounds a bit rude) I'd still prefer to freeze it for later than risk throwing it out because I couldn't eat it all now.

[Penny-lope]

In your belly

[Frankeh]

if it's a really large wheel of cheese, could you not cut it up into smaller sizes and rewax it?
Melt some non toxic wax (I'm thinking crayons) and dip it in quickly.

This is just my inner child speaking. I have no idea if that will work but it's an excuse to melt some crayons.

[tog]

Freezing it works fine. It won't continue to ripen once defrosted though, so let it get how you like it, then cut into suitably sized pieces and freeze.

[fastfreddy]

Frankeh said:

if it's a really large wheel of cheese, could you not cut it up into smaller sizes and rewax it?
Melt some non toxic wax (I'm thinking crayons) and dip it in quickly.

This is just my inner child speaking. I have no idea if that will work but it's an excuse to melt some crayons.

If you used different colours you could create lots of multi-coloured cheese wedges and then use them to play giant Mousetrap!

[Frankeh]

tog said:

Freezing it works fine. It won't continue to ripen once defrosted though, so let it get how you like it, then cut into suitably sized pieces and freeze.

some website said:

Soft-ripened cheeses, she says, such as Brie and Camembert, should not be frozen "unless absolutely necessary," whatever that means. Semi-soft cheeses, like Monterey Jack, Munster, Havarti, and Gorgonzola, tend to become crumbly after freezing. And hard aged cheeses, such as Cheddar, Colby, Gruyère, Asiago, and Manchego, will simply benefit from continuing their aging process in your refrigerator.

Edit:YES to the above poster. That's the ticket.

Edited by Frankeh on Friday 22 January 12:15

[Shaw Tarse]

Store at room temp.
How long will it last?
With the family & Port a few hours

[tog]

Frankeh said:

tog said:

Freezing it works fine. It won't continue to ripen once defrosted though, so let it get how you like it, then cut into suitably sized pieces and freeze.

some website said:

Soft-ripened cheeses, she says, such as Brie and Camembert, should not be frozen "unless absolutely necessary," whatever that means. Semi-soft cheeses, like Monterey Jack, Munster, Havarti, and Gorgonzola, tend to become crumbly after freezing. And hard aged cheeses, such as Cheddar, Colby, Gruyère, Asiago, and Manchego, will simply benefit from continuing their aging process in your refrigerator.

Edit:YES to the above poster. That's the ticket.

Edited by Frankeh on Friday 22 January 12:15

That quote seems to be widely dispersed all over the web, but it is not backed up with my personal experience. As the americans would say however, your mileage may vary. However, if there's too much of it for you to eat, and you're going to chuck it otherwise, it must be worth at least trying

[Dupont666]

I would say eat it a bit at a time and when the smell gets too great in the fridge, then think about storing it in the freezer, in my experience I have had no issues with frozen cheeses that have been defrosted properly and slowly... and thats all types not just the hard cheese