The transformation of milk into a more stable, concentrated food by separating curds from whey, typically with rennet or an acid, then salting, pressing, aging or otherwise finishing the curd. Perforated pottery vessels roughly 7,000 years old, recovered in Kuyavia, Poland, and shown by lipid residue analysis to have strained dairy fat, provide the earliest direct evidence of cheesemaking, with comparable evidence of Mediterranean cheese production found dating to around 7,200 years ago. The technique subsequently diversified into thousands of regional cheeses, from the fresh mozzarella that tops Italian pizza to the aged wheels of French and other European traditions.
Facts
Origin Period, From (Year) Origin RegionThe Kuyavia region of Poland, where perforated pottery sieves used to strain curds from whey carry milk fat residues, the earliest direct archaeological evidence of cheesemaking; cheese production is also depicted in Sumerian temple reliefs by the fourth millennium BCE. 1 Tradition Kind Connections
Expressed By
Source Abondance cheese (Wikipedia)
Source Beaufort cheese (Wikipedia)
Source Bhutanese Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Source British Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Source Brocciu (Wikipedia)
Source Castelmagno cheese (Wikipedia)
Source Comté cheese (Wikipedia)
Source Dutch Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Source Ema datshi (Wikipedia)
Source French cuisine (Wikipedia)
Source Kefalograviera (Wikipedia)
Source Khachapuri (Wikipedia)
Source Limburger (Wikipedia)
Source Morbier cheese (Wikipedia)
Source Cheese.com: Naboulsi
Source Ostkaka (Wikipedia)
Source Pecorino (Wikipedia)
Source CooksInfo: Pecorino Sardo
Source The Oxford Companion to FoodAlan Davidson
Source Provoleta (Wikipedia)
Source Romanian Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Source Slovak Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Source Swiss Cuisine (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
Originated In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.
Source On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the KitchenHarold McGeetier 1
Sources
1. Earliest Evidence for Cheese Making in the Sixth Millennium BC in Northern Europe (Nature)
NatureAbstractQuote, Abstract
Here we apply the same approach to investigate the function of sieves/strainer vessels, providing direct chemical evidence for their use in milk processing.
2. Cheesemaking (Wikipedia)
LeadQuote, Lead
like many other food preservation processes, allows the nutritional and economic value of a food material
On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen
Harold McGee, Scribner, 2004technique discussion: cheese and fermented dairy
The Oxford Companion to Food
Alan Davidson, Oxford University Press, 2014Expressed By: Pizza Margherita, s.v. Mozzarella
Khachapuri (Wikipedia)
WikipediaExpressed By: Khachapuri, section: Imeretian khachapuriQuote, Expressed By: Khachapuri, section: Imeretian khachapuri
The most popular form, made with a yeast dough filled with white Imeretian salted cheese.
Pecorino (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Pecorino, OverviewQuote, Expressed By: Pecorino, Overview
Ancient Roman authors wrote about this cheese and its production technique.
Comté cheese (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Comté cheese, HistoryQuote, Expressed By: Comté cheese, History
Comté is based on artisanal techniques developed in the Jura Mountains 1,000 years ago.
Limburger (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Limburger, ProductionQuote, Expressed By: Limburger, Production
The aging process takes place in ripening cellars of the Herve countryside, sometimes cut into its chalky rock.
Morbier cheese (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Morbier cheese, PreparationQuote, Expressed By: Morbier cheese, Preparation
When making Comté, cheesemakers would end the day with leftover curd that was not enough for an entire cheese.
Beaufort cheese (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Beaufort cheese, Preparation and productionQuote, Expressed By: Beaufort cheese, Preparation and production
To make Beaufort, the milk is first heated, acidified, and coagulated.
CooksInfo: Pecorino Sardo
Expressed By: Pecorino sardo, Making paragraphQuote, Expressed By: Pecorino sardo, Making paragraph
To make it, raw milk is curdled with calf’s rennet, then moulded and salted.
Cheese.com: Naboulsi
Expressed By: Nabulsi cheese, Description, first paragraph [expresses-tradition]Quote, Expressed By: Nabulsi cheese, Description, first paragraph [expresses-tradition]
is a traditional Palestinian cheese that has been produced for centuries
Provoleta (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Provoleta, LeadQuote, Expressed By: Provoleta, Lead
Argentine pulled-curd provolone cheese
Brocciu (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Brocciu, LeadQuote, Expressed By: Brocciu, Lead
produced from a combination of milk and whey
Kefalograviera (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Kefalograviera, Lead [expresses-tradition]Quote, Expressed By: Kefalograviera, Lead [expresses-tradition]
is a hard table cheese produced traditionally from sheep's milk
Abondance cheese (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Abondance cheese, ProductionQuote, Expressed By: Abondance cheese, Production
Abondance cheese can be either artisanal or farm-made
Castelmagno cheese (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Castelmagno cheese, Historical notesQuote, Expressed By: Castelmagno cheese, Historical notes
Castelmagno is a cheese which has been made for many centuries
Dutch Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Dutch Cuisine, Wikipedia article textQuote, Expressed By: Dutch Cuisine, Wikipedia article text
Dutch butter and cheese continued to be famous products for centuries.
Swiss Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Swiss Cuisine, Wikipedia article textQuote, Expressed By: Swiss Cuisine, Wikipedia article text
Switzerland is particularly renowned for its wide variety of cheeses and cured meats, which reflect the country’s regional traditions.
French cuisine (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: French Cuisine, Article textQuote, Expressed By: French Cuisine, Article text
Cheese and wine are a major part of the cuisine.
British Cuisine (Wikipedia)
WikipediaExpressed By: British Cuisine, Article textQuote, Expressed By: British Cuisine, Article text
British cuisine also includes a large variety of cheeses, beers, and ciders.
Romanian Cuisine (Wikipedia)
WikipediaExpressed By: Romanian Cuisine, Article textQuote, Expressed By: Romanian Cuisine, Article text
Cheese has been a part of Romanian cuisine since the beginning of its history.
Ema datshi (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Ema datshi, Lead paragraphQuote, Expressed By: Ema datshi, Lead paragraph
The cheese used in ema datshi is called datshi; it is usually made at home from the curd of cow's or yak's milk.
Ostkaka (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Ostkaka, Lead paragraphQuote, Expressed By: Ostkaka, Lead paragraph
Ostkaka is traditionally made with raw milk and cheese rennet.
Slovak Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Slovak Cuisine, Lead paragraphQuote, Expressed By: Slovak Cuisine, Lead paragraph
Milk was processed into a wide range of products such as butter, cream, sour cream, buttermilk, and various types of cheese etc.
Bhutanese Cuisine (Wikipedia)
Expressed By: Bhutanese Cuisine, Article textQuote, Expressed By: Bhutanese Cuisine, Article text
Dairy foods, particularly butter and cheese from yaks and cows, are also popular, and most milk is turned into butter and cheese.
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