Many cannot imagine their breakfast without cheese. This is a product obtained as a result of milk processing. You can’t say exactly when cheese making appeared. However, after domestication of animals, the ability to use fermented milk sourdough to create various prescription mixtures gained wide scope. The assortment of cheeses is very diverse and deserves consideration.
Definition
Cheese is a product obtained by assuming an acidic or thermoacidic process, resulting in the separation of whey from a clot. In this case, different starter cultures and technologies can be used.
Thanks to coagulation enzymes, coagulation of milk proteins is achieved and a working mass is formed. It is formed, pressed, salted, sometimes auxiliary components are added or they wait for a certain maturity period.
Below is a sample description of the assortment of cheeses of domestic and other manufacturers.
Story
Cheesemaking began to develop in our country in 1866. Despite the laborious technological processes of that time, by the beginning of the 20th century there was a certain assortment of goods, including about 100 varieties of sour-milk products.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the amount of cheese production in our country fell sharply. However, many people already fell in love with him and became familiar in the general diet. Due to the current situation, a large share of imports began to be delivered to Russia. In recent years, the volume of domestic products has increased significantly.
Product classification
Due to the wide variety of cheeses, a need arose for their classification. They are mainly divided according to merchandising and technological characteristics.
Consider the main classification and assortment of cheeses.
In particular, they are distinguished by the type of main raw material, chemical composition indicators, milk coagulation technology, microflora used and other principles of technological processes.
Given the type of raw material, they are natural and processed. The first is obtained from whole milk, the second - from ready-made natural cheeses. Recycling the mass, they use new technologies and different fillers.
The basis of the 3 main classes of cheeses is the way they are produced. Depending on this, they are divided into rennet, sour-milk and processed (processed).
Each class branches into a subclass, type, and group.
For example, the assortment of rennet hard cheeses includes a fairly wide group of products. These are products obtained at a high temperature (63%) of the second heating by pressing. They have a long ripening period (6 months), since the fermentation process in them is slow. Such cheeses contain little moisture, they are characterized by large holes and a sweetish taste.
Sour-milk products, compressed at a low temperature, have a somewhat brittle, plastic consistency, a small pattern, with oval or round "eyes" and a sour sharp taste.
According to merchandising characteristics, cheeses are divided into the following groups: soft, semi-solid, hard, brine, processed. By chemical composition and organoleptic characteristics, varieties are determined. When merchandising assessment takes into account the shelf life, appearance and structure of the product.
General analysis
The state of the market selling dairy products generally depends on the availability of domestic and imported cheeses in aggregate. And this is understandable: after all, such a delicacy benefits health and is indispensable in the manufacture of classic sandwiches. Carrying out even a brief analysis of the assortment of cheeses, it can be noted that the products filling the store shelves are able to satisfy every taste of the buyer.
In addition to the classic varieties, exotic types of cheeses appeared, with an unusual composition. They are distinguished by a soft plastic texture with the addition of nuts and candied fruits from mango, melon and apricots.
Cream cheese with blue mold containing natural additives from dried ham, salmon, shrimp and smoked venison became a novelty for the Russian population. Additional components in a recipe of this kind account for about 15% of the total composition. Exquisite mass is available in glass cups.
Consumer demand is goods from buffalo and goat milk. White cheeses such as suluguni, mozzarella, feta cheese and feta became popular. Recently, a representative from Denmark appeared with the content of vegetable oil - danvaite (belonging to the feta variety).
On the shelves you can find Norwegian products, the innovation of which is gate-cheese with a sweet-sour taste.
There is a large selection of baby food, with the addition of calcium and other plant components.
The nutritional value
The main advantage of cheese is its high calorie content and composition. First of all, its quality is estimated by the amount of protein, which should be at least 25%. An important factor is the presence of fat (28%), and in easily digestible form. It is expected that in the prescription mixture, amino acids, mineral salts, trace elements, fatty acids, vitamins, carbonyl compounds, various organic acids and macroelements will be sufficiently present.
Depending on the proportion of a certain component contained in the product, an assortment of cheeses is formed. Auxiliary ingredients not only alter the structure, but also add special zest to gourmet food.
Solid rennet
This class includes 5 groups of cheeses, 4 of them are natural and 1 is processed. The most extensive subclass of rennet are hard cheeses, the assortment of which we now recognize. The process of their development was mentioned above.
Cheese with a dense consistency is an excellent option for the dining table, as well as for the usual sandwiches for breakfast. Here they are:
- Soviet;
- Swiss;
- Moscow;
- Altaic;
- Voronezh;
- Kuban;
- Carpathian.
Plastic, tender with a sour taste: Uglich, Kostroma, Yaroslavl, steppe. They are characterized by a peculiar hollow pattern and increased humidity.
Fat-free cheeses belong to the same group: Baltic, Estonian, Minsk, Lithuanian, Poshekhonsky. And imported: martetto, oka, cartano, fimbo, eddam, maribo. Cheeses perfectly complement vegetable dishes and all kinds of salads for breakfast.
Semi-solid
Semi-solid products are produced according to the combined technology: they are pressed according to the type of hard cheeses and ripen with the presence of natural mucus localized on the surface of the head. Subsequently, a crust forms on it. Cheeses have an ammonia flavor, delicate structure with characteristic voids. The shelf life is 30 days.
The assortment of cheeses cannot be called small. The group of products with a semi-solid consistency includes: Kaunas, piquant, Latvian, Klaipeda, Nemunas. And also imported: brik, hovati, tilsit, buckstein.
Soft rennet cheeses
Cheeses with a soft texture are tender and contain an increased amount of moisture. They differ from solid ones by increased accumulation of lactic acid, as a result of activation of the technological process. Some of them are obtained by ripening, with a gradual deepening. They are not large in size and have no crust. A characteristic feature is ammonia aftertaste and smell. The raw material for production is pasteurized milk, in combination with bacterial starter cultures, microflora of cheese mucus and mold.
Assortment of soft cheeses, subgroups:
- They are produced with the participation of microflora of natural mucus and lactic acid bacteria. These include: Pyatigorsk, Kalininsky, Dorozhniy, Dorogobuzh.
- The final ripening is achieved thanks to white mold, cheese mucus and bacteria. Taste signs - acute, mushroom and ammonia flavor. On the shelves you can find Smolensky cheese, with an interesting configuration in the form of a cylinder wrapped in foil material. It has a rich yellow color, sour taste and its characteristic ammonia odor.
- A certain variety of goods obtained with the addition of bacteria and white mold, but without the participation of mucus. On the food shelves, this subgroup is represented by cheese called "Camber", characterized by a pronounced sour-milk taste. It is packaged in cardboard packaging, which indicates the necessary identification data. Humidity (50%) and fat content (60%) are quite high.
- To give cheeses a peppery, pungent taste, blue or greenish mold is used in their production. This manufacturing method is characterized by a salty taste, a specific smell and oiliness. The fruit of this type of cheese making is Roquefort cheese.
- The last variety of this subgroup are products obtained without aging the ripening stage. They can be found under the following trademarks: "Adygea", "Home", "Amateur".
Brine
For the production of cheese, all types of domestic animal milk are used - goat, sheep, cow and buffalo. A milk clot is placed in brine for further ripening. They are distinguished by a multi-layered soft texture, at the same time a little brittle and without a peel. The range of cheeses includes the following varieties:
- chechil;
- Ossetian;
- Suluguni;
- Georgian;
- liman;
- Tushino.
The most common variety of brine is typical cheese.
Fused
Some types of processed cheeses serve as a good alternative to butter. In order to somehow diversify the preparation of sandwiches, they can be smeared on bread. Meanwhile, they are the subject of rational use of milk.
Raw materials for their production are rennet cheeses, with any deviations from standard norms, but which are in the category of quality products. The composition of the recipe mixture can be added butter, cottage cheese, sour cream, milk powder and, without fail, melting salts, providing protein dissolution and mass uniformity.
The range of processed cheeses consists of the following types:
- Canned, made by sterilization and pasteurization. Sometimes they come with nutritional supplements, such as pieces of ham.
- Lomtevs: “City”, “Russian”, “Kostroma”, “Poshekhonsky”.
- Pasty: “Friendship”, “Viola”, “Summer”, “Amber”, “Wave”.
- Sausage: with caraway seeds, pepper and additional components; smoked, not containing additives.
- Sweet: “Fruit”, “Chocolate”, “Honey”, “Coffee”.
- Cheeses for dinner: with onion flavor, with slices of porcini mushrooms.
"The president"
Cheeses "President" are popular with many consumers. The range of products manufactured under this brand is quite extensive. In Russia, they are produced in the Moscow region by the Lactalis Vostok company, which has its own sales market.
Under the “President” trademark, products are made from sheep and goat milk with a creamy consistency, as well as soft, moldy and fresh. Here are some representatives of the cheese assortment from the company: ementhal, camembert, brie.
On sale you can find colorful plastic containers, with a packaging of 400 grams. These are processed cheeses, which are famous for the presence of fillers and were developed taking into account taste preferences. Of these, you can choose creamy, with mushrooms or ham.
Brine. Brynza has a 45% fat content and is available in containers with different volumes.
The assortment includes rennet cheeses of the highest grade. Cow's milk is supplied as the main raw material for their production. They have a dense porous structure with small "eyes" and yellow. Hard cheese is suitable for making canapes and traditional sandwiches. On sale there is a weight (4.5 kg) and packaged (250 grams). Dry matter contains 50% fat.
Sour-milk
It is produced with the participation of lactic acid, by coagulation. Ripening period from 7 to 45 days. For some individual options, this process does not apply. For example, coffee and tea cheeses are made without ripening. Casein is precipitated using ferment introduced into milk in combination with whey.
Green cheese (grater) is produced with a one-month ripening period from skim milk, "Harz" - from fresh cottage cheese. The volume of such dairy products, as a rule, is limited. These include: "Curd", "Pultost", "Olmutsky", "Glarnensky", "Konkualsky".
Finally
A general overview of the classification and assortment of cheeses allows you to see the possibilities of cheese making and the state of the market. Analysts argue that the volume of sales of goods can be judged on the economic well-being of people. The consumption of a large amount of cheese is determined by its beneficial properties. It play an important role in the human diet.