Learn French Cheese

 

Why to learn cheeses of France? Because it’s cultural … In France there are 1200 varieties of cheese…It is the country with the most cheeses! And more than 60% of French people consume them every day because they are appreciated but also for their health benefits.

So..Just to say that cheese is an integral part of French culinary culture!

Not all travelers who come to France appreciate cheese the first time, it is after several attempts that their taste buds open and they appreciate it. It must be said that there are very strong tasting cheeses like Roquefort for example.

It’s all a matter of taste.

So let’s start with the most famous cheeses in France. Known for their taste and nutritional qualities.

 

Le camembert

 

 

The essential of the French table.

Camembert is a moist, soft, creamy, surface-ripened cow’s cheese. It was first made in the late 18th century in Camembert, a town in Normandy in northwestern France. Its appearance and taste are sometimes compared to those of Brie, but Camembert is stronger than Brie. You can like it strong or mild and it is a soft cheese.

When you buy Camembert from the cheesemaker and you like it mild, you will ask:

A young Camembert please!

Conversely, if we like it very strong, we will ask for a well-made Camembert!

 

The comté

 

 

Comté is a French cheese made from unpasteurized cow’s milk in the Franche-Comté region of eastern France, on the border with Switzerland, with which it shares much of the cuisine. Comté is the French cheese with a controlled designation of origin, which means that to have the cheese recognized as Comté, the cheesemaker must respect an ancestral manufacturing charter. It’s also a children’s cheese!

There are several county refineries. The older the cheese, the stronger it tastes. And it’s a cooked pressed cheese.

Comté is a very old cheese which has its origins in the need of the farmers of Haut-Doubs to survive during the winter.

 

L’emmental

 

L’Emmental or Emmental is a cheese original suisse hard dough. It is made from cow’s milk.

The wheel of Emmental AOP weighs 90kg and undergoes an traditional aging of seven weeks, but to have a more robust taste, the maturation period goes from 8 to 12 months, or even more.

 

Le roquefort

 

 

Roquefort-sur-Soulzon is a commune in the Aveyron department, in the Occitanie region, in the south of France. Roquefort is located on the Causse du Larzac and is renowned for its sheep products, notably milk, wool and meat.

The cheese is white, tangy, creamy and slightly moist, with veins of blue mold produced by mushroom cultivation. Its scent and flavor are characteristic, with a taste of butyric acid; the blue veins give it a spicy flavor. It has no crust; the exterior is edible and slightly salty. Its taste is strong in the mouth and does not please everyone.

« According to legend, a shepherd who was watching over his sheep on the rock of Combal, in Aveyron, was getting ready to have his meal. This was made of slices of bread and a piece of fresh sheep’s cheese » , says Olivier Poels. « And there, he sees a pretty shepherdess pass by whom he wants to follow. To do this, he puts his snack in a cave, telling himself that he will get it back later. And then, one thing leading to another, he obviously follows this shepherdess quite far since he returns a few days later. But, on his return, without much surprise, the bread and cheese have gone moldy. No matter, he is so hungry that he eats his sandwich. He then tastes this moldy cheese and he found it so delicious that he reproduced it and sold it around his home, with some success. »

The Bûche de Chèvre

 

 

It is a delicious soft goat’s milk cheese produced in the Poitou-Charentes region of the Loire Valley in central France. This log-shaped cheese is matured for a minimum of 7 days to two weeks, resulting in a hard, crispy edible rind on the exterior, with classic mold. The white paste of the Bûche de Chèvre reveals a complex but typical and frank taste of goat cheeses, highlighted by sweet notes of caramel. This soft, creamy cheese instantly melts in your mouth.

 

Come on stroll through the typical markets of France and stop at the cheese maker. You will be amazed at the variety of cheeses offered. Don’t hesitate to ask to taste them, the cheesemaker will be happy to explain how they are made and how to consume them.

Cheese is cultural in France, and here another cultural article you may be interested in.

How do we eat cheese?

 

Cheeses are most often eaten after the main course, with a salad, a slice of bread and a good glass of wine.

If we are having a meal with friends, we offer a cheese platter on which we arrange different cheeses then we take a portion of those that we want to taste.

They are also cooked as a main dish, particularly for raclette or oven-roasted camembert, accompanied by a green salad.

Raclette is a Swiss dish and very popular in France. Heat the cheese on hot plates and scrape off the melted part. It is typically served with boiled potatoes.

Otherwise, you can serve the cheese as an aperitif in sticks or grated over pasta or vegetables.

There you go, you already know a lot about cheese. All you have to do is buy cheese from the cheesemonger. Avoid supermarkets and support small artisanal producers, plus the taste is much better! And it’s up to you to taste…

You can tell me, I want to buy cheese, but how should I ask?

 

How to buy from the cheese maker?

I’ll leave you with an example of dialogue that will help you buy from the cheesemonger:

You : Bonjour ! Je voudrais du fromage s’il vous plaît.

The cheesmaker : Oui à pâte dure à pâte molle ?

You : A pate de molle et je souhaite essayer le camembert.

The cheesemaker : D’accord ! Comment le camembert : jeune, vieux ?

You : jeune, je préfère les fromages doux

The cheesemaker : D’accord, voilà votre camembert. Cela fera 6 euros s’il vous plaît

You : Tenez!

The cheesemaker : Merci.

You : Au Revoir et bonne semaine

The cheesemaker : au revoir, vous aussi !

 

If you want to know how to construct a sentence in French, click here.

I hope you enjoyed this article: learn french cheese…

And, tell me in comments if you have already taste French cheese and how you like it!

A bientôt.

Julie.