Cheese can often be one of the most expensive items on a shopping list, but it tends to lose a lot of its flavour as most people are not storing it properly. Constance Rutter, an expert from Virginia Hayward has shared one of the worst mistakes people make is keeping cheese wrapped in airtight plastic.
She said: “Tightly wrapping cheese in plastic means it can’t breathe, or release gases within the cheese which can then build up causing rather unpleasant smells and tastes. Plastic causes moisture to become trapped within the material, and this water build up will cause lots of bad bacteria and even mould or begin growing on cheese.”
However, cheese is a sensitive food and actually needs a small amount of moisture to prevent it drying out or becoming stale, which can make storing it in the fridge quite tricky since they are filled with dry air.
If you want to keep cheese as fresh as possible, then the best course of action is to keep it in a container with a lid, and then also add a few sugar cubes as well.
Constance explained: “A trick used by some restaurants when storing their cheese is to add in two sugar cubes into the plastic container, next to the cheese, to help keep the atmosphere in the box regulated. If it’s good enough for chefs then it’s worth a try.”
It might sound bizarre, but sugar cubes will absorb any excess moisture in a sealed container to keep the box the right humidity. This will stop mould from being able to form on the cheese while also keeping it moist enough so it stays fresh for much longer.
This is a cheap yet very effective method a lot of restaurants use cheese because sugar cubes absorb any other food smalls in a fridge which also helps cheese not lose any of its flavour.
How to use sugar cubes to keep cheese fresh
To begin, wrap the cheese up in baking paper if you have any on hand, as it will also be a simple way to stop it from drying out in the fridge. If you do not have any baking paper, then add a clean tea towel in the food storage container instead.
Place the wrapped cheese in the food container, and then add two sugar cubes. You can use a paper towel or napkins to stop the sugar cubes from touching the cheese.
Put the lid on the container, and then keep it in the crispier drawer of your fridge as this area has a more stable humidity level.
Check the cheese regularly. If the sugar seem sticky after only a day, then the humidity is too high and you might need to add more sugar cubes when you replace them.
Replace the sugar cubes once they have fully dissolved, and you cheeses should stay fresh for months rather than turning mouldy or stale after a few days.