It is the perfect ally of the sacred pastas that we are so passionate about in these latitudes, but the truth is that
a good grated cheese improves any recipe
: from
the filling of a cake
to a green leafy salad.
The ideal is to buy a piece of good quality cheese and grate it at home, but the most common thing is to choose one of those sold packaged in supermarkets.
The
Clarín Gourmet team set out to address the universe of mass consumption brands that produce this product
to define which is the best based on its aroma, texture and flavor.
In this case we decided to focus on
the grated cheeses manufactured by La Serenísima, Sancor, Ilolay, Tregar, Milkaut and La Paulina
.
But first we investigate what characteristics a good grated cheese should have and also its most frequent defects.
What a good quality grated cheese should be like
The first thing we must take into account when choosing a good grated cheese is that
in the same shelf products made from genuine cheese coexist with others that are not.
Gerardo Padilla, food engineer and founding partner of the @quesarte_argentina community, explains that
it is essential to read the word cheese in the product description and in the ingredients.
Grated cheeses from mass brands. Photo: Guillermo Rodríguez Adami.
“These should be Reggianito cheese or another hard cheese (pasteurized milk, lactic ferment, salt, rennet, calcium chloride), anti-caking agent (microcrystalline cellulose) and preservative (sorbic acid, natamycin).”
All the additives mentioned are allowed by the Food Code so that the characteristics of the product are preserved over time.
“For example, microcrystalline cellulose and silicon dioxide are natural products whose function is to prevent the grated cheese from agglomerating, while natamycin and sorbic acid prevent the growth of fungi inside the container,” explains Beatriz Coste, cheese engineer and founding member of the @quesarte_argentina community.
Those
products that are presented on the packaging as “Dressing based on grated cheese” or simply as “Grated” do not belong to the same category
as grated cheese even if they are located in the same shelf.
“Basically it is a processed cheese with the addition of a considerable amount of additives,” explains Gerardo Padilla.
Of course
they are much cheaper.
Reggianito cheese is widely used in this type of products.
Photo: Shutterstock
Both specialists point out that the ideal characteristics of a grated cheese should be those coming from a good hard cheese: that is,
its characteristic flavor with a medium to high intensity and a medium salty and somewhat spicy taste.
The texture also says a lot about the quality of the product
: “It should be loose, not clumped.
The cheese should not feel wet in your mouth or too dry.
As for the appearance, it should be in the form of more or less fine granules or strands, with a homogeneous color,” explains Beatriz Coste.
It is important to remember that when we buy packaged grated cheese we lose quality compared to a cheese that we grate at home when using it.
“
Due to the dehydration process with hot air currents
carried out to obtain commercial grated cheeses,
differences in intensity and texture will be noticed
,” warns Gerardo Padilla.
Ravioli with grated cheese, a classic.
What we should not find under any point of view are notes related to defects in hard cheeses
.
For example, a moldy smell indicates that the cheese from which it originated was not properly conditioned before the grating process or was not properly conditioned in its packaging (envelope).
It should also not be stale, salty or spicy.
If it lacks its characteristic flavor, is acidic, bitter, dry or very humid, we are also facing a failed product.
The quality ranking of supermarket grated cheeses according to Clarín Gourmet
Only grated cheeses made from genuine cheeses participate in this ranking.
Left out are “cheese-based dressings” that can cost less than half the brands we selected.
The prices are quite similar, except in the case of
La Paulina, which is 25 percent cheaper than the average value of these products.
Number 1 position
Milkaut and Tregar
Milkaut grated cheese.Photo: Guillermo Rodríguez Adami.
These two brands from Santa Fe share the first position with
products that stand out for their aroma, flavor and even a distinctive color.
In both cases they have a stronger tone than the other cheeses tasted, which could be a sign of greater aging.
Tregar grated cheese.
Photo: Guillermo Rodríguez Adami.
Milkaut cheese
(it is the same company that makes Santa Rosa cheeses)
is a little more intense and spicy than Tregar cheese
, but both have the flavor, spiciness, and characteristic aroma of a good form of cheese.
The first does not clarify the type of cheese used in the packaging, the second says that it is a blend of hard cheeses selected and matured for six months in special chambers.
Position number 2
The Pauline
La Paulina grated cheese.
Photo: Guillermo Rodríguez Adami.
This brand of Cordoba origin, which has been owned by a Canadian company for more than 20 years,
has a milder aroma than the cheeses described above.
Its flavor is also less intense but
has an interesting spiciness without being overly salty.
It has the peculiarity that the grating is a little irregular, there are some caked-on pieces, but it is the most balanced after the Milkaut and Tregar exponents.
In addition,
it has a very good quality-price ratio.
Position number 3
La Serenissima and Sancor
La Serenisima grated cheese.
Photo: Guillermo Rodríguez Adami.
In this case
the aroma of both cheeses is more lactic, the intensity significantly decreases compared to those of Milkaut and Tregar.
Both firms specify on the packaging that their
grated cheese is from a Reggianito mold
, a native cheese that was created to emulate the very Italian Parmesan (it is worth noting that La Serenísima also has a grated cheese whose packaging says it is based on Parmesan).
Sancor grated cheese.Photo: Guillermo Rodríguez Adami.
In the mouth, the grating of Sancor cheese is perceived as a little thicker than that of its great rival, La Serenísima.
At the same time, the one from La Serenísima feels less dry.
In neither of the two products was caking of the product detected.
Position number 4
Ilolay
Ilolay grated cheese.Photo: Guillermo Rodríguez Adami.
Like all the products tasted, it has no major defects
: it is not excessively salty or spicy.
It also does not have a texture that is too dry or, on the contrary, very moist.
However,
it is the grated cheese tasted whose flavor and aroma take the longest to appear in the mouth and nose.
It is made from different hard cheeses not specified on the packaging.