On Food and Cooking

(Barry) #1

because their protein molecules are more
concentrated and so more intimately bonded
to each other; and when melted, they flow
relatively little. Separate pieces of grated
moist mozzarella will melt together, while
flecks of Parmesan remain separate. With
continued exposure to high heat, moisture will
evaporate from the liquefied cheese, which
gets progressively stiffer and eventually
resolidifies. Most cheeses will leak some
melted fat, and extensive breakdown of the
protein fabric accentuates this in high-fat
cheeses. The ratio of fat to surrounding
protein is just 0.7 in part-skim Parmesan,
around 1 in mozzarella and the alpine cheeses,
but 1.3 in Roquefort and Cheddar, which are
especially prone to exuding fat when melted.


Nonmelting Cheeses There are several kinds
of cheese that do not melt on heating: they
simply get drier and stiffer. These include
Indian paneer and Latin queso blanco, Italian

Free download pdf