Best-By-Date Question

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staropeace

Richard Bachman's love child
Nov 28, 2006
15,210
48,848
Alberta,Canada
If a piece of cheese has mold growing on it, should I throw the cheese away?

Answers from Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.

Soft cheeses, such as cottage cheese, cream cheese and ricotta cheese, with mold should be discarded. The same goes for any kind of cheese that's shredded, crumbled or sliced.
With these cheeses, the mold can send threads throughout the cheese. In addition, harmful bacteria, such as listeria, brucella, salmonella and E. coli, can grow along with the mold.
Mold generally can't penetrate far into hard and semisoft cheeses, such as cheddar, Colby, Parmesan and Swiss. So you can cut away the moldy part and eat the rest of the cheese. Cut off at least 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) around and below the moldy spot. Be sure to keep the knife out of the mold, so it doesn't contaminate other parts of the cheese.
Of course, not all molds pose a risk. In fact, some types of mold are used to make cheeses, such as Brie and Camembert. These molds are safe to eat.
If you're not sure what type of cheese you have or what to do if it grows mold, the safe course is to discard it.
Always wipe the knife after every cut.
 

Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
61,289
239,271
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
No ewww. Bleu cheese is filled wth mold, for example.
I like the Old Fort cheese
pkg-block-OldCheddar.png


It's expensive (like most cheese) so I am careful not to drop it on the floor.
You say true, Sai. I'm actually quite glad, too; it'd be a boring life indeed if all we ever ate was corn dogs and French fries.

Just melt some cheese over them and that makes them less boring.