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A Step-by-Step Guide on How to Make a French Pleat
We know the struggle. You buy a piece of beautifully wrapped cheese from your favorite shop. As soon as you get home, you tear into that pristinely wrapped package, with perfect folds and creases keeping that cheese snug as a bug in a rug. After taking a few slices, you try to wrap it back up as elegantly as the cheesemonger did, but it ends up looking like a sagging paper grocery bag that got caught in the rain.
The key to proper cheese storage is making sure the cheese is completely wrapped without any parts exposed and the whole piece is secured tightly. Formaticum storage products ensure your cheese gets the perfect ratio of oxygen flowing so your cheese can breathe all while preventing moisture from escaping to maintain optimal humidity. Exposed bits will dry out to a crisp in the cold, arid conditions of your fridge, making the pleat a critical step.
The best way to wrap a cheese and make sure that it’s perfectly protected, and sealed inside the packaging, is by doing a classic French pleat. Don’t worry, it’s simple to execute.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to forming a perfect French pleat.
- Place the cheese in the center of the paper, with the long side of the cheese facing the long side of the paper.
- Bring the edges of the long side of the paper together so that they meet.
- Pinching them together, carefully fold the paper over about a half inch and make a crease.
- Roll the fold downward until it's tight against the surface of the cheese.
- Fold the open sides tight to the shape of the cheese and make an envelope crease just like how you’d wrap a present.
- Tuck both flaps under the cheese.
- Write the name of the cheese and the date on a label, and use it to secure the flaps.
- Store your cheese in your fridge until you’re ready to finish it off!
Check out this instructional video to see this technique in action.
How To Keep Your Cheese Fresh In 5 Easy Steps
Your Ultimate Guide To Cheese Storage
Cheese is a perfect but fragile balance of aroma, taste, texture, and beauty.
Many people don’t know that cheese is actually a live, and needs oxygen and the right amount of humidity to keep it fresh and tasty. Proper storage can mean the difference between delicious, living cheese and ammoniated spoiled cheese.
Don’t worry, proper storage is easier than you think. Here’s how to keep your cheese fresh in five easy steps.
1. Keep It Chill
Cheese likes consistent temperatures. When a wedge sits out for hours, you’ll notice the surface will start to look oily. This is completely normal, but once it happens, that cheese is ready to eat and should not be returned to refrigeration. The oil that has pooled on the surface cannot be replaced. For best preservation, only leave out the amount you intend to eat in one sitting and keep the rest in the fridge.
Cheese likes consistent temperatures. When a wedge sits out for hours, you’ll notice the surface will start to look oily. This is completely normal, but once it happens, that cheese is ready to eat and should not be returned to refrigeration. The oil that has pooled on the surface cannot be replaced. For best preservation, only leave out the amount you intend to eat in one sitting and keep the rest in the fridge.
2. Store Whole
Cheese is best when stored in whole wheels or in larger wedges. Once the wheel is cut and the rind is broken, the cheese stops ripening and begins to deteriorate. It also exposes the inside paste, making it more prone to drying out. Remember: the smaller the piece of cheese, the shorter the lifespan.
3. Buy Less More Often
Yes, it’s true: we’re telling you to buy less cheese. Stay with us, though, we have our reasons. Once a wheel is cut and the rind is broken, the cheese begins to deteriorate. Small pieces have a shorter lifespan than large wedges, too. Basically what we’re saying is eat the cheese you have and then go buy more.
4. Cut Off the Rind
Rinds are the natural, built-in, packaging that protects the paste of the cheese while it ages. They make for a beautiful presentation, but once the wheel is cut open the rind no longer serves any purpose. They’re also a breeding ground for molds that will eventually start to grow on the surface of the paste. If you want to make sure your wedge of Alpage Gruyère stays mold-free in your refrigerator, slice off the rind before wrapping it up.
5. Stop Using Plastic Wrap
Cheese is alive and breathing, which means non-porous plastic wrap can smother and kill it. The most common type of plastic food film, the stuff that is stretchy and sticky, is designed to be a full barrier to keep liquids from spilling. This convenient type of food packaging has many great uses, unfortunately, wrapping cheese is just not one of them. Formaticum cheese storage products use a porous plastic that lets your cheese breath freely while maintaining optimal humidity.
Formaticum Goes Green
Professional grade cheese storage has always been our top priority.
We are lucky that a common material used by cheesemonger’s also happens to be biodegradable.
These biodegradable cheese storage sheets have been part of our wholesale offerings for the past decade and we are excited to now offer them to home consumers. Specifically designed for packaging cheese, these sheets offer the perfect, breathable environment for all kinds of cheese. Transparent sheets make it easy to identify what is wrapped within. The best part about these sheets, is that they are 100% biodegradable.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle! With these sheets you can REDUCE food waste, REUSE the sheets after washing and RECYCLE when done. That’s right, these sheets are another green way to keep your cheese in tip-top shape,.
These sheets reduce food waste by doing an excellent job of keeping cheese fresh and preventing surface mold growth.
They can be reused after washing with warm soapy water and air drying, reducing your garbage waste.
Finally, when you are done recycle them.
Cheese can’t have all the attention. Yes, it is delicious, but there are other foods that need our help. We’ve all had those times, where we put food back in the fridge, so excited to have it again. When we get around to it, the excitement fades when we realize the food is spoiled. We are happy to prevent those moments. With these food storage bags food will last twice as long. They also keep the happy moments coming, because they’re reusable, and recyclable.
If you can’t pick just one, don’t worry. You don’t have to. We’ve got the whole set ready to go for you. Not to mention, a discount for buying all of them at once. Save your food from the trash, and your money. Perfect for gifts for upcoming holidays too, you can never start shopping too early!
Check out more at www.formaticum.com
Welcome to our New Website!
We wanted to welcome you to our new website, and show some of our favorite products, new and old. We now offer FREE shipping on all orders over $50.
The great thing about cheese, is that anyone can enjoy it! From stewards, to professional chefs, to a family in their kitchen. That is something we feel very strongly about. Our products are easy to use, and useful for cheese lovers of all kinds!
Gone are the days of wrapping cheese in plastic wrap, or whatever you happen to have laying around. Our Cheese storage sheets are made specifically to keep freshness, and flavor. They also make for easy clean up when you have leftovers.
Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle with our new Green Storage Set. All are totally washable for easy reuse, and when you’re done easily recycled. You won’t have to fill your garbage with all those used storage bags or plastic wrap. Go green!
Sometimes cheese can get lost in the back of your refrigerator. It happens to us sometimes too. Hopefully, if you can easily identify the tasty treat wrapped in our cheese storage products you won’t forget about them. Write everything you need to know about what is wrapped inside. No needless unwrapping to figure out what you’ve got. Try our Large and Small adhesive labels today.
The thickness, and cut of cheese can affect your tasting experience (no, really!). Have you ever tried to cut a soft cheese with a knife? Did you end up making a complete mess? If you know what we are talking about then our Cheese Wire Cutters are perfect for you. We even have backup wires, to keep cheese cutting easy.
There’s even more on the blog, and other great tips and resources to elevate your cheese experience.
So, don’t forget to browse the whole site, and find your new favorites and take advantage of FREE SHIPPING on orders over $25!
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