It's Easy Being Cheesy By Tom Boyles

Many pizza makers attempt to improve their pizza by creating a better crust, adding seasonings to the sauce or trying different combinations of toppings. How many have tried to improve their pizzas by changing the cheese or the way cheese is used? By using Provolone, gorgonzola, feta or even sliced mozzarella, you can create new tastes and looks to your pizza. Cheese is a topping, so why not treat it like one. You don’t offer just one vegetable or meat topping so why not offer a selection of cheeses?

Like dough, cheese is a living entity that is constantly changing in the way it performs as well as tastes. Several factors determine the performance and taste of cheese, such as moisture levels, milk fat content and its aging process. A low-grade cheese can turn a gourmet pizza into cheap-tasting fast food and a high-quality cheese can make an average pizza much, much better. So, what’s in the cheese? If you want to improve your pizza, you need to know what the differences are. Our research on cheese has found information on cheese storage, handling, melt ability, regionality and flavour that can help you build a better pizza.

Why Mozzarella?

Many chains use either 100 percent or a blend of various Mozzarellas, such as whole milk and partskim. Why Mozzarella? Mozzarella’s flavour is rather bland, which works well for the flavouring of pizza. The result of the melting and flow characteristics makes it the perfect carrier of other flavours throughout the pizza. It carries the spices evenly across the pie and doesn’t interfere with the flavours of other ingredients.

Some major chains use blends of Mozzarella. In most cases it is to control the amount of oil released when cooking or to obtain a certain flavour. Whole milk Mozzarella has a more “buttery-rich” flavour, but releases too much oil for some pizza makers. Blends and high-quality cheeses are also used to control consistency.

Mozzarella and Provolone are “Pasta Filata” cheeses, which translates as “stringy curd”. The process of creating a “Pasta Filata” involves weaving the cheese like taffy, which builds the protein structure into long chains and giving them their stretching and melting characteristics. Watch for low-grade imposters, which use a “still” process for making “Pasta Filatas” because they are essentially Mozzarella-flavoured Cheddars and fail to perform like a true Mozzarella.

Consistency and High-Quality Cheese

The difference in a high-quality cheese and a low-quality cheese is the standards by which it is produced. There are standards on the amount of milkfat and moisture in certain types of cheese. In high-quality cheeses, the manufacturer tightens these tolerances and lower-quality cheese producers simply stay within the guidelines. To find out if your cheese is of a high quality be sure to ask your cheese supplier for specifications on cheese controls, such as moisture and fat content, and go with the companies with tighter specs.

What is cheese and how is it made?

In making natural cheese, the basic principals are the same; remove the water from the milk and leave behind the milk solids (protein, vitamins, fat, etc.). Factors that determine the flavour and type of cheese are the type of culture used, the amount of whey (the liquid portion of the milk) left in the curds (the solid components of milk) after they are cut and cooked, the amount of pressure applied to them and the aging of the cheese.

Moisture Levels

Cheese has five consistency classifications that are determined by their moisture levels. The moisture content determines the hardness or softness of the cheese. The classifications are hard grating, hard, semi-soft, semi-soft part skim and soft. Since milk fat melts just below body temperature, the softer cheeses (those high in milk fat content) are creamier, but they also ripen faster making their shelf life shorter. The firmer cheeses, those with lower moisture content tend to have more flavour, ripen slower and can be stored for a year or more under the right conditions.

Browning

The browning properties are also important when choosing a cheese. Some operators like the cheese to remain milky in appearance while others like it to brown slightly. Those cheeses with lower milk fat tend to burn faster. This is a characteristic to consider if you use stone hearth ovens, which cook very fast at high temperatures. The better dairies put a top end on the amount of milk fat in their whole milk Mozzarella, which will help you control the consistency. Most pizzerias use low-fat Mozzarella, but blends of Parmesan, Romano, Provolone, Jack and Parma-Jack are excellent choices too.

Melt Ability and Blends

Melt ability is another important factor in determining what cheese to use on your pizza. Cheeses such as Mozzarella and Provolone have similar melting properties. While Feta, Brie and Panela do not have the desired melt ability of Mozzarella, they do compliment other toppings and work well on pizza in small quantities.

Storage, Freezing and Thawing

Another important factor in the flavour of cheese is the manner in which it is stored. Cheese should be stored in airtight containers to protect the flavour and freshness. Optimal storage temperatures are between 5.5 and 10 degrees Celsius. While it can be frozen, there are certain characteristics that need to be noted about the properties of certain cheeses. First, cheese must be frozen quickly to prevent it from becoming crumbly. It doesn’t need to be freezedried or IQF frozen, but it doesn’t need to be placed in the freezer in large blocks because the inner core will take longer to freeze and will become, as I just mentioned, crumbly. If you get it in large blocks, it is best to cut it into 1/2 Kilo bricks no more 25mm thick to ensure an even and more rapid freezing. Make sure to rewrap it to prevent moisture loss. You may want to consult your cheese supplier about the softer cheeses. If you do use cheese that has been or will be frozen, it is best to use low-moisture varieties or buy pre-frozen, pre-shredded/diced or blended cheese. If the cheese develops mold, simply cut 6mm – 12mm below the mold and you’ll be OK, but if it is very moldy, in more than three or four spots, you will be better off to trash it.

Aged cheeses’ flavours are not affected by freezing because much of the moisture has been removed in the ripening process, but it can have a negative affect on the body and texture. A cheese that has been frozen slowly will be softer when thawed, harder to shred and will brown faster. Shelf life in the freezer is around 12 months and thawed is around 14 days. Older cheese will over-melt and become “soupy” when cooked. If you are going to use frozen cheese it is better to buy it already shredded and frozen. There are certain guidelines to follow when thawing cheese, too. Always thaw cheese slowly in the refrigerator and never refreeze it. It may look uneven in colour while frozen, but will return to its original colour when completely thawed. Some of the soft and semi-soft cheeses can be shredded better when partially frozen, but they all need to be used as soon as possible after being thawed. Remember, cheese that is in a refrigerator will continue to ripen causing the flavour and performance to change, but cheese will cease to ripen as long as it is frozen.

Using Cheese Better

The way that you use cheese can affect the taste and appearance of your pizzas. Too much cheese will cause uncooked dough. By portioning out the cheese, instead of free-throwing it across the pizza, will also help you control consistency and your inventory. The position of the cheese, on top of other toppings or under them, is also important. Dehydrated toppings work well on top or bottom, but the more moist toppings work best on top of the cheese. This helps prevent soggy dough.

If you desire a cheese that has a similar melting ability to Mozzarella, blends work great. By adding cheeses with varied tastes, such as Cheddar or Teleme, to Mozzarella you can create a new signature taste for your pizzas. The softer varieties of cheese also work great as carriers of other flavours like flavourings, herbs, spices and sweet flavours because of the melting and flow characteristics.

Match your cheese to your oven

The type of oven you use may affect the way your cheese performs. Conveyor ovens create a lot of top heat for longer periods than stone or deck ovens. In a conveyor oven you want to protect the cheese so it is best to use one with higher moisture content. You may also want to adjust the position of the ingredients differently. As mentioned, place the moister toppings on top of the cheese. Stone or deck ovens do not produce a lot of top heat so a cheese with lower moisture levels works best in this case.