Ghost Pepper Cheese

Turn Up the Heat with Ghost Pepper Cheese

Ready to spice up the cheeseboard and bring more heat to homecooked meals? Meet ghost pepper cheese – the perfect blend of creamy, buttery goodness and seriously spicy heat. Ghost pepper cheese is usually made with cheddar or mild monterey jack blended with bits of the ghost pepper – once known as the world's hottest chili. For everyone who craves more spicy adventure in their cuisine, ghost pepper cheese is the perfect ingredient in everything from nachos and queso dips to spicy grilled cheese sandwiches and out-of-this-world mac and cheese.

Wisconsin Ghost Pepper Cheese

Wisconsin cheesemakers have been mastering traditional recipes and innovating new cheese masterpieces for more than 180 years. It's why we produce more than 600 flavors, styles, and varieties of cheese – more than anywhere else in the world – including many types of spicy cheese made with ghost peppers. In Wisconsin, you'll find extra hot varieties like Ghost Scorpion Pepper Cheese Diablo, a young and mild yellow cheddar made with both scorpion and ghost peppers. Stone Ridge Cheese Cellar's Ghost Pepper Jack Cheese is a beautiful melter, adding heat to burgers, pasta, and grilled veggies. Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery makes a Natural Habanero Ghost Pepper Monterey Jack Cheese, combining habanero peppers and ghost chilis. And the Wisconsin Cheese Company produces Ghost Pepper Cheese Curds – perfect for adding an extra kick to snack time. We also make lots of other spiced cheeses, including spicy pepper jack cheese and pepper colby jack varieties.

All about Ghost Pepper Cheese

Ghost pepper cheese is typically made by adding bits of ghost peppers to a mild-flavored cheese like monterey jack or cheddar. The ghost pepper chili was once considered the hottest in the world, though now it has been surpassed by varieties like the Carolina Reaper (which has also made its way to Wisconsin cheese).

Who invented ghost pepper cheese?

No one knows for sure who first invented ghost pepper cheese. Cheddar cheese, to which ghost peppers are often added, originated in Somerset, England, in the 12^th century, while monterey jack is a California cheese that dates back to the 18^th century. Somewhere along the way, cheesemakers started adding other ingredients to these varieties to gain more flavor and, in the case of peppers and chilis, to add some heat to the mild taste of the cheese.

How hot is ghost pepper cheese?

The Scoville scale is used to measure the heat of chili peppers and products derived from them, like hot sauce. Peppers are measured in Scoville Heat Units (SHU), which are the number of times that the pepper or sauce must be diluted before it's no longer hot. Jalapeno peppers have a rating of 2,000 to 8,000 SHU, while cayenne pepper logs in at 30,000 to 50,000 SHU. Habaneros have an SHU of up to 570,000, and ghost peppers clock in at up to 1 million SHU.

How is ghost pepper cheese made?

After a cheese has been heated, cultured, and curdled, cheesemakers add chunks, flakes, or extract of the ghost pepper before the cheese is pressed into molds.

Pairing Food and Beverages with Ghost Pepper Cheese

There are two schools of thought about pairing fiery cheeses like ghost pepper jack or ghost pepper cheddar. On the one hand, you can choose food and beverages that will hold their own with the cheese. Alternately, you can contrast the spicy cheese with lightly acidic foods and beverages that will serve as a nice antidote to the cheese's heat.

For example, when choosing wines, a full-bodied zinfandel with notes of dark fruit and peppercorn will stand up nicely to your ghost pepper jack. Or you could choose a sparkling white, an aromatic riesling or a sweeter moscato for a sip that will offset the spice and heat of the cheese.

Full-bodied beers like stouts and porters will nicely balance the kick of a ghost pepper cheese, while lighter lagers, IPAs, and fruity wheat beers will deliver a refreshing palate cleanse.

On the cheeseboard, try contrasting your ghost pepper cheese with the acidic flavors of sweet berries, tropical fruits, mango salsa, raspberry jam, or a bit of maple syrup. Or to match your cheese's powerful profile, choose spicy cured meats that will give your ghost pepper cheese a run for its money.