There's something magical about spicy cheese. Maybe it's how the heat of peppers, horseradish, or cayenne accents the buttery, nutty flavor of cheese. Or perhaps it's the way that cheese's creamy oils bring sweet relief to the spice's burn. Whatever the reason, cheese lovers everywhere have been craving and consuming many types of spicy cheese for decades, and the demand for these five-alarm favorites is going nowhere but up.
Wisconsin cheesemakers have always catered to the cheese lover's appetite for innovative flavors, styles, and varieties of cheese. It's why we now produce more than 600 different types of cheese – more than anywhere else in the world. That includes many types of spicy cheese – from Dragon's Breath Cheddar and ghost pepper jack cheese to honey sriracha gouda and jalapeno cheese curd snacks. And if it's from Wisconsin, you know the kick of spicy heat will be equally matched by the incredible flavor and quality of products made in the State of Cheese.
Spicy cheeses are typically made by combining mild-flavored cheeses like monterey jack and cheddar with ingredients that bring the heat. With a wide range of cheeses and spicy ingredients to choose from, cheesemakers have developed many different types of spicy cheese.
Spicy products are often made with cheeses such as:
To add fiery kick to these products, cheesemakers may fold in ingredients like:
Most types of spicy cheese are made by folding the spicy ingredient into the cheese curd before it's pressed. Alternately, cheesemakers can amp up the flame factor by rubbing the rind of cheeses with ingredients such as powdered pepper or peppercorns.
No one knows for sure who invented the first spicy cheese. Pepper jack cheese, made of monterey jack and bits of pepper, was an early favorite, perhaps first made by Mexican immigrants in California.
The Scoville scale is used to measure the heat of chili peppers and other hot foods containing capsaicin, the compound found within peppers that causes a burning sensation. With the Scoville scale, spiciness is measured in Scoville Heat Units (SHUs), which are the number of times a pepper must be diluted before it's no longer spicy to the taste. Jalapeño peppers have a Scoville rating of between 2,500 and 8,000 SHU, while habañero peppers bring far more heat with a rating up to 350,000 SHU. Ghost peppers, one of the hottest peppers on the planet, has a Scoville rating of up to 1 million SHU. And the Carolina Reaper, the world's hottest pepper, may reach a rating of 2 million SHU.
When choosing what to enjoy with spicy cheese, you can either opt for food and beverages that provide a refreshing contrast to the buttery heat of the cheese or lean toward pairings that match the big bold flavor profile of the cheese's creamy spice.
When pouring wine, a sparkling white, a fruity moscato, or sweet rose are the ideal complement to many types of spicy cheese. On the other hand, a big bold red like zinfandel or a full-bodied rioja with spicy notes of black fruits and leather will match the power of your spicy cheese bite for bite.
When ordering drafts, the smoke and spice of a stout or porter plays well with spicy cheese, while the refreshing acidity of a light lager or fruity wheat beer will cut through the cheese's thick flavor.
On the cheese board, the spicy fat in salami or chorizo will hold up to the heat and creamy texture of spicy cheese, as will the sour, spicy kick of kimchi and the heat of hot pepper jelly. For a soothing contrast, try cool, sweet fruits like raspberries and strawberries or sweet spreads like honey and raspberry jam.
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Because it is made only from milk, salt, microbial cultures, and a curdling agent, cheese is not naturally spicy. To add heat, cheesemakers mix in spicy ingredients like bits of peppers, mustard seed, horseradish, or peppercorns, resulting in cheeses like spicy pepper jack cheese, ghost pepper cheese, and pepper colby jack.
Craving award-winning aged cheddar, pining for parmesan, or searching for a new cheese to try? The world’s best cheese is just a click away! Explore our directory of Wisconsin cheesemakers and retailers who offer online cheese shopping and get cheese shipped right to your door. What are you waiting for?
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