Best way to store opened cheese so it lasts longer
I bought an artisanal fresh cheese last week and it already got mold on the edges after four days. I want to know the right way to store it because I don't want to waste money.
6 answers
★ Best answer
Have you tried putting it in an airtight container with a paper towel inside to absorb the extra moisture?
What nobody mentions is that even though parchment paper helps, artisanal fresh cheeses hate the humidity that builds up in closed spaces, so if you store it in a plastic container with a paper towel you change every two days, it absorbs all that condensation that causes mold. I do exactly that at home and it lasts me almost twice as long, plus it keeps the temperature more stable than if it's just sitting loose in the fridge where it gets hit by the fan air every time someone opens the door!
The problem is that artisanal fresh cheeses are pretty delicate and mold shows up quick in a regular fridge, so the best thing is to wrap it in parchment paper or wax paper (not plastic because that traps moisture) and keep it in the least cold part of the fridge, like in the door or on the top shelf where there's less condensation.
If it already has surface mold you can scrape that part off with a clean knife and wrap it up good again, but honestly those fresh cheeses last like a week max once opened if you're lucky, so it's better to buy smaller portions when you can.
With artisanal fresh cheeses it's tricky because they absorb smells and moisture from everything around them, and if you wrap them in plastic they go bad faster from the condensation.
What I do is keep them in a glass container (not plastic) with parchment paper inside, not sealed tight but with the lid on, in the warmest part of the fridge, and that way they last twice as long.
I also change the paper every two days if I see it starting to get damp. If the cheese already has mold on the edges, you can scrape it off with a clean knife, but if it's spread out too much it's better not to risk it.
Fresh cheeses last a week at most in the fridge even if you store them perfectly, so what happened is pretty normal and it's not your fault!
Butter or parchment paper help, but honestly what works best is keeping it in an airtight container in the coldest part of the fridge (never on the door) and changing the paper every two days, because the cheese keeps breathing and accumulates moisture that encourages mold!
Somewhat disagree with the maximum one-week thing - I've kept fresh cheeses well for longer, but it really depends on how artisanal it is and how you handle it. The parchment paper thing works, but what actually works better is combining it with a small trick: wrap it in parchment paper and put it in a container with a paper napkin inside that you change every two days so it absorbs moisture without it building up. Direct plastic isn't ideal, but a sealed container with that paper napkin in between keeps the balance between protecting the cheese from the fridge's smells and preventing it from going bad from condensation. That said, if it's already got mold on it, throw that part out without hesitation because mold on fresh cheese spreads fast and there's no way to fully save it.
That mold in four days is pretty normal with fresh artisanal cheeses because they absorb a ton of moisture 😅 What works for me is storing them in parchment paper (like others mentioned) but putting everything in a freezer bag that I seal loosely, so it can breathe a bit but without letting the fridge's dry air get in. Another thing that really helps is taking the cheese out about 15-20 minutes before eating it so it gets its flavor back, because the cold kills a lot of the taste in artisanal ones, so at least it makes up for being able to enjoy it better before it goes bad.
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