Let's discuss fried cheese. What kinds of cheese have you fried, and how did you fry them?

Today I microwaved yellow chips with shredded cheese. It was awesome, but I need to ration for a whole month.

My family once tried to recreate something called cheese sticks. It was a request from my brother, who was crazy about them after several visits to a fast food store. My mom bought a big square of white cheese, cut it into several long slices, dipped them into fry powder then fried them. It quickly turned out to be a failure, as the cheese sticks melted before they were finished. But they were still edible, though they looked more like a sticky mixture of cheese and fry powder than cheese sticks. Mom said she should have put the cheese into the fridge to ensure they wouldn’t melt in the first place.

Very popular in the States, @Mimishu1995, as are deep fried curds. There are lots of frozen types and they’re a staple at fairs. There’s something just wrong about deep frying cheese, to me, but it’s still a guilty treat for me.

I have not tried frying cheese, will have to try that!

It’s no more disgusting than deep-fried Mars bars or Milky Ways.

http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2013/10/fried-halloumi-haloumi-cheese-recipe/

And fried Mozzerella sticks! Really nice choices!

Poor man nachos! Some corn chips and shredded cheddar in the microwave in a glass container. You get some lovely droplets of molten cheese drippings.

I’m lucky enough to live in an area where you can buy cheese curds, and we fry them up all the time, using a deep fryer. We’re going to try making them at some point.

I also like to shred a little extra cheese onto the griddle and fry it up into a disc whenever I make grilled cheese.

I wonder when I’ll hit that slow metabolism thing people talk about.

Try the cheese on a hat griddle thing, @Smitha, like in my details. I’ve been picking the bits off the griddle for years…never thought to do it on purpose for chips.

I’ve never tried deep fried candy bars, Twinkies, or even pickles, for that matter, @gailcalled. I rarely eat deep fried anything – fish if grilled isn’t available. My question was more about pan fried cheese, but it was hard to specify. I like a mozzarella stick now and then and used to love deep fried cheese curds.

@ZEPHYRA That’s exactly what I was talking about! Halloumi looks delicious! I’m going to have to track some down…I love goat/sheep milk cheese, anyway.

Try that, @johnpowell, with Triscuit crackers, particularly the Rosemary and Olive oil. We do it all the time. Under the broiler is better, if you have the time.

@wildpotato Walmart (I know, I know) once had great fried cheese curds. I hated when they quit, but so much the better for my waistline. Once in a while I can get fresh curds from the Amish country, and they’re better just eaten at room temp. The cheese-melted-on-a-hot-griddle is exactly what she suggested on NPR. Chips, made intentionally. I tried it tonight and it was wonderful! Better for you than deep fried at least.

The only fried cheese I have made is when it accidently winds up hitting the pan. It has happened when making grilled cheese sandwiches, cheeseburgers, omelets, and probably some others I don’t remember. So, those cheeses would be mozzerella, Vermont white extra sharp cheddar, fresh parmesian, muenster, and even American.

I am a big fan of browned cheese if I am going to eat cheese. Usually it is browned under a broiler though. Open faced cheese sandwich or if I make pizza or lasagna I make sure the cheese gets browned.

I like breaded cheese sticks, but never have made them, and never order them. If someone else orders them I have one.

Queso fundido, a Mexican dish of fried cheeses that you eat with soft tortillas is delicious! The cheese melts well, white chesses, but are more stringlike, it is not like that liquidy cheese America often associates with Mexican food. Blech.

Funny you mentioned the Greek dish, because just a few weeks ago my husband and I went down to the Spongedocks (An area in Tarpon Springs, FL where the Greeks settled and there are bunches of Greek restaurants) and I told my husband to order the cheese appetizer, but we didn’t. I thought he would like it, but since we were already eating “badly” we didn’t want to add more fat and cholesterol to the meal.

@JLeslie Our favorite pizza joint once offered 2 personal pizzas cheaper that a small, and we’d each get 2 personal because we got more toasty cheese around the edges. They caught on and stopped that and we quit visiting. Wasn’t that great without the toasty cheese.

I have never heard of Queso flameado! Sounds delicious! Mexican version of Saganaki, one of my treasured rare treats. There is even a decent vegetarian chorizo available. If you eat it with a tortilla, do you double dip? Tear and dip? I know you must have had this many times, give me some protocol.?

@ibstubro When we have it it is with a soft corn tortilla (they are best heated on a grill or some sort of open flame). Depending on how the fundido is served, I have seen it in a shallow bowl and flat on a pan, we just grab a piece of the cheese with a fork usually, kind of using the fork to cut and pull the cheese off and fold it into the tortilla. I have no idea if that is proper etiquette. When it is just my husband and I we don’t have to worry about double dipping. I would think if it is on a buffet you would take some and put it on your plate and then stuff your tortillas from there as you go? I guess watch what others do. The one we used to order at a particular restaurant in Memphis was in a shallow bowl and it had the chorizo and some cilantro and my husband would gently stir the ingredients together before we devoured it, but I have seen it served flat as I mentioned, and we just take a piece from the edges and work our way in.

I’m no expert on the matter. Maybe share the Q with Bob_. He would know for sure. I’m not sure if he has been around fluther lately.

Much like Saganaki, @JLeslie, as I have experienced it. Pita wedges where you take a bit of the hot cheese with your fork, place it on the wedge and bite off. When you have fundido do you take enough cheese to fill a tortilla, or just bits and bites at a time?

Fill the tortilla, and then eat that tortilla. It’s the small sized corn tortillas, you might not have seen them before. Maybe they are 4” in diameter? I don’t see them in typical supermarkets, just places that have a really good Mexican section. You can use the larger tortillas, it wouldn’t matter.

You can eat the cheese alone or with bread also if you prefer.

Well, @JLeslie, you made my day! A new flaming cheese and instructions on how to eat it. Marvelous. Simply marvelous.

A bit I never much cared for, but it’s knee jerk.

Pan fried shredded cheddar can be super yummy. I also love to melt brie and sprinkle brown sugar over it for a super yummy treat.

Pan frying is what I’m after, @Crazydawg. Any favorites?

@ibstubro I do like the shredded sharp cheddar the best. Sprinkle a pinch loosely in a pile, fry and flip. Serve on a black sesame seed cracker with a slice of green olive or rolled anchovy for a garnish with a fresh squeezed lemonade to wash it down with.

I like taking a hard cheese, dipping it in egg, then a seasoned flour dredge, and pan frying in a small amount of oil at reasonably high temp. It’s an easy treat when that craving hits you.

That’s exactly what I did with Asiago @Crazydawg and it was amazing. You’re killing me here with the sesame, olive and anchovy! Heaven.

That’s new to me, @Smashley. Like Parmesan? Romano? How big of a piece? Like olive oil? Ever put a little lemon juice on it? Eat alone or on….?

@ibstubro That helps make my day too. :)

I love fried cheese, but the closest I ever get to it is what I spoon and eat off my George Forman Grill when I make a melted cheese sandwich. ;-)

You need to try Tropical Fry Cheese , “Queso de Freir”!
A Dominican friend told me about it. The cheese stays together and fries up so nicely – almost like sliced tofu. Delicious and nice texture.
Not many places sell it in this part of the country. (Not many Dominicans live up here. Gee… I wonder why.)
Go to Tropical’s website to find a source near you.

“Many’s the night I’ve dreamt of cheese. Toasted, mainly.” – Robinson Crusoe

Now I am really hungry for a grilled cheese sandwich or nachos for supper.

My taste is up for one, too, @janbb. Shall I make a couple of extra ones? I like mine with a slice of grilled tomato.

~You are a cruel bunch.
I should have fried a little in the pan after I made my omelet. Since the coffee is gone AND I’ve already brushed my teeth, I’ll just have to wait until supper time.

Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin were served toasted cheese in a special cooker as a nosh or amuse-bouche by Aubrey’s cook in the Patrick O’Brian novels. It has to be served in an antique sterling silver chafing dish. Here

My magnificent toasted cheese sandwich done as part of my OT during inhouse knee rehab.

@gailcalled What – you didn’t get to serve it up in a sterling silver toasted cheese chafing dish? Or better yet, served by Milo in a French maid’s outfit.

Ah yes Queso Fundido is da bomb!

I’m also partial to Fried Mozzarella Sticks

Not exactly the same thing, but I’ve been known to grate a pile of cheese onto a plate and add chopped fresh broccoli, or pickled jalapeños and nuke it until it’s just melted, then let it congeal for a few seconds and dig in with tortilla chips.

This is not fried either, but it’s got a similar fried cheese vibe going on. Cheese Crisps which are kind of like flat, crispy cheese crackers. You can make them in the microwave or regular oven. You can even mold them to be containers for other appetizer fillings.

I hate to admit it, but I know some of you all do this too. Whenever you order a burger (veggie in my case) or a burrito and some of the cheese oozes onto the paper on which it’s served, I love to scrape it off with my teeth. Nothing else like cheese paper. Congealed pizza box cheese is pretty good too.

@gailcalled — yum!

@ibstubro Haloumi is Cypriot cheese and should be too hard to get a hold of!

AND something else – I know Greek recipes for this type of thing =

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saganaki

Thanks for the link @LuckyGuy something I have to try!

You should try some intentionally fried cheese, @Pachy. Shredded (not grated) Parmesan worked great in my experience. Brown it and let it cool and it’s a delicious chip.

Tropical Fry cheese sounds exactly like what I had in mind, @LuckyGuy! There’s no locate an outlet feature! Arg.

Grilled cheese I have a handle on. I prefer to butter the skillet rather than the bread, and my favorite is sharp cheddar and sardine.

@Kardamom Cheese Crisps are exactly what I was talking about. Only thing is, some of us are making them (intentionally or not) on a hot griddle. The Greek, Mexican, Cypriot and Dominican fried cheese is a different animal, but still fried cheese.

Yes, Saganaki is in my details @ZEPHYRA and I love it. I’ve been known to go to the Greek restaurant and just order Saganaki and a small salad. What more coulf you need?

Link me if you find a source, @Crazydawg.

May none of you go to bed hungry tonight@! Thanks.

Came home and had a grilled cheese and bacon sandwich tonight for supper after reading this thread.

Here’s what you grilled cheese people need to do (I’ve done similar):

Heat you griddle and place some firm cheese on it. when one side starts to brown, turn over and place your buttered bread on it. When the other side is browned, flip it bread side down, put the other buttered bread on top and grill as usual. It’ll give you a new dimension of flavor.

@ibstubro – By “hard cheese” I guess I usually mean cheddar, which might not be “hard” by some definitions, but good enough for me. I have done Parmesan with success, too. Any high smoke point oil will do, so probably not olive. I cut it into sticks, say ½ to 1 inch thick , an inch wide and 3–5 inches long. There are fancier ways to do it but this way is usually as much as many steps as I’m willing to take when it’s late and I have a craving!

Yum, @Smashley. I’ll try it!

I propose that we should officially declare this Fried Cheese Day!

Start warming the griddle, @Kardamom! I must have 6–8 different kinds in the box!

Right now we have Asiago, jack, Swiss, mozzarella, Parmesan, and caramelized onion cheddar.

I guess we could also refer to the recent Q about the Cheesy Pickup Lines. Wonder if they have fried cheesy pickup lines?

Example: You’re so hot, you make my fried cheese look like an Eskimo pie.

@Kardamom You’re nacho bad yourself!

^^ Perfection!

Do I have your Parmesan to date you, m’lady?

Any first hand reports on, for example Whole Foods, having Haloumi, Tropical Fry or any other exotic cheese mentioned? Anyone actually know of an outlet? I have fairly ready access to St. Louis.

You can buy haloumi cheese online Here. Not sure where you are located, but they have it at Trader Joe’s in Southern California.

It appears that they also have it at Whole Foods

Yeehaw! @Kardamom Whole foods I can do. I was at an organic market in a town today and scoured the cheese section. There was a wedge of hard cheese I wanted to buy for shredding/cheese crisps, but I couldn’t find a price. Finally I determined that I was 4 hours+ from returning home and I was afraid the cheese would change.

I think I might manage to get to Whole foods maybe Wed of next week. Thanks!

@ibstubro And that my friend, is why you should never leave your house without a cooler and an ice pack : )

I was day tripping with friends, @Kardamom and had no idea we’d be in a market at all. In my car, there is a ‘space age coolie bag’ at all times. Truth told, I’m always looking for a road trip and I finally determined that there were enough things there that I might be interested in to make a trip back worthwhile. (They had the veggie chorizo I would need to make @JLeslie‘s Mexican version of flaming cheese.) Of course, I also suspect all these items are available at Whole Foods if I make that trek.

^^ If you do go back to Whole Foods, remember to bring along a big bag of money too : )

I was very judicious with the things I bought at Whole Foods, @Kardamom, and I was disappointed with much of what I bought. A slice of pizza from the food counter was totally tasteless and the 3 varieties of veggie jerky were disgusting. I’m primarily interested in cheese at this time, as I hesitate to buy raw seafood 2 hours from home, even with a coolie bag.

@ibstubro I’m kind of surprised about the pizza. I love their pizza. Not sure if it’s made differently out here than where you are. I wish I could remember the brand of jerky I used to get there that was so good (but so expensive).

I like to have lunch at their hot and cold deli/salad bar and try a dollop of everything. They have a really good lemon herb tofu salad in their counter deli section.

This is neither here nor there, but I found what may be my new favorite cheese at Trader Joe’s (do they have those near you?) It is Caramelized Onion Cheddar I made mac and cheese with it last night. Probably the best mac and cheese I’ve ever eaten. It would probably be good in the queso fundido dish too.

It might just have been the flavor of pizza I got, @Kardamom, which I don’t remember. It sounded good, but had no taste.

No, there’s no Trader Joe’s. Whole Foods is close to 2 hours away, I believe, but in a section of St. Louis I frequent anyway. I have a cooler that plugs into the car and heats/cools, but it’s BIG. I need to hunt me up a smaller one.

@ibstubro It’s been a while, but I’ve tasted the veggie chorizo from Whole Foods. I am a carnivore, but I thoroughly enjoyed the flavor! I used it in some enchiladas I was making for a veggie couple we were entertaining.

My son found these sinful morsels. Aged Parmesean Crisps . They are deadly!

@LuckyGuy sounds like something we get around here from Sprouts, a “Whole-Foods” type chain.

Yes, I had veggie chorizo, @Yetanotheruser, and it was good, if a bit hot for my taste…of course, I ate it straight as I didn’t know what I was in for at the time. Great with cheese I bet!

I think you can make them yourself, @LuckyGuy. All you need is aged Parm and a hot non-stick griddle/skillet. Brown, turn, cool.

@ibstubro @Yetanotheruser They do look like something i can make. But the beauty of these little buggers is they come neatly stacked in a handy dandy resealable container. They are so good I will not not be buying more!

^^ One dark night, when you are alone in the house, watching Love it of Leave it, the urge will strike and you shall venture out into the night in search of those crisps. Bwaaaah haaah haaaa!

No, one dark night @LuckyGuy will dig out some antique cheese from the back of the fridge and make his own, @Kardamom.”