# It's Cheese Time



## Braz (Nov 12, 2017)

OK, all this chatter about smoking cheese got me inspired, that and SWMBO said we have quite enough smoked meat in the freezer for now. Went to the store and got a pound each of Sharp Cheddar, Colby, Jack, Pepper Jack, Gouda and Fresh Mozzarella. Smoked it for 5 hours in the MES using the cold smoker attachment with an extension tube. Ambient was 36F so I turned on the MES for a short time to get a draft working. The temp inside the box stayed around 55F through the smoke.
When done I put it in Ziplocks but left an air opening so it wouldn't build moisture and left it sit out on the counter overnight. This evening I will vacuum seal it.
The taste right now is quite smokey but I think it will mellow out some after a few weeks. Here's a bunch of pix.


















For some reason I didn't get much color on the cheese. Not sure why. I used a combo of cherry and pecan chips and had good TBS throughout.


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## ab canuck (Nov 12, 2017)

It looks good so far, I am still waiting to do some, It just seems like I never get time to do it lately,


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## PerazziMx14 (Nov 12, 2017)

I've been smoking basically the same cheeses you have over maple and apple. I smoke them in heavy smoke for 3 hours and the chees looks basically the same coming out as it did going in. Maybe a hue darker but nothing dramatic. It also tastes horrible for a couple of days until the smoke mellows. My 1st batch my family and I couldn't wait so we ate a block after a 2 day rest and it was okay. Now knowing better it really wasn't okay. Very smokey and a bit acrid but tolerable. After letting several blocks rest for 2 weeks it was a very different experience. Smokiness mellowed and was quite enjoyable. Another 2 week rest and it got even better. I went through a spell where I smoked 4 to 6 blocks every week so I could build a stockpile and still let it be able to age at least a month or six before eating.


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