we were given a nice 2# block of "expensive" 2 year old aged cheddar cheese

RRP

But seeing that Pat never eats cheese I want to save what I can't eat in the weeks to follow and enjoy it as best I can. When I GOOGLED the freezing info it didn't look too promising - saying cheddar will turn crumbly. OTOH I wonder if saving it in a Food Saver vacuum bag may mean better results. What do you guys/gals say or recommend?

DoubleEgger

I’d food saver it. 

johnnyp

DoubleEgger said:

I’d food saver it. 

Agreed.  What’s the alternative, Losing it to spoilage? 

Maybe save a portion in the fridge if you think you’ll eat it in time.  But crumbly cheese > no cheese

edit: I guess I’m wrong 

DMW

It's already aged 2 years. You don't need to freeze it to keep it, just put it in the fridge, vac seal in portions consumable.

dmourati

Get yourself an overcoat and a nice street corner and start hawking cheese.

johnnyp

DMW said:

It's already aged 2 years. You don't need to freeze it to keep it, just put it in the fridge, vac seal in portions consumable.

Dwayne, maybe you can educate me.  Will a food saver provide an adequate vacuum for this? I’ve been under the impression that a food saver is only marginally better squeezeing the air from a ziplock. Whereas, a higher end chamber sealer would prolong life considerably.

Skiddymarker

What @DMW said, cut it into the portion size you are comfortable with, wrap with plastic/Saran wrap and FoodSaver it. Will last for months in the fridge. 
The less finger contact with the cheese the better. 
I’ve had 2 year old Balderson last over 9 months. 

U_tarded

Agree with food saver we buy cheese in bulk and divide and seal it.  Use as needed with just the 2 of us sometimes it’s months before we finish some cheese and the last is as good as the first.  

DMW

johnnyp said:

DMW said:

It's already aged 2 years. You don't need to freeze it to keep it, just put it in the fridge, vac seal in portions consumable.

Dwayne, maybe you can educate me.  Will a food saver provide an adequate vacuum for this? I’ve been under the impression that a food saver is only marginally better squeezeing the air from a ziplock. Whereas, a higher end chamber sealer would prolong life considerably.

You could just wrap it in foil and it would be fine. There might be some slight mold you would need to trim away, but that's it.

henapple

johnnyp said:

DMW said:

It's already aged 2 years. You don't need to freeze it to keep it, just put it in the fridge, vac seal in portions consumable.

Dwayne, maybe you can educate me.  Will a food saver provide an adequate vacuum for this? I’ve been under the impression that a food saver is only marginally better squeezeing the air from a ziplock. Whereas, a higher end chamber sealer would prolong life considerably.

A food saver sucks more than @JohnInCarolina

nolaegghead

You'll never eat 2 pounds of cheese before it goes bad.  I would blend in a blender with water to convert back to milk, which freezes just fine.

HeavyG

Cut it in half. Eat half yourself over the coming weeks. Smoke the other half and then make some killer Mac&Cheese. Everybody eats Mac&Cheese.

Woodchunk

Cold smoke it and then use it to make this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlI_bLN0KfE

Carolina Q

I put it in a larger than necessary vac bag, seal it up and store it in the fridge. Open and take what I need, then reseal. Haven't lost any yet.

SandyHookEgger

Woodchunk said:

Cold smoke it and then use it to make this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlI_bLN0KfE

The shot of the buzzard was a nice touch in a cooking video.

Gulfcoastguy

Make big quantities of Mac and cheese and hold a party.

The_Stache

Ron, from experience.... you can freeze cheddar assuming you'll be using it for grated application later on otherwise it will be crumbly!

Food Saver/Vacuum Sealed will prolong the cheese a bit longer.

Take some and freeze it for grating later (or grate it and freeze it)
Take some and smoke it and vacuum seal it
Take some and vacuum seal it
Take some and eat it!

Honk if you love Cheeses