Why You Should Give American Cheese a Chance
Forget the apple pie, one of America’s greatest contributions to the culinary world is its cheese.
American Cheese is unbeatable in its consistency and its flavour is enough to complement any sandwich and burger. But it is not for everyone, and we can agree that it is not like cheddar or Gouda. However, it is perfect for grilled cheese sandwiches and burgers due to its salty smoothness.
American cheese is processed cheese, and each slice is wrapped in individual plastic wrappers. As it is processed cheese that means it is not real cheese. Here’s everything you need to know about American cheese here in UK.
Are you ready? Let’s get into it!
What is American cheese?
American cheese is made with Colby, cheddar and other similar cheeses that mean it is processed cheese. So legally, it is not cheese. According to FDA, it is pasteurized processed cheese, and true cheese should contain more than pressed curds of milk or cheese. American cheese is salty and creamy in flavour.
This yellow cheese has a medium consistency and a low melting point. It comes in two colours i.e. white and yellow. When it is coloured with annatto, then it can be in yellow colour. There are three varieties of American cheese, including individually plastic-wrapped American cheese slices UK, small blocks and large blocks.
The American block cheese is considered classic American cheese because it was the only one available before these individually wrapped cheese slices were made. It has high sodium and fat content that make it an unhealthy option but still, it is used in cooking because it contains calcium and protein and melts well.
How Is American Cheese Made?
As we mentioned earlier, it is a processed cheese that is made from milk fats, whey protein concentrate, a blend of milk and other solids and fats. It was made with a mixture of cheeses like Cheddar and Colby at first, but now blended cheese is no longer used.
Sometimes, it is also called American singles or American cheese slices rather than labelled as cheese product or processed cheese.
According to FDA, it is a type of pasteurized processed cheese. The cheese mixture should be heated for 30 seconds for 66 °C to pasteurize. Its composition requirements control the moisture, pH value of the final cheese product, the proportion of milk fat, salt, along with other specifications like colour, flavour, meltability and texture.
The taste and texture of this yellowish cheese can vary due to the percentage of additives versus cheese. Also, food manufacturers can decide its colour from white, orange to yellow.
Benefits of Using This Cheese
There are a couple of benefits to using American cheese:
Decent source of Protein
American cheese UK contains around 18g protein in 100g slices. Our body needs protein that plays a crucial role in the development of body tissues such as hair and nails.
Even protein also helps to repair the body tissues. Protein also produces enzymes, hormones and other essential chemicals that our body needs. Protein forms bones, skin and muscles, but our body can’t store it, unlike carbohydrates and fats. That’s why our body needs protein from outside, and American cheese is a good source of protein.
Vitamin D3
One of the main benefits of using American cheese is vitamin D3. Our body can produce it naturally, but you can get it from your food too, and American cheese is one of them. Vitamin D3 helps to maintain our immune system and beneficial for our bones and brain.
Overcome Osteoporosis
American cheese contains calcium, vitamins and proteins that help to overcome bone loss disease, which is called Osteoporosis. There are also various other nutrients found in cheese that can prevent Osteoporosis naturally. So you can avoid this serious problem by consuming this cheese.
Help bone formation
Moreover, calcium phosphate is found in American cheese. This cheese is made from cow’s milk, and calcium phosphate is the main type of calcium that is found in this milk.
Calcium phosphate is very important for the human body because it helps to make your teeth stronger and helps bone formation. The performance of muscles and liver to work increased due to calcium phosphate.
How it's different?
Unlike Italian Cheese, American cheese is technically not cheese because it is pasteurized processed cheese. According to FDA, a food product can be a true cheese when it has more than half cheese which is considered as pressed milk’s curds.
One American cheese slice has less than 51% curds that don’t meet the standard of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). However, there is some true cheese in American cheese.
Its vibrant orange colour is probably due to the cheddar. Some cheese brands of American cheese also contain some other cheese like Colby that gives it a lighter colour.
The base cheese is combined with a mixture of milk proteins, whey and emulsifying salts that makes American cheese different from other traditional cheeses. The added ingredients provide the perfect cheese pull when the slice melts without turning greasy
Where to buy
You can buy American cheese UK from Amazon UK or buy it at the supermarket.
FAQ's
Why American cheese is not considered cheese?
American cheese is a processed cheese that means it is not real cheese. American singles are made with less than 51% of real cheese, so it is not legally considered cheese.
Is white American cheese different from yellow?
Only the colour is different between white and yellow American cheese. The yellow colour is due to the annatto seed.
Where can I buy American cheese UK?
You can buy this yellowish creamy delight from Amazon UK or buy Kraft brands.
What is American cheese in the UK?
In the UK, people call it processed cheese or cheese slices. These yellow squares are individually wrapped in plastic wraps. The Brits usually called it cheese slices or orange plastic cheese. In the UK, it doesn’t qualify as actual cheese. It is considered a processed cheese product.
Andy
Ever since I started cooking I’ve been fascinated by how different people’s techniques are and how they best utilise the ingredients around them. Even the person living next door will have their own unique way of frying an egg or cooking a salmon fillet.
This fascination led me on a journey across the globe to discover the countless practices and traditions the world of cooking has to offer. I thought you’d enjoy and find value in sharing that journey with me so I created Cooked Best!