An A to Z guide to choosing, storing, preparing, and cooking fresh produce and recipe ingredients.
GadgeGoat Cheese
Like its cow’s-milk cousins, goat cheese (called chèvre) comes in endless varieties. The main attraction? Its wonderful tangy flavor.
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How to Choose Goat Cheese
Fresh, unaged goat cheese, sold in logs or rounds, is soft and creamy, with a spreadable texture and a sweet-tart flavor sometimes described as grassy. An aged cheese—which may be covered in edible ash to prevent a crust from developing—typically has a fluffy middle and a gooey exterior when younger and a firm texture when aged a year or more. Aged Gouda goat cheese is sweet and delicious, with caramel overtones; as blue goat cheese ages, it becomes earthier and more pungent. -
How to Store Goat Cheese
Refrigerate goat cheese in its unopened packaging for up to 3 months; once it’s opened, wrap leftovers in wax paper, then loosely in plastic wrap, and consume within a week. Shelf life depends on the variety, though, so check the dating on the label. If mold appears on the surface of aged cheese, simply cut it off; the rest is fine to eat. -
How to Use Goat Cheese
Fresh chèvre can be added to omelets or spread on bagels, while aged goat cheese works like other hard cheeses: alone or in pastas and sauces.
—Melinda PageReal Simple Goat Cheese Recipes:
Find out what's in season in your area right now, then locate a farmers' market near you.
