Fancy cheese Made in India

Bindu Gopal Rao

Till a few years, Amit Misra’s favourite shopping activity on his trips abroad was buying cheese. With scores of choices and racks full of so many variants, it was impossible not to get lured by these, says Misra, who is a writer. “Since we would hardly get good cheese in India, I got my fill from the supermarkets abroad,” he says. Times are changing now. People like Amit no longer have to depend on cheese from foreign shores. A spurt of artisanal cheese is making its way into the shelves of supermarkets and boutique stores in India.

Choices galore

The concept of artisan or artisanal cheese is simple. It is typically made in small quantities by small-scale manufacturers who prefer to keep control of the product themselves. A number of people who make artisan cheese work from home farms as well. While India was never known to be a cheese-loving country, considering the dairy love for butter and ghee, cheese is slowly but surely making inroads into the Indian food industry. From just being a part of sandwiches or accompaniments with cocktails, cheese has now become an integral part of pizzas, pastas, quesadillas and the like. The most common forms of cheese available in India are cheddar, processed cheese and mozzarella but this is changing now with artisanal cheese making its way into the market. Take for instance the case of Acres Wild in Coonoor. Started by filmmaker Mansoor Khan and his wife Tina, they make very small quantities of cheese about 4 to 5 kg per day at this farmstay because they only make it from 10 cows.

“We make six types of hard cheese: gouda, cheddar, colby, Monterey Jack, parmesan and gruyere. For cheeses like gouda and Monterey Jack, we add flavours also like pepper, mustered, chilly, zeera, etc. Besides this, we make softer lactic cheese flavoured with herbs and garlic, chilli and garlic, pepper and caraway seeds. We also make feta and halloumi. Occasionally, Tina makes camembert because this cheese is very delicate and difficult to make,” says Mansoor.

Likewise Bala, who lives in Kodaikanal and runs Cinnabar, a farm and homestay, makes both soft and hard cheese. “Soft cheese can be used for savory dips as well as creamy cheesecake. Hard cheese based on Italian style is great as a table cheese. The soft, creamy bleu finds itself on the plate of the discerning connoisseur.”

It was the visible gap in the market that Prateeksh Mehra, cofounder and fromager, The Spotted Cow Fromagerie, Mumbai, noticed. He thus ensured that what was a small exhibition of his cheese some day becomes big business. “We are artisanal cheese makers and source our milk locally. We started by making two popular French cheese brie and camembay and simultaneously started making Italian cheese rombay,” explains Mehra.

The challenges

The demand for artisan cheese is increasing. The key challenge as far as making good cheese in India is concerned is the quality of milk and also the right temperature. When we talk about artisan cheese, we usually mean European cheese, which requires several months of ageing and a cool climate. Therefore, it is a challenge to make this kind of cheese in India, which is a warm country. “It can be kept in a fridge but it would be difficult to scale it up without making a cellar below the ground to maintain a temperature below 18°C. The other challenge is to get reliable good milk which has not been tampered with on a daily basis as fresher the milk, better the cheese,” adds Khan.

Deepak Jain, CEO, D’Lecta Foods, which makes feta cheese, adds, “A major challenge encompasses communicating to the masses the quality and authenticity of feta. Most cheese available under the brand name of feta is actually ‘white combi’ — a “feta type” made from skimmed milk and vegetable fat against the original Greek method of producing good quality feta. Another challenge we face is low awareness of the usage of feta, which also impacts the awareness associated with storage, and that proves to be a deterrent for people wanting to try it.”

Cheese is a fermented product and its taste will vary on the quality of milk and the weather. However, it is exactly this imperfection that makes it the perfect companion on your dining table.

Baked bombrie, cherries & walnut