Cottage cheese is a tasty, creamy, and versatile ingredient that deserves a permanent spot in your fridge. But what exactly is cottage cheese — and where does it come from? Here's everything you'll ever need to know about the kitchen staple:
What Is Cottage Cheese?
Cottage cheese is essentially curds (which form when an acid curdles milk) and cream. Like ricotta, mozzarella, feta, and goat cheese, cottage cheese is a fresh cheese, meaning it isn't aged like Parmesan and Cheddar.
While people have eaten something like it for thousands of years, the name cottage cheese only dates back to the mid-1800s. "It's thought to be the first cheese made in America. It was brought to the U.S. from Europe," says Jesse Merrill, co-founder and CEO of Good Culture.
"The story is that cottage cheese used to be made in farmhouses or cottages, where they would have an excess of milk from butter making and would use the extra milk to make cottage cheese," he says. Hence its name.
How Is Cottage Cheese Made?
Cottage cheese is fermented. Like all dairy products, cottage cheese begins as milk. Adding enzymes or live, active cultures (probiotics) converts milk sugars (lactose) into lactic acid. The lactic acid separates the curds (the milk solids, fats, and proteins) from the whey (the liquid).
In this stage, the curds are basically a solid block of cheese. It's up to a knife-like curd cutter to slice the cheese into bite-sized pieces. Whether the cottage cheese is small curd or large curd depends on the design of the curd cutter.
"Cutting into the curd releases a bunch of whey. We then drain out the whey and that leaves you with a nice curd. You mix the curd with cream after that," Merrill says.
Cottage Cheese Substitute
No cottage cheese? No problem. Ricotta is probably the best cottage cheese substitute, since they have similar flavors and textures. Here are some other cottage cheese alternatives that may work well depending on the recipe:
Mascarpone
Feta cheese
Sour cream
Cream cheese
Yogurt
Kefir
Mozzarella
Goat cheese
What Does Cottage Cheese Taste Like?
Cottage cheese varies not only in curd size but also in consistency and flavor. Cottage cheese shouldn't have a soupy or slimy texture, says Merrill, who adds that it should almost resemble yogurt in thickness and creaminess. Less separation between the curds and the cream creates a smoother mouthfeel.
Cottage cheese should taste mild, clean, and milky with just a hint of salt. It may have a subtle tang depending on how it's cultured as well as its fat content. Fat-free and low-fat (2 percent) cottage cheese taste more tart, while full-fat (4 percent) and high-fat (6 percent) cottage cheese taste creamier.
Believe it or not, you can make homemade cottage cheese in the comfort of your own kitchen with just three ingredients: milk, vinegar, and salt. You'll also need a small saucepan, a colander, and cheese cloth.
Get the recipe: Homemade Cottage Cheese
Ricotta vs. Cottage Cheese
Cottage cheese and ricotta look similar, and sometimes one can be substituted for the other, but they are very different things. While cottage cheese is made from coagulated cow's milk, ricotta is made from the by-products of other cheeses (such as mozzarella). They also differ in texture and flavor — cottage cheese is chunky and slightly salty, but ricotta is creamy and slightly sweet.
Cottage cheese can be used in place of ricotta in certain cooked recipes (like lasagna), as it has a similar texture and fewer calories.
How to Eat Cottage Cheese
You can enjoy cottage cheese in the same ways you would eat yogurt: plain, paired with fruit or vegetables, blended into smoothies, or even cooked into recipes.
How to Store Cottage Cheese
Store cottage cheese in the fridge in an airtight container (the one it came in is probably fine). Keep it upside down to slow bacteria growth. Stored properly, it should last about 10 days after opening.
Can You Freeze Cottage Cheese?
You can freeze cottage cheese, though it slightly alters its texture, Merrill says. It's better to eat it fresh or to only freeze cottage cheese that you plan to cook with. When you bake lasagna with cottage cheese, for example, you shouldn't notice the difference between fresh or frozen cottage cheese.
Recipes With Cottage Cheese
Now that you're an expert, it's time to get cooking! Try one of our favorite recipes with cottage cheese:
Easy Lasagna
Simple Cottage Cheese Pancakes
Fast-and-Fabulous Egg and Cottage Cheese Casserole
Cottage Cheese Chicken Enchiladas
Vegetarian Cottage Cheese Patties
Explore our entire collection of Cottage Cheese Recipes.
Related:
Our Best Recipes That Start with Cottage Cheese
What Is Cream Cheese — And How Do You Make It At Home?
All About Halloumi, the Cheese Perfect for the Grill (and So Much More)
Cottage cheese is made from the curds of various levels of pasteurized cow's milk, including nonfat, reduced-fat, or regular milk. It's also offered in different curd sizes, including small, medium, or large, and is available in creamed, whipped, lactose-free, reduced sodium, or sodium-free varieties.
Cottage cheese is made by heating whole milk, coagulating or “setting” the milk into a solid curd (in this case with animal rennet), and then gently cooking the set curd until it soft and bouncy.
Cottage cheese is an excellent source of calcium, a mineral that plays a major role in tooth and bone health, and in the prevention of osteoporosis. It also helps you to regulate your blood pressure and might even play a role in preventing certain cancers, such as prostate cancer.
Besides the reasons outlined above, cottage cheese may help with gut health. Since it is often fermented, (a process that helps remove the cheese curds from the liquid) cottage cheese may contain “good” bacteria called probiotics. Snodgrass says probiotics are “crucial” to good digestion.
Both cottage cheese and Greek yoghurt have their health benefits, but side-by-side, cottage cheese is the winner when it comes to protein and calcium content. And the good news is, you can use cottage cheese in many recipes that you'd typically use Greek yoghurt for.
Cottage cheese is a great snack for people with diabetes. A half-cup (about 112-gram) serving of small-curd cottage cheese provides several vitamins and minerals, in addition to almost 13 grams of protein and only 4 grams of carbs.
It was brought to the U.S. from Europe," says Jesse Merrill, co-founder and CEO of Good Culture. "The story is that cottage cheese used to be made in farmhouses or cottages, where they would have an excess of milk from butter making and would use the extra milk to make cottage cheese," he says. Hence its name.
A 2021 study of 35,352 postmenopausal women published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics reported a connection between higher intakes of dairy foods (including cottage cheese) and lower levels of CRP and IL-6. The same study revealed that eating yogurt was linked to a drop in type 2 diabetes risk.
Fat-free, 1% and 2% fat cottage cheese have less saturated fat and fewer calories than the 4% fat variety, which includes cream. Lower fat varieties also generally have slightly more protein.
Cottage Cheese Is a Versatile Processed Food. Many people are rightfully confused as to what makes a food product or beverage processed. Processes such as pasteurizing milk, canning fruits and vegetables, and vacuum packing meats help prevent spoilage and increase overall food safety.
“I would consider limiting cottage cheese intake to 1 cup per day to allow for nutrient variety,” Voelkers advises. Before purchasing, she says to compare food labels as some cottage cheese can be higher in sodium than others, and the low-fat varieties may sneak in sugar.
What is in cottage cheese that burns fat? Cottage cheese itself does not burn fat. But it is high in protein, with 25 grams per one cup serving. Fat is burned through exercise and moving your body.
Cottage cheese has decent amount of phosphorous which helps in digestion and excretion. The magnesium present in cottage cheese can also prevent constipation. Magnesium has a laxative effect. Which means it draws water into the stools, making them softer and easier to pass through the intestinal walls.
Cottage cheese contains more protein than two eggs.
And that's just the protein in a personal-size cup of the stuff (5.3 oz)—in that size, those wannabe trendy cottage cheeses are weighing in at 16 to 19 grams of protein; eggs have about 6 g each.
It turns out consuming 30 grams of protein 30 minutes before bed—the amount in a little more than a cup of cottage cheese—was linked to stronger muscles, a quicker metabolism and better overall health in a study published in the British Journal of Nutrition.
What's more, cottage cheese is much lower in calories and fat and higher in protein than sour cream. Half a cup (105 g) contains 88 calories, 2.5 g of fat, and 11.5 g of protein. For reference, half a cup (120 g) of sour cream contains 238 calories, 23 g of fat, and just 3 g of protein ( 9 , 11 ).
Cottage cheese is made by acidifying milk, which results in the curds separating from the whey. After the curds are formed, they're rinsed and some salt may be added.
Emulsifiers and gums–There are many ingredients used as fillers, emulsifiers, and gums in cottage cheese like guar gum, acacia gum, xanthan gum, and soy lecithin. These give the cottage cheese a creamier “mouthfeel” and prevent everything from separating.
Cottage cheese is not aged. Cottage cheese can be low in calories compared to other types of cheese — similar to yogurt; this makes it popular among dieters and some health devotees. It can be used with various foods such as yogurt, fruit, toast, and granola, in salads, as a dip, and as a replacement for mayonnaise.
Introduction: My name is Tish Haag, I am a excited, delightful, curious, beautiful, agreeable, enchanting, fancy person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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