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Lancashire Cheese is white.

To make Lancashire Cheese, starter and rennet is added to milk. When the milk has curdled, the curds are cut, then the whey is drained off, and the curd is pressed until dry. The curd is let sit overnight, then chopped up, and fresh curd from that new, second day is added, mixed in and it is all salted. Some producers only mix first day curd and second day curd on the third day. The cheese is then pressed for two days, bandaged, waxed, or buttered, and let mature.

Young Lancashire Cheese

Young Lancashire Cheese is known also as "Creamy Lancashire", because it is moist and creamy. It is crumbly and has a mild tang to its taste.

It is aged for a few months.

Aged Lancashire

Aged Lancashire is usually aged at least six months. This makes it firmer, and gives it a stronger flavour. For this reason, it is also known as "Tasty Lancashire.

Farmhouse Lancashire

Farmhouse Lancashire is made from unpasteurized cow's milk. The milk may from the maker's own herd, or from milk purchased from neighbouring farms. As with regular Lancashire, curd is added to curd made the previous day. It is then drained, salted, pressed, and bound in cloth that is buttered to seal it for better aging. It is aged 6 to 12 months.

The cheese is cream-coloured with a soft flavour and crumbly texture.

The cheese was first made in 1913. By 1939, there were 202 makers of it. It almost died out during World War II, though, when owing to rationing production of anything but "National Cheddar" was not allowed. As of 2004, there were only 3 makers left, one of whom is Shorrocks in Goosnargh, Lancashire. The challenge they are now facing is from Health Officials, who are uneasy about anything to do with unpasteurized milk.

See "Farmhouse Cheese" for a fuller explanation of the term.

Cooking Tips
Lancashire is a good melting cheese. It's great for cauliflower cheese, and it's also many people's preferred classic cheese for "cheese on toast": in Lancashire, it's often referred to as "toaster" cheese.

When heated, the cheese stays soft and won't go rubbery.





History
Lancashire Cheese used to be made only in Lancashire, England. Now it is mostly made outside the county. It also used to be made from unpasteurized milk, but now only the Farmhouse versions are made from unpasteurized.

Today most Lancashire Cheese is mass produced to meet the demand.

See Also:

Farmhouse Cheese

Other entries for:

Soft Cheeses
Añejo Cheese, Banon Cheese, Boilie Cheese, Boursin Cheese, Brie Cheese, Brillat-Savarin Cheese, Bruss Cheese, Burrata Cheese, Caboc Cheese, Camembert Cheese, Chèvre Frais, Cornish Yarg Cheese, Crottin de Chavignol Cheese, Crowdie Cheese, Cumulus Cheese, Edel de Cléron Cheese, Feta Cheese, Feuille d'automne Cheese, Fresh Cheeses, La Tur Cheese, Lancashire Cheese, Le Veillon Cheese, Lymeswold Cheese, Mitzithra Cheese (Fresh), Oaxaca Cheese, Oxford Isis Cheese, Pié d'angloys, Pithiviers Cheese, Squacquerone Cheese, St-Nectaire Cheese, Tarapatapom Cheese, Telemes Cheese, Vacherin Chaput Cheese, Vacherin Mont d'Or, Wensleydale with Cranberries

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Affinage, American Cheeses, Casu Marzu, Cheese Rinds, Creamery, Double/Triple-Cream Cheese, Extra-Hard Cheeses, Firm Cheeses, Goat's Milk Cheeses, Mexican Cheeses, Pate (of a Cheese), Processed Cheese, Queso Fundido, Rennet, Semi-Firm Cheeses, Sheep's Milk Cheeses, Skim-Milk Cheeses, Smear-Ripened Cheeses, Surface-Ripened Cheeses, Sweet Curd Cheeses, The Crumblies, Truckle, Washed-Curd Cheeses, Washed-Rind Cheeses, Yak Cheese, Yeel Cheese

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Butterfat, Butter, Milk, Nondairy Topping