Västerbotten cheese
Encyclopedia
Västerbotten cheese is a cheese
from the Västerbotten
region of Sweden
. It is a hard cow's milk
cheese with tiny eyes or holes and a firm and granular texture. As in Cheddar cheese
, the curd is heated, cut, and stirred before the cheese is moulded and aged. Strong in flavour, its taste is described as somewhat like Parmesan cheese, salty, but with more bitter notes. It is light yellow in colour and has a fat content of 31%. Some Swedish people consider it the king of cheese and demand for it has often outstripped the limited supply. For this reason, it is roughly twice as expensive as other types of aged cheese. Västerbotten cheese must be aged for at least 12 months, but 14 months is more common.
The village of Burträsk
(now part of the Skellefteå
municipality) claims Västerbotten cheese was invented there in the 1870s, supposedly by a dairy maid, Eleonora Lindström. According to legend, she was left alone to stir the curd of a traditional cheese but was interrupted, either by other chores or an assignation with her lover. This resulted in alternating periods of heating and stirring of the curd
ling milk.
Västerbotten cheese is produced only by Norrmejerier, at the dairy in Burträsk.
. It adds distinctive flavor to the highly popular Västerbotten cheese pie
.
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
from the Västerbotten
Västerbotten
', English exonym: West Bothnia, is a province or landskap in the north of Sweden. It borders Ångermanland, Lapland, Norrbotten and the Gulf of Bothnia. It is famous for the cheese with the same name as the province.- Administration :...
region of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. It is a hard cow's milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
cheese with tiny eyes or holes and a firm and granular texture. As in Cheddar cheese
Cheddar cheese
Cheddar cheese is a relatively hard, yellow to off-white, and sometimes sharp-tasting cheese, produced in several countries around the world. It has its origins in the English village of Cheddar in Somerset....
, the curd is heated, cut, and stirred before the cheese is moulded and aged. Strong in flavour, its taste is described as somewhat like Parmesan cheese, salty, but with more bitter notes. It is light yellow in colour and has a fat content of 31%. Some Swedish people consider it the king of cheese and demand for it has often outstripped the limited supply. For this reason, it is roughly twice as expensive as other types of aged cheese. Västerbotten cheese must be aged for at least 12 months, but 14 months is more common.
The village of Burträsk
Burträsk
Burträsk is a locality situated in Skellefteå Municipality, Västerbotten County, Sweden with 1,632 inhabitants in 2005.Burträsk Court District, or Burträsks tingslag, was a district of Västerbotten in Sweden. The provinces in Norrland were never divided into hundreds and instead the court district ...
(now part of the Skellefteå
Skellefteå
-Industry:*Boliden AB, a big mining and smelting company*Alimak*Natural User Interface Technologies AB - NUITEQ, a promising emerging technology start-up company-Sports:*Skellefteå AIK, an ice hockey team in the highest Swedish league, Elitserien....
municipality) claims Västerbotten cheese was invented there in the 1870s, supposedly by a dairy maid, Eleonora Lindström. According to legend, she was left alone to stir the curd of a traditional cheese but was interrupted, either by other chores or an assignation with her lover. This resulted in alternating periods of heating and stirring of the curd
Curd
Curds are a dairy product obtained by curdling milk with rennet or an edible acidic substance such as lemon juice or vinegar, and then draining off the liquid portion. The increased acidity causes the milk proteins to tangle into solid masses, or curds. The remaining liquid, which contains only...
ling milk.
Västerbotten cheese is produced only by Norrmejerier, at the dairy in Burträsk.
Use
In Sweden, Västerbotten cheese is considered a must-have for the late summer Crayfish partyCrayfish party
A crayfish party is a traditional summertime eating and drinking celebration in the Nordic countries. The tradition originated in Sweden, where a crayfish party is called a kräftskiva...
. It adds distinctive flavor to the highly popular Västerbotten cheese pie
Pie
A pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough casing that covers or completely contains a filling of various sweet or savoury ingredients....
.