A detailed review of Vieux Pane cheese: composition, energy value and useful properties. Recipes with the participation of the product. How is cheese eaten and are there any contraindications to its use?
Vieux Pane is a French soft cheese made from pasteurized cow's milk with a washed brick-colored crust. It has a delicate fruity aroma and a slightly spicy creamy taste. It is very popular in its homeland and in other countries. It is a vegetarian and gluten free. It has a lot of useful properties for the human body, like other fermented milk products.
Features of the preparation of Vieux Pane cheese
The French learned how to make Vieux Pane cheese in 1979. It is known that the author of the recipe was a resident of the small French village of Rene Perrault, a culinary specialist with a special passion and recognized talent for cheese making. The villagers quickly fell in love with cheese. Over time, it began to be sold at food markets and fairs in various parts of the country. Over the years, Vieux Pane has won the respect of the real gourmets of France.
The recipe for Vieux Pane cheese has been preserved to this day. The product is actively manufactured in France by a factory method (by the Bongrain company) and exported to various countries of the world.
Generalized scheme for the preparation of Vieux Pane cheese:
- Milk pasteurization;
- Fermentation of milk;
- Spreading the cheese mass in round (sometimes square) shapes;
- Extract of cheese in rooms with a special microclimate for 2 weeks;
- Washing the cheese crust with salt water during the entire ripening period of the product.
As a result, cheese makers get cheese heads weighing 2.3 kg each. The standard diameter of the cheese wheel is 25 cm, the height is 3.5 cm.
Composition and calorie content of Vieux Pane cheese
Vieux Pane cheese contains milk from cows that are grazed near the Bongrain factory, table salt and a special fermented culture.
The calorie content of Vieux Pane cheese per 100 g is 353, 08 kcal, of which:
- Protein - 18 g;
- Fat - 31 g;
- Carbohydrates - 0.5 g;
- Dietary fiber - 0.04 g.
Vitamins and minerals in Vieux Pane cheese: A, B, PP, D, E, Iron (Fe), Calcium (Ca), Phosphorus (P), Sodium (Na), Magnesium (Mg), etc.
Useful properties of Vieux Pane cheese
The benefits of Vieux Pane cheese primarily lie in the high calcium content. This macronutrient is needed by the human body not only to strengthen bone tissue, it takes part in the processes of blood clotting and wound healing. Calcium-rich foods are often prescribed to patients after complex surgeries to strengthen and quickly restore the body. In order for the calcium contained in Vieux Pan to be better absorbed, in combination with cheese, you should eat foods rich in vitamin D. To get the daily intake of calcium, an adult needs to eat about 56 g of Vieux Pan.
Other beneficial properties of French cheese for the human body:
- Has a beneficial effect on the circulatory system. Cheese contains a large amount of saturated fat, which can be both dangerous and beneficial for humans. Eating a reasonable amount of saturated fat periodically can significantly improve heart function and normalize blood pressure. In cases of regular abuse of cow's milk cheese, a person may, on the contrary, face problems of the cardiovascular system and excess weight.
- Normalizes the functioning of the nervous system, helps to fight stress. Contains a large amount of vitamin B, which is indispensable for the prevention of nervous disorders. There are individual B-complex supplements that are prescribed to people to help maintain overall health and promote healthy sleep.
- Promotes muscle building. Vieux Pane contains a protein that is indispensable for those who play sports and are trying to gain mass by increasing muscle. Also, protein is involved in the production of hemoglobin by our body. Eating cheese daily will allow a person to get the right dose of animal protein.
- Maintains normal water-salt balance in the cells of the whole body. The cheese is rich in sodium. By taking this macronutrient in food in reasonable amounts, a person benefits his nervous system and kidneys.
On a note! Scientists have found that the cheese contains substances that affect the human digestive glands and increase his appetite. Therefore, a small slice of Vieux Pane eaten before the main meal will whet the appetite and activate the production of gastric juice. This, in turn, will ensure the rapid digestion of food eaten later.
Read more about the benefits of Idiasabal cheese
Contraindications and harm of Vieux Pane cheese
The harm of Vieux Pane cheese is that it contains a lot of salt. This element enters the product not only artificially with the help of humans. It is known that cow's milk also contains a small proportion of sodium.
In order not to disturb the water-salt balance in the body, a healthy person can eat only a few slices of salted cheese a day. An excess of sodium in the body leads to diseases of the cardiovascular system. This is due to the accumulation of excess moisture in the body and, as a consequence, the occurrence of an increased load on the blood vessels and the heart. The more water accumulates in the human body due to an excess of salt, the greater becomes his body weight. This entails new problems - increased wear and tear of joints, varicose veins and other diseases.
A person can gain weight not only due to the increased salinity of cheese - the product has a high calorie content. Cheese lovers often suffer from high blood cholesterol levels.
Too fatty Vieux Pane can harm children's liver, therefore it is not recommended to give it to babies under the age of 1, 5 years.
Cheese also contains a large amount of phosphorus, which can significantly harm the body of a person suffering from acute kidney disease. People with serious gastrointestinal conditions should also minimize their intake of Vieux Pané.
Many nutritionists say that cow's milk cheese can be addictive in humans. And it's not just the salty taste that almost all people love so much. In 1981, in the United States, scientists found a substance in cow's milk that was very similar in composition to morphine (an opiate that quickly becomes addictive). Experts have come to the conclusion that cows produce this substance on their own, like the well-known poppies. Also, milk contains a higher amount of casein, which, when it enters the human stomach, releases a whole set of other fairly powerful opiates.
Vieux Pane cheese recipes
In France, Vieux Pane is traditionally served in the form of slices placed on a crispy crust of bread. However, cheese is also suitable for more complex culinary dishes. The product goes well with various types of white wines.
Several recipes using Vieux Pane:
- Baked chicken fillet with cheese … Prepare 4 pieces of chicken for frying. It is important that the brisket is not too greasy, so fry them in a dry non-stick skillet (5 minutes on each side). Boil 150 g of rice. Wash and dice 2 tomatoes. Turn on the oven to heat up. Take 200 g of Vieux Pane cheese, peel it and cut the pulp into 4 pieces. Brush a baking sheet with sunflower oil (lightly). Place the fried chicken on top of it. Place 1 slice of cheese on top of the meat. Sprinkle it with finely chopped parsley. Bake the meat for 8 minutes. Put the chopped tomatoes into a salad bowl, add lettuce to them and season the resulting mass with olive oil. For a spicier salad, chop 1 clove of garlic into it and pepper. When the meat is done, place it on portioned plates and serve with the rice and vitamin salad. Bon Appetit!
- Plate with unusual snacks … Place 2 slices of dark bread and the same number of large pieces of French Vieux Panet cheese in the center of the plate. Place a few boiled broccoli inflorescences next to it (it is better to boil al dente cabbage). There may also be canned chestnuts on the plate, slightly warmed up in the microwave. Pieces of boiled pumpkin and baked potatoes "in their uniforms" will not be superfluous. A great addition to your appetizers will be a champignon salad. To prepare it, put the pickled mushrooms on a plate and add a little lemon juice to them, 1 tbsp. l. drinking yogurt and chopped green onions. If you love meat, be sure to add it to your plate in the form of a few slices of ham, skewered with chunks of beef jerky.
- Vegetable wok with cheese … Disassemble the broccoli into individual inflorescences. Boil the resulting mass in slightly salted water along with green peas (200 g) for 4 minutes. When the ingredients are slightly boiled but still crispy, rinse them under cold running water. Set the cabbage and peas aside and tackle the meat and bell peppers. Peel the peppers from the seeds and stalks and cut into oblong strips. Cut 2 large chicken fillets into the same slices. Heat a wok with a little sunflower oil. Add prepared meat here and fry over high heat (for 5 minutes). Remember to stir the meat constantly so that it cooks evenly on all sides. Add pepper, 150 g soy sprouts, cabbage and peas to the semi-prepared meat. Fry the resulting mass for 2 minutes. The last ingredient to fry in a wok is cheese slices (300 g). Heat it with the rest of the ingredients for a few seconds and remove the pan from heat. Season the vegetable and meat mixture with ground coriander and sesame oil. Pour soy sauce over the dish just before serving.
- Cheese tartins … Prepare 8 rye bread slices for the base of this appetizer. Now get into the stuffing. Cut 1 large onion into rings. Cut 150 g of dry-cured beef and 300 g of Vieux Pane cheese into very thin slices. On each slice of bread, place onion rings you have disassembled by hand. Place 1 slice of meat and 2 slices of cheese on top. Bake the tartini in a preheated oven for just a few minutes to melt the cheese without dripping out of the snacks. It is customary to serve tartins on a pillow of lettuce leaves. Therefore, put several green lettuce leaves in portioned plates and pour over it with a mixture of 3 tbsp. l. drinking yogurt and 1 tsp. balsamic vinegar. Place the appetizers on salad plates and serve warm.
On a note! Tartinki are a type of small sandwiches that should be enough for exactly one bite. The basis for such a snack can be not only bread, but also all kinds of crackers or pieces of bagels.
Interesting facts about Vieux Pane cheese
Among cheese makers and gourmets, Vieux Pane is commonly called “washed crust” cheese. The cheese makers decided to wash the edges of the cheese head with a saline solution in order to stop the growth of unwanted microflora on the surface of the product, as well as to give it a beautiful appearance.
In the process of washing, various chemical reactions are activated on the surface of the cheese, which ultimately lead to a coarsening of the outer layer of the product. So the crust turns into a shell that protects the cheese pulp from the negative effects of the environment.
Watch the video about Vieux Pane cheese:
Vieux Pane is an exquisite cheese produced in France and highly regarded among gourmets in various countries. Anyone who loves cheeses with a pronounced creamy taste should try this product. Vieux Pane is perfect for preparing almost any culinary dish that requires soft cheese made from cow's milk.
