The history of the origin of the noble cheese from France. How is it useful? Can its use have a negative effect on the body? How to serve Beaufort on a cheese plate and in what dishes is it better to add it?
Beaufort cheese is an ivory French hard cheese with an original spicy-creamy taste with fruity and nutty notes. Differs in a long aftertaste, has an almost uniform consistency. Produced by Beaufort in Haute-Savoie. The cheese is unique in its kind. It is prepared with the highest quality Alpine cows milk. Moreover, milk of only two breeds of animals is used - abondance and Tarinskaya. The cows feed exclusively on pasture, and the pastures are located at an altitude of 2000 m above sea level. A real Beaufort always has a Certificate of Authenticity, meaning that the product is locally prepared and tested for quality. It is produced not by industrial plants, but by small private farms. This unique cheese will be a great decoration for a cheese plate, will help to prepare an unforgettable fondue and will add an unusual touch to any classic dish.
Features of making Beaufort cheese
Few amateur cheese makers dare to cook Beaufort. One of the main limiting factors is the aging time - it matures for at least 5 months. In addition, there are many tricks and subtleties in cooking, without which the discrepancies in taste can be very significant.
Step by step, the cooking process is as follows:
- The milk is heated to the required temperature using an accurate thermometer, and a special sourdough is added to it.
- In several stages, milk is curdled and transferred to a linen cloth, then the pressing stage begins.
- After about a day under pressure, the cheese is sent to a saline solution - it is noteworthy that soaking in brine is carried out in wooden cellars made of spruce.
- After salting, the Beaufort is put into a mold, a special wooden hoop is put on and placed in a cellar with a precisely calibrated temperature regime and a certain humidity.
- Ripening lasts from 150 days, periodically the heads are turned over and "lubricated" with saline solution.
You can, of course, buy special equipment and cook Beaufort yourself, but even a small mistake can make the cheese tasteless. So the best way to taste the true Beaufort is to go to France, it is almost impossible to find something similar on the shelves of our stores.
But even in France, you should be careful when buying a Beaufort. An authentic product must have three distinctive features:
- Concave crust - it is formed under the pressure of a wooden hoop put on the mold;
- There should be a blue mark on the head of the cheese;
- There must also be an AOC quality label.
It only makes sense to buy a product that meets these requirements when you find yourself in Paris or another French city. The best brands of Beaufort are Chignin, Chablis and Apremont.
There are three types of beaufort in total - Beaufort d'Alpage, Chalet d'Alpage, Beaufort d'Hiver, the first is considered the most valuable, as it is made from milk that cows give in the summer. It is at this point that the animals receive the best food.
Composition and calorie content of Beaufort cheese
The calorie content of Beaufort cheese is 350 kcal per 100 grams, of which:
- Proteins - 26.3 g;
- Fat - 26.6 g;
- Carbohydrates - 0 g.
The product contains a lot of calcium.
Useful properties of Beaufort cheese
In France, Beaufort is recommended for use by pregnant women and the elderly. The highest quality of the raw materials used and strict control of production at all stages guarantees the absence of harmful impurities and unnecessary food additives in the product. The two most valuable ingredients in cheese are protein and calcium.
Beaufort is a source of high quality protein
It contains all 20 amino acids required by our body, in good proportion. Among them, 8 are irreplaceable and 12 are replaceable. Complete protein not only helps in muscle building, but also plays a huge role in many other life processes. It is worth mentioning at least the fact that most enzymes have a protein part, and without enzymes, all metabolic processes slow down many times.
However, the main benefit of Beaufort cheese is provided by calcium, which:
- Participates in the process of muscle contractility and the excitability of nerve tissues, which is why cramps, muscle spasms, tingling in the extremities are a sure sign of a lack of calcium;
- Affects blood clotting - helps to form special blood clots to plug tissue ruptures;
- Affects the permeability of membranes and is part of the nucleus and membrane of the cell;
- It counteracts excess cholesterol levels - the mineral is able to block saturated fats in the digestive tract.
Scientists also note the role of calcium in hormonal balance, it regulates the activity of the pituitary gland, genital, pancreas and thyroid glands, as well as the adrenal glands.
Contraindications and harm of Beaufort cheese
Beaufort, like any other cheese, is excluded from the diet if lactase deficiency … If the body is not able to digest the sugar in cow's milk - lactose, that is, there is no special enzyme lactase in the intestine, various disorders arise after consuming dairy products. There is much less lactose in cheese than in milk, and therefore in mild cases of the disease, when lactase is still produced, but in smaller quantities, you can eat cheese. If the enzyme is completely absent or is produced in very small quantities, it must also be excluded from the diet.
Beaufort cheese will harm overweight, since it has a high calorie content and fat content.
People should strictly limit their cheese consumption with diseases of the urinary system … This is due to the high content of sodium salts in it due to the long soaking in brine. However, for this reason, Beaufort should be consumed in moderation by healthy people, so as not to provoke imbalances in water and mineral balance.
Note! If you have a medical condition that requires a therapeutic diet, be sure to consult your doctor before introducing Beaufort into your diet.
Beaufort cheese recipes
If you are lucky enough to get your hands on a slice of real Beaufort, its best use is serving on a cheese plate. The French serve it on it with smoked salmon, various vegetables, fruits and, of course, nuts - Beaufort with walnuts is especially good. The cheese itself for the plate is cut into thin slices. The wine is served dry - white, pink or red. Champagne also goes well with Beaufort. Note that you need to remove the cheese from the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving.
Beaufort is often used to make fondues and sauces, in addition, no one forbids using it in classic dishes - pizza, salads, casseroles and various hot dishes.
Let's look at some interesting uses in Beaufort cheese recipes:
- Pancakes with cream and cheese sauce … Boil potatoes (4 pieces), cool, then grate and crush additionally. Heat butter in a frying pan and fry chopped onions (1 head), cabbage (200 grams), garlic (2 cloves). Mix potatoes with vegetables and egg yolk (2 pieces). Divide the whole mixture into 4-5 parts, mold the pancakes and fry in a pan. Prepare the sauce: pour heavy cream (200 ml) into a saucepan, add grated Beaufort cheese (200 grams) and, without stopping stirring, bring to a liquid homogeneous state. Add spices and, if necessary, dilute with a little water. Put the pancakes on a plate, sprinkle with herbs to taste, put cheese sauce next to it.
- Three cheese fondue … Heat vegetable oil (1 tablespoon) in a fondue dish, put coarsely chopped garlic (2 cloves), gently massage until a distinct aroma appears. Pour in dry white wine (200 ml), add salt and pepper to taste, bring to a boil and gradually begin to put the cheese. Make sure that the mass does not boil, but only slightly bubbles. You need to take three types of cheese - Beaufort (100 grams), Cheddar (100 grams) and Gruyere (40 grams) - however, this is only a recommendation, you can combine any of your favorite cheeses. When all the cheese is melted, add any liquor (1 teaspoon). Serve the fondue with fresh baguette and vegetable sticks.
- Aromatic risotto … Pour the saffron (on the tip of a knife) with boiling water (50 ml). Finely chop the onions (200 grams), garlic (2 cloves) and leeks (100 grams). Heat the olive (50 ml) and butter (100 grams) in a frying pan, add the garlic first, then the onion mixture. When the vegetables are tender, add arborio rice (400 grams) - no other risotto will work. Fry it for a couple of minutes, it is necessary for it to soak in oil. Pour in white wine (200 ml) and part of the broth (500 ml) - preferably chicken, but you can either, bring to a boil and reduce heat. While stirring constantly, cook the rice, gradually adding the broth. When the broth is over, add the saffron and continue cooking. Try the rice, if it is almost all soft and only in the center there is still hardness, salt and pepper the dish to taste, add parsley (20 grams), butter (20 grams) and turn off the heat after a couple of minutes. Sprinkle the finished dish with a mixture of Parmesan and Beaufort (30 grams each).
- Delicate summer casserole … Grease a baking dish with oil, line with diced courgettes (2 small). Combine 3 beaten eggs with milk (150 ml) and dried basil to taste. Finely chop the parsley (20 grams) and add to the mass, add flour there (6 tablespoons) and pour olive oil (6 tablespoons). Pour zucchini with the resulting mixture, put thin Beaufort plates (50 grams) on top and bake for 40 minutes in an oven preheated to 200 degrees.
- Salad with shrimp … Wash and dry lettuce leaves (50 grams). Boil shrimps (150 grams) in salted water. Cut the cherry tomatoes (8 pieces) into halves. Cut the Beaufort (70 grams) into slices. Put lettuce leaves on portioned plates, on top, randomly - cheese, tomatoes, shrimps. Season with olive oil and lemon juice to taste. Add salt and your favorite spices if needed.
Note! Beaufort is a hard cheese that is very difficult to grate, consider this if you want to use it in a particular recipe. If fine cheese chips are needed, the Beaufort will have to be finely chopped with a knife.
Interesting facts about Beaufort cheese
Savoy is considered the birthplace of Beaufort, a historical region in the south-east of France, located right at the foot of the Alps. Initially, local monks began to produce it. There is a theory according to which the monks cooked not according to an independently developed technology, but according to the recipe of the Roman Empire. Thus, Beaufort is a kind of gift to France from Italy.
Previously, the cheese was called "vashren", which translates as "cow". However, when an active production of cheese began to develop near the village of Beaufort, it was decided to change the name to the same name.
Beaufort gained particular popularity in the middle of the 19th century, and about a century later it was awarded the AOC certificate. The document is issued by the French Ministry of Agriculture and guarantees that the product is made in a specific area and subject to a number of requirements.
Beaufort is one of the "largest" cheeses, its heads reach 40-50 kg in size. To produce one, you need to collect milk from about 45 cows. Considering that these cows are special, it is not surprising that Beaufort is one of the most expensive cheeses, the price of a kilogram starts at $ 100 per kilogram.
The Belarusian company "Babushkina Krynka" produces cheese called "Beaufor", which has nothing to do with the real thing. Of course, Alpine milk is not included in the Beaufort cheese from Minsk. And in general, it differs in all respects, has a different taste and texture - in a true Beaufort it is homogeneous, in Belarusian there are large holes. In addition, Beaufort from France cannot be grated, but the analogue from "Grandma's Krynka" lends itself easily to this procedure.
Beaufort is a unique French cheese made from the highest quality milk for true connoisseurs. You can only get a true Beaufort in France and for a lot of money, but it's worth it. Cheese has an unusual taste, and it is best to taste it neat on a cheese plate, accompanied by a pairing of wine or champagne, as well as nuts and fruits. Beaufort is not only tasty, but also healthy, it contains a large amount of the most important element for our body - calcium. However, cheese also has contraindications, which must be familiarized with before use.
