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How Do I Choose the Best Quiche Cheese?

Sheri Cyprus
Sheri Cyprus

To choose the best quiche cheese, first consider your favorite flavors. If you like strong cheese, you can add a few milder cheeses to use in a quiche. If you prefer mild cheese, adding a small amount of a stronger variety can help ensure your quiche will have enough flavor. Since quiches are egg custard pies that are basically quite bland with subtle seasoning, the cheese should provide a dominate taste while still allowing the flavor of the eggs, seasonings and vegetables to come through. Especially if you prefer to use only one quiche cheese at a time, Gruyere is an excellent as well as classic choice.

A sweet, salty cheese, Gruyere becomes stronger the more it's aged. It also melts well and has the savory qualities to enhance rather than overpower the other quiche ingredients. If you can't get Gruyere quiche cheese, Emmental or Swiss can work well although they're a little stronger. Muenster cheese is another traditional choice for quiche that can range from mild to strong depending on how it's aged. Other strong cheeses that can work deliciously well in quiche include blue or bleu, Parmesan, aged cheddar and Asiago.

Thick slice of Gruyere cheese, a popular quiche cheese.
Thick slice of Gruyere cheese, a popular quiche cheese.

Asiago, cheddar and Parmesan together along with the milder mozzarella to even out the flavors can make a great cheese blend for quiche as well as other dishes. Some cooks enjoy Parmesan sprinkled on the top for a quiche cheese that forms a cheesy crust. Bleu or blue cheese could be placed in a blend, but it's often used alone in quiches to enhance smoky meat ingredients such as bacon or interesting vegetables like leek or asparagus. A strong, salty cheese like feta mixes well with spinach and mushrooms in a quiche.

Blue cheese can be blended with other cheeses for quiche.
Blue cheese can be blended with other cheeses for quiche.

Mild quiche cheeses to blend in with strong ones include Colby and Monterey Jack although mozzarella is a popular choice as well. If you use too much mozzarella as a quiche cheese though, you may find there is too much "stretchiness" reminiscent of pizza. For showcasing the rich flavors of ingredients such as smoked salmon, caramelized onions and/or dill weed in quiches, the subtle taste of havarti can be a good fit. Havarti cheese also tends to bring out tomato flavors in quiche.

Cheese wheels aging on shelves.
Cheese wheels aging on shelves.

If you plan on adding fruits such as apple or pumpkin to a quiche, choose a cheese with a hint of sweetness such as brie. Brie can also be a delicious quiche cheese with red peppers or caramelized onions. For sweet quiches, the Greek cheese myzithra can be an ideal choice. It also works well with eggplant.

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Discussion Comments

discographer

I like sharp cheeses in my quiche too. My favorite type of quiche is Swiss cheese and ham quiche. I think Swiss cheese works perfect. Mild cheeses make the quiche taste only like eggs. Plus, they have different types of Swiss cheese at the store -- mild, sharp and extra sharp. So the flavor of the cheese doesn't have to be dominating.

serenesurface

@ysmina-- I personally don't like quiche made with anything other than Gruyere. At least most of the cheese should be Gruyere for it to be quiche in my opinion. But it's your quiche, so it's up to your taste.

It's a good idea to use a milder cheese like mozzarella along with goat cheese or sheep's milk cheese though because those have strong flavors. If you use too much, it will overpower the whole dish and everything will taste like goat cheese.

Why not use a very trivial amount of goat cheese and use Gruyere as the main cheese?

ysmina

Has anyone tried goat cheese or sheep's milk cheese in quiche?

I'm thinking off using a little bit of these, along with mozzarella. But will it work well?

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    • Thick slice of Gruyere cheese, a popular quiche cheese.
      Thick slice of Gruyere cheese, a popular quiche cheese.
    • Blue cheese can be blended with other cheeses for quiche.
      Blue cheese can be blended with other cheeses for quiche.
    • Cheese wheels aging on shelves.
      Cheese wheels aging on shelves.
    • Havarti cheese, which can be included in tomato quiches.
      Havarti cheese, which can be included in tomato quiches.
    • Grated Parmesan cheese can be a good addition to a quiche.
      By: Bert Folsom
      Grated Parmesan cheese can be a good addition to a quiche.
    • Aged cheddar can add a strong flavor to quiche.
      By: Bert Folsom
      Aged cheddar can add a strong flavor to quiche.
    • Monterey Jack is a mild cheese that can be paired with stronger cheeses for a quiche.
      By: Cheryl Casey
      Monterey Jack is a mild cheese that can be paired with stronger cheeses for a quiche.
    • Cheeses like cheddar, Gruyere, and Swiss, make quiche taste delicious.
      By: MIGUEL GARCIA SAAVED
      Cheeses like cheddar, Gruyere, and Swiss, make quiche taste delicious.
    • Eggs are one of the main ingredients in quiche.
      By: andriigorulko
      Eggs are one of the main ingredients in quiche.
    • A crustless vegetable quiche made with very little cheese is a good breakfast option for people who are monitoring their intake of fats and carbohydrates.
      By: Anticiclo
      A crustless vegetable quiche made with very little cheese is a good breakfast option for people who are monitoring their intake of fats and carbohydrates.