Gruyere cheese is a delicious variety of cheese that is often found in fondue recipes. It Is a type of swiss cheese that is relatively easy to find. While most find the flavor to be quite delectable, others are still searching for the best gruyere cheese substitute.
Whether you are having trouble finding quality gruyere cheese or you aren’t a fan of the flavor, there are many substitutions available to accommodate any recipe that requires gruyere cheese.
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What Is Gruyere Cheese?
Gruyere is a rather firm cheese that is made from cow’s milk. It is pale yellow in color and has a smooth and creamy texture. Gruyere cheese is most commonly used as a melting cheese but it also quite popular for cheese boards and antipastos. Gruyere cheese is made in Switzerland and is surprisingly more popular than swiss cheese itself.
While it originated in Gruyere, Switzerland; it has been a long-argued fact because it is made so close to the French border. To add to the confusion, there is also an Australian variety of cheese that is also named gruyere.
The disagreement regarding where the cheese originated is one that was so heated, it caused a three-year battle of the claim of the cheese. The long strung out battle eventually led to much needed mediation, which ended in favor of the swiss.
It is made in large round that weigh in at an upward amount of approximately 200 pounds and then aged for around a one year period. Many gruyere cheeses have the appearance of holes, similar to those you find in swiss cheese. However, the swiss made gruyere cheese doesn’t have holes and the French variety does.
While the history of this rich and nutty cheese is one that will always be argued, it is readily available across the globe. Gruyere is a delicious addition to any dish and very common in amongst the fine dining community.
The Best Substitutes And How To Use Them
If you are cooking a gourmet recipe or even just something simple, substituting gruyere cheese is pretty easy. While you won’t exactly have the same gourmet effect with other cheeses, there are many other sufficient options available.
Each individual type of cheese has a distinct flavor and adds a very unique taste to each dish it is used in. In order to replace gruyere in a recipe, you need a cheese that is mild in flavor, slightly on the salty side, and has a similar texture.
Gruyere is a very fine cheese that has a rather mellow texture. It is commonly used to euxanthate a dish rather than over power the flavors. The following are all great options for gruyere cheese substitutes and how to use them to accomplish a similar and delicious flavor profile.
1. Beaufort Cheese
Also, known as comte’ cheese, beaufort cheese is often a great substitute for gruyere cheese. It is creamier and richer than gruyere but melts just as well as gruyere. It is an ideal substitute to be used in fondue recipes in which the main cheese is typically gruyere and is also a great accommodation to hot sandwiches and other recipes where a hot gooey melted gruyere would traditionally be used.
Beaufort cheese is a noble alpine cheese that is made in the French alps. It is made from unpasteurized cow’s milk and allowed to age for 4 to 6 months. It is formed into wheels that are as large as 130 pounds. It is believed to be one of the finest hard cheeses available and though it is rather unknown, a good specialty shop or deli should be able to accommodate your fine taste in cheese.
2. Swiss Cheese
Swiss cheese is available in many different varieties but often al swiss cheese with holes is simply known by the generic name of swiss cheese. Swiss cheese has a mild and almost sweet flavor that is very savory without being over-powering. While the most well-known attribute of swiss cheese is the holes, swiss cheese can just as easily be found without the holes, which are more appropriately named eyes. The more eyes in the cheese, the more pronounced the flavor will be.
Swiss cheese pairs very well with sweet fruits, such as, peaches, pears, apples, grapes as well as cured meats like salami and prosciutto. Swiss cheese is a great option for melting cheese and can be used in fondue and other hot dishes well. Swiss cheese does have a much different flavor than gruyere when paired side by side, but overall will depict a great outcome when used in a substitution.
3. Emmental Cheese
Emmantel cheese is a traditional swiss cheese that Emmental cheese is a very fruity and slightly acidic cheese. It also happens to be one of the most difficult cheeses to produce due to a complicated fermentation process. While emmental cheese may not be the easiest to acquire, it is among the smoothest melting cheeses produced. Because it is such a great melting cheese, it is the perfect cheese to use in fondue. Many even prefer emmental cheese for fondue in opposition to gruyere cheese.
When fully melted, emmental has a smooth and creamy texture, with no grit. Its rich and nutty flavor can also be paired with a delicious cheese board. While when melted iit has a creamy rich consistency; when eaten raw it has a slightly elastic feel that begins to crumble when you chew or break it apart.
Conclusion
Regardless of whether or not you are replacing gruyere in a recipe due to a lack of availability or you simply aren’t a fan, all of the above varieties are optimal options. Try out a few different types of cheeses as gruyere substitutes and discover which type of cheese is your favorite.
Who knows, you may stumble upon a gourmet cheese combination that you simply can’t resist! Do you have a favorite cheese that is your go to substitute when a recipe calls for gruyere? Let us know all of the details in the comment section at the bottom!
