Can you eat the white coating around brie cheese and camembert?!
Can you eat the white coating around brie cheese and camembert?
I used to think you couldn't but a friend of mine said you can- I must say, it does tastes very good, although I know it is a preservative...???????
Answers:
One way to know if you like it, you must eat it.
Bloomy-Rind and Soft-Ripened Cheeses
Cheeses in this category have rinds covered with a thin layer of a white mold, known as a bloomy down or flowery rind. To achieve this coating, the surfaces of the cheeses have been treated with a mold called Penicillium candidum, which developes into a white crust. Most of these cheeses are soft. Their interiors soften with age, becoming creamy and sometimes thick and runny. The cheeses ripen from the outer edge to the center, so you can determine if a cheese is mature by lightly touching the center of the cheese to see if it is soft. The cheeses are tangy and rich, yet delicate and luscious. Their flavors become fuller with age. The WHITE RIND is edible. but if you don't like it, just cut it off and discard it.
The most famous bloomy-rind cheeses are Brie and Camembert. The most magnificent Brie of all is Brie de Meaux, which is farm-made in France from unpasteurized milk, and therefore seldom found in the United States.
Best with full=flavored Chardonnays, Champagne with Brie.