Mild cheddar
young cow's-milk cheese · Cheese
Top 10 pairings
Mild cheddar is cheddar caught young — aged only about two to three months, before time can turn it sharp. It is the palest and softest-flavoured cheddar: pale ivory to light orange, smooth and faintly springy rather than crumbly, with a mellow milky-buttery taste and only the gentlest tang. That youth also makes it the best-melting cheddar, which is why it is the one reached for in grilled cheese, toasties and cheese sauces.
Picking a good onedrag
Firm, clean cut face, tangySweating, cracked, rancid
Wrapped wedgeEveryday bestPregnant, over 65 or low immunity? Pick pasteurised, or heat it steaming hot.
Cut faceEven colour, face a shade duller
Smell at the cutTrue to its age, a little quieter
These cues are Cheddar's, and hold across its varieties; where this one differs, its own page says so.