charlie* Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 I love French cheese but when I need as Delia puts it, a good strong cheese,I'm struggling. Can anyone give me advice on hard strong cheese that substitutes well for cheddar? Gruyere works well but I don't know of any others, short of sampling everything going! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babnik Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 try Comte...a little milder than Gruyere.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 This has been discussed many times before, though I'm not at all sure how well the search facility on the forum is working at present for most users.My own two centimes worth is that there is no real French equivalent. Cheddar is becoming available in a growing number of places in France, we have even had recipes using it in our local paper. If you do need a substitute, Gruyere is fine for cooking, but if you want something a bit closer then try Comte, as suggested above (go for the better, 6 months old varieties) or Cantal. Probably the nearest though is Beaufort. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Opalienne Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 I bought English Cheddar recently in Auchan. It was a strange orange colour but it tasted just like the real thing. I know what you mean about missing it - there isn't anything else quite the same! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mpprh Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 HiI use Comte extra 6 months old.The Auchan cheddar seems to be rather mild.Best of British ( http://www.bestofbritish.fr shops stock a mature cheddar. And my freezer has a few in reserve !Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teamedup Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 Comte is a type of gruyere anyway and the quality of it is so variable. I wouldn't touch other than a decent comte extra. And I rarely use it in cooking. I often use a mix of a decent emmantel, as there are some that aren't like tasteless rubber and a dutch cheese. I don't think anything melts like cheddar though. I've not felt withdrawal symptoms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nobby Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 Hi I dont know where you are but we get English cheddar from a farm near Manot(not far from Roumazieres Loubert.Dept16)He also does cheddar with chives and Double Gloucester.If this is any help I can get exact address for youLorraine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wicce Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 Hi. I don't know where you are, but Carrefour at St. Brieuc do a really nice cheddar with plenty of taste. Their other stores may well carry it. Mary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dog Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 Auchan sell cheddar but don't realise what it is or how it is made. So far they have sold 3 types a good West Country Farm Cheddar, with a good strong flavour and bite, probably one of the best cheddars I have tasted and it does not use animal rennet. They have also sold an orange coloured Scottish factory made cheddar that has a weak flavour and also another pale tasteless one. Interestingly they call it all Farm Cheddar and charge the same price €12.?? a kilo. When I last went to the Auchan cheese counter they asked if I'd come to collect my order so it seems they will get it in for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patf Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 Cantal is a firm cheese which makes good cheese-on-toast - a favourite with marmite. You can get it young, old or middle-aged. To be honest I've forgotten what cheddar tastes like so can't really compare. Pat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fantine<br><br><br><br>Susie Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 Cantal is the nearest to cheddar that I've found and is in three strengths. Comte is a very different texture altogether. Lagiole is also quite similar to cheddar which I also buy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miki Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 Cora near Saint Malo (St Jouan des Gerets) has some delicious mature cheddar in at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Hoare<br>All the best<br>Ian<br>La Souvigne Corrèze<br>http:www.souvigne.com Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 How I agree with you. Cheddar is truly irreplaceable. The nearest cheese to it that I know of is Cantal - rumour has it that this ancient cheese was a favourite of roman soldiers, who took it with them on their way north to conquer the UK - and the ancient Brits, who knew a good thing when they had "liberated" it, made their own version which became Cheddar. True or false, a Cantal Vieux can be quite close in flavour to a fully mature cheddar, and the oldest Cantal "cantal croûtard" can be nearly as mouth stripping as a really strong mature farmhouse cheddar. We both find that the "Vieux" is as strong as we like. You can try cooking with it, though my personal preference for cooking with cheese is to use 50:50 parmigiani reggiano and 2 year old comté. But when all's said and done, if my visitors/guests couldn't be relied upon to bring the odd pound or two of Jamie Montgomery's or Keen's best, I'd get REAL withdrawal symptoms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaligoBay Posted June 16, 2005 Share Posted June 16, 2005 To be honest I've forgotten what cheddar tastes like so can't really compare. Pat.Pat, I went without Cheddar for a long time, and even started to wonder what all the fuss was about. Then at last someone brought some over, and j'ai craqué, it's just divine, the way it melts on top of things, it melts in a sauce, it's tasty, it's, it's, it's........... it's Cheddar!!!! I live 95% of my life without it, quite happily, but the other 5%, mmmmmmm.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iceni Posted June 17, 2005 Share Posted June 17, 2005 Suggest that you try old Cantal or Salers, even stronger. Or ask your cheese person next time you go to market - that way you will get to try loads of cheeses !!Johnnot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie* Posted June 17, 2005 Author Share Posted June 17, 2005 Thanks for all the cheesy tips. I will go and tackle the cheesecounter today and all those pounds i've lost eating healthily will just have to go back on!I've just come back with a barrow load of cheeses and Cantal selars ( didn't spot the plain cantal until i'd ordered ) will do it for me... a little on the salty side but really not bad at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missy Posted June 17, 2005 Share Posted June 17, 2005 [quote]Cantal is a firm cheese which makes good cheese-on-toast - a favourite with marmite. You can get it young, old or middle-aged. To be honest I've forgotten what cheddar tastes like so can't really comp...[/quote]Cantal and its neighbour St Nectaire are good substitute for Cheddar. Having had these 2 cheeses forcefed at boarding school in France many moons ago, you'd think I would not want them mentionned in my presence but I actually crie out for them! and can't get them in UK, unless I visit a specialist cheese shop, my nearest is some 50 miles away. An expensive fix!...So I understand about you going 'cold turkey' with Cheddar.Once back home, Cheddar and Stilton (both farm manufactured-I don't go for any of the supermarket prewrap-sweet-soap stuff) are the only 2 UK cheese I would seriously miss! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Expat Posted June 17, 2005 Share Posted June 17, 2005 Intermarche at Villereal (47) have an excellent 'Mature Cheddar' - firm, plenty of bite and a delicious afterglow in the mouth too! Perhaps others in the chain may also stock it ...Bob & Jane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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