Smoked gouda is one of the many different kinds of smoked cheeses. A website specializing in cheeses explained that smoked gouda comes from smoking gouda cheese in brick ovens over flaming hickory chip embers. This hard, artisan cheese has a waxed rind and a pale yellow.
Smoked Gouda Trivia
- It is a common misconception of many people who think Gouda cheese was named Gouda because it was made there. In fact, it was called Gouda cheese because these cheeses – made in various locations in the Netherlands – were traded in Gouda’s cheese market, hence the designation. Photis Papademas and Thomas Bintsis wrote in the 2017 book entitled Global Cheesemaking Technology: Cheese Quality and Characteristics: “Gouda cheese production has developed since the Middle Ages and reached full growth in the seventeenth century. While the cheese was produced in different Dutch provinces, trading took place in the Dutch town of Gouda. The cheese…traded on the Gouda cheese market and received tjhe designation ‘gouda’ in the eighteenth century.”
Smoked Gouda Buying Guide
Jennifer Segal, in the book entitled Once Upon a Chef, the Cookbook: 100 Tested, Perfected, and Family-Approved Recipes, wrote: “Most supermarkets with good cheese departments carry smoked Gouda.”
When buying smoked gouda, it is always best to choose brands with generally positive reviews or those recommended by family and friends who knows cheese. Why? To minimize the risk of buying bad quality smoked gouda. Gordon Edgar, in the book entitled Cheesemonger: A Life on the Wedge, wrote: “Most smoked Gouda is crap. Those round sausage-y logs you see all over the place? Those are the processed remains of Goudas that didn’t work out for whatever reason…Naturally smoked, unprocessed Gouda (Holland, US) is the obvious choice.”
Smoked Gouda Production & Farming in Texas
There are many local businesses in Texas that make and sell smoked gouda. Rust Meat Market & Game Processing in New Braunfels sells smoked gouda, as well as Brazos Valley Cheese in Waco, Texas. The Amazing Dip Company in Plano, Texas sells Cameron’s Smoked Gouda Dip (choice of original, spicy, mild, garlic, and vegetarian variants/flavors). Dutch Farmstead Cheese in Farwell, Texas, makes smoked goudas which the restaurant Savory Bistro in Bartonville uses as ingredient in making different dishes.
You can also find smoked gouda in major supermarkets and groceries in Texas. Walmart in Bentonville, for example, sells smoked gouda. H-E-B, an American privately held supermarket chain based in San Antonio, Texas, has its own Post Oak Smoked Gouda.
Pesticides, Additives, and Chemicals
Smoked gouda may contain one or more of the additives listed below.
- Calcium propionate
- Cheese cultures
- Food coloring
- Microbial enzymes
- Salt
- Sodium
- Sodium Phosphate
- Sorbic Acid
- Sugar
Gordon Edgar, in the book entitled Cheesemonger: A Life on the Wedge, wrote: “Cooked, emulsified, processed, plasticized, and “smoked,” sometimes with chemical flavor. They give smoked cheese a bad name.”
Geography
Smoked gouda is produced in all around the world, in places that specializes in producing cheese. It is available in Europe, particularly in Netherlands, the point of origin of gouda cheese. In the US, cheese-making companies in Texas as well as Wisconsin, Georgia, California, and Illinois, among others, make smoked gouda.
Packaging
Packaging of smoked gouda depends on how it is sold and what the company prefers. There is a wheel or half-wheel smoked gouda, slabs of smoked gouda, sliced smoked gouda, smoked gouda squares, or even grated, diced, or creamy smoked gouda.
- Flow wrap (also called pillow pouch wrap using polypropylene film, which can either be clear or with custom print).
- Thermo-formed plastic packaging with tray.
- Vacuum packaging
- Modified Atmosphere Packaging (M.A.P. packaging system)
- Re-closable packages
Enjoying Smoked Gouda
Smoked gouda is buttery, crumbly, smoky, with a mild hint of caramel and/or butterscotch and a noticeable nutty undertones.
If you are planning on eating smoked gouda, know that it is best with beer, wine, cheese platter , fruits, nuts, dark chocolate, smoked meat, bread, sandwiches (BBQ Portobello Mushroom Sandwich with Smoked Gouda), and burgers (see the Smoked Gouda and Bacon Burgers recipe in the book entitled Mastering the Grill: The Owner’s Manual for Outdoor Cooking)
Eat smoked gouda in moderation, considering the high sodium content of smoked gouda. You do not want an excessive intake of sodium because this could lead to a heart attack.
Food warning: people who are allergic to cow’s milk should not eat smoked gouda. Consumption of smoked gouda may result to hives, upset stomach, or bloody stools if you are allergic to cow’s milk.
Storage
Smoked gouda is commonly stored at room temperature. After slicing smoked gouda, make sure to put it in a parchment or wrapper. There is also no harm in refrigerating smoked gouda especially during hot weather. Production of different kinds and different brands of smoked gouda means storage instructions vary. The best advice when it comes to storing smoked gouda is to read the instructions on the label. If you are buying artisanal smoked gouda, it helps to ask the cheesemaker regarding storage.
Cooking
You can use smoked gouda for creamy fondue or to make quiches, omelet, mac and cheese, carbonara, mashed potato, succotash, grits (Smoked Gouda Grits with Redeye Gravy) and many other dishes that has cheese in it, like cordon bleu, salads (try the Smoked Gouda and Tomato Pasta Salad recipe in the book The BBQ Queens’ Big Book of Barbecue), and twice baked potatoes. According to the book entitled Big Green Egg Cookbook: Celebrating the Ultimate Cooking Experience, “smoked Gouda is the secret ingredient in these twice-baked potatoes.” Feel free to experiment. For example, try using smoked gouda for recipes that require a different kind of cheese, like when making beer cheese soup.
Nutritional Benefits
Smoked gouda contains phosphorus, vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium, protein, and zinc. Smoked gouda is good for your bone, heart, and digestive health. Smoked gouda can also help with weight management.
