What Kind of Cheese Goes Best on Pizza?

The quality of the cheese you use as a pizza topping may make or break the whole dish. It needs to be pliable and easy to work with, with a subtle flavor that won't overshadow the dish.

The melting characteristics and final appearance of your pizza will depend on the type of cheese you select. It will also change the pizza's flavor.

Cheese that melts easily stretches without breaking, and browns to perfection without burning is ideal for pizza. It must also be able to spread uniformly throughout the crust without thinning out in any one area.

Most pizzerias still use mozzarella because it is the pizza cheese of origin. Buffalo milk curds were used in the original Naples recipe, but today you may find versions prepared with cow, sheep, goat, and even buffalo milk.

Mozzarella's reliability and adaptability come from its high fat and low water content. You can purchase it shredded or in block form at most stores, and it is the most popular pizza cheese.

Cheddar is a popular pizza cheese because of its robust flavor and sharp acidity. It's great with more subtle toppings, but it really shines when paired with bolder flavors like prosciutto or pepperoni.

The best bubbly, melted topping, according to the study's authors, is a mix of mozzarella and cheddar cheeses. Cheeses are able to endure the high temperatures in the pizza oven thanks to their rheology, free oil, transition temperature, elasticity, and water activity.

Those who like their pizza with more flavor should use mature cheddar. This cheese's naturally occurring salt crystals give it a crispness that complements the flavor of pizza.

Fontina is an excellent choice if you want a zesty cheese with a creamy mouthfeel. It's easy to melt, has a pleasant nuttiness, and pairs well with many toppings.

The Aosta Valley in the Italian Alps is the birthplace of Fontina, a mild, semi-soft cow's milk cheese. It is produced from the raw milk of Valdostana cows that graze on the region's rich pastures.

Before being aged in natural caverns carved into the rock, it is dry salted throughout the curing process. Cheese aged in these caves develops the distinctive nutty, buttery qualities of genuine Fontina due to the low temperatures and naturally filtered moisture.

Although it was originally solely made in Italy, you can now get Fontina in other countries like Denmark, Sweden, the United States, and Canada. It melts well, making it ideal for dishes like pizza, sauce, toasted sandwiches, and frittatas.

If you want to give your pizza a smoky flavor, smoked Gouda is the perfect cheese to use. It's a cheese that works well in a variety of applications, including mac and cheese, sandwiches, and even fondue.

It's vital to think about the pizza's overall texture and the other toppings' flavors when deciding which cheese to use. Cheeses with a greater melting point, such as Gruyere and Fontina, make a thicker and creamier cheese layer on your pizza than those with a lower melting point, like mozzarella, which melts rapidly and gives that typical cheese pull.

Gouda is a mellow cheese with a little sweetness and nutty flavor. It comes in both fresh and aged forms, with the latter being milder and tangier with age.

Monterey Jack is an excellent choice for pizza since it melts smoothly and complements a wide variety of toppings. This mild white cheese can be used in a variety of ways, including on the grill and in your next pie.

Mozzarella is a fresh curd cheese with a semi-soft consistency and a springy quality that allows it to be easily torn apart into strands. Although low-moisture mozzarella is somewhat firmer, both types melt delightfully without getting greasy or stringy.

Wisconsin Brick cheese is another well-liked option; it's a mild, buttery cheese that works well in a wide range of dishes. It melts well and goes wonderfully with spicy toppings like pepperoni or salty meats like prosciutto on pizza.