Best North American Rindless Cheese Types
Oaxacan cheese is a semi-soft white cheese made from cow's milk. The cheese is characterized by its stringy texture. It has a savory, creamy, mild and buttery flavor, making it ideal for quesadillas, empanadas, and tlayudas. The cheese has great melting properties, which is the reason why it is often used in numerous baked dishes.
It is named after the Oaxaca state in southern Mexico, where it was first produced. The pasta filata cheesemaking process, originally from Italy, was brought to Mexico by Dominican friars that settled in the state of Oaxaca.
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THE BEST Oaxaca Cheese Cheeses
Don Froylan Creamery
Don Froylan Queso Oaxaca
American Cheese Society Judging & Competition Awards - 1st Place 2022, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014
Don Froylan Creamery
Oaxaca Con Chipotle
American Cheese Society Judging & Competition Awards - 1st Place 2023
Queso fresco is a type of soft, mild, and crumbly cheese made from cow's milk that originated in Mexico.
Queso fresco is typically made by curdling pasteurized milk with an acid, such as vinegar or lemon juice, and then allowing the curds to set before being drained and shaped. The texture of queso fresco is similar to that of cottage cheese or ricotta, but with a slightly firmer consistency.
THE BEST Queso fresco Cheeses
V&v Supremo Foods
Queso Fresco
American Cheese Society Judging & Competition Awards - 1st Place 2023, 2022
Cotija is a Mexican cheese that is traditionally made with raw cow's milk. When prepared, the cheese is fresh, white, and salty, bearing resemblance to feta cheese. With aging, its texture becomes crumbly, dense, and hard, similar to Parmigiano-Reggiano.
The aged version of Cotija is called anejo. The cheese does not melt easily, and it is typically grated over elotes (grilled corn), salads, enchiladas, tostadas, and casseroles. Cotija is available in small wheels or large blocks, and it is named after the city of Cotija in the state of Michoacán.
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THE BEST Cotija Cheeses
V&v Supremo Foods
Sierra Brand Cotija Cheese
American Cheese Society Judging & Competition Awards - 1st Place 2023
Maytag Blue is an American blue cheese originating from just outside Newton, Iowa, on Maytag Dairy Farms. The cheese is made with Holstein cow's milk since 1941. It ripens for 6 months, and during the time it develops a texture that is dense and crumbly.
The aromas are strong and pungent, while the flavors are tangy and lemony. It is recommended to crumble Maytag Blue in salads, melt it on burgers, and pair it with a glass of lager or ale.
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Colby Jack or Cojack is an American cheese originating from Wisconsin. The cheese is a combination of Colby and Monterey Jack. It has a semi-soft, smooth texture and an appealing marbled visual appearance. Its flavor ranges from mild and sweet to sharp and tangy.
Colby Jack is usually used in omelets, sandwiches, sauces, and soups, and it is recommended to serve it with baked potatoes, pears, apples, and steamed vegetables. Due to its good melting properties, it is also used in casseroles and with nachos.
THE BEST Colby Jack Cheeses
Colby is an American cheese originating from the city of Colby in Wisconsin. This semi-hard cheese is made with cow's milk and has a firm, springy, and open texture. Its flavors are mild, creamy, and sweet, so Colby is often used in hamburgers, grilled sandwiches, fajitas, or served with apples, pears, and rye bread.
Colby is sometimes compared to cheddar, even though these two cheeses taste different – Colby is softer, it has a higher moisture content, and the curd is washed, which reduces the acids in the cheese, making it less tangy.
THE BEST Colby Cheeses
Cougar Gold is an American cheese hailing from the Washington State University Creamery in Pullman. Sold exclusively in 30-ounce cans since 1948, this semi-soft cheese is made from pasteurized cow's milk. When out of the can, visually, it's a white cheddar with rounded edges and without a rind.
The texture is smooth and firm, but it becomes crumbly and crystalline with age. The flavors are creamy, nutty, and sharp, with a milky smooth and mellow finish. The cheese is stored for at least one year before it can be sold. Cougar Gold was originally produced with a bacteria called WSU19, which limits carbon dioxide production so that the cheese can be safely stored into a can.
Purple Haze is an American cheese produced in California by Cypress Grove. It dates back to the 1970s, when Mary Keehn found herself with excess goat milk and invented the cheese in the process. Nowadays, the milk is pasteurized in vats with coagulants and cultures, and the mix is then placed into a curd press to drain.
The curd is combined with salt and shaped into disks which are dusted with wild fennel pollen and lavender. Without aging, the cheeses are sent to markets where they can be sold and consumed. This aromatic, fresh, soft cheese has no rind, and its texture is crumbly, smooth, creamy, and spreadable.
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Pimento cheese is a combination of grated cheddar, pimento peppers, mayonnaise, and a variety of seasonings or special ingredients that vary regionally. Although pimento cheese is nowadays a staple of the American South, some claim that it actually got its start in New York when cream cheese was first starting to be made by mixing cream with Neufchatel curd.
At the same time, red peppers that were imported from Spain started to become available in the Americas, and it was just a matter of time before these two ingredients were combined. Nowadays, pimento cheese is usually served as a spread on crackers, tortilla chips, and hamburgers, but sandwiches with pimento cheese are especially popular.
Herbes de Provence Chevre is an American semi-soft cheese hailing from Colorado, where it's produced by Haystack Mountain Goat Dairy. The cheese is made from pasteurized goat's milk and it's shaped into logs that are coated in Herbes de Provence, a traditional French spice blend originating from Provence.
The texture of this rindless cheese is creamy and crumbly. The aromas are fresh and clean, while the flavors are mild and herbaceous. It's recommended to serve the cheese with crusty bread and Kalamata olives. Pair it with a glass of fruity wine such as Chenin Blanc or Sauvignon Blanc.
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Best North American Rindless Cheese Producers
Pearl Valley Cheese is a family-owned business located in Fresno, Ohio, specializing in the production of Swiss cheese. Established in 1928 by Swiss immigrants, the company has expanded its offerings to include a variety of cheeses such as Colby, Marble, and Lacey Swiss.
Pearl Valley Cheese is known for using traditional cheese-making techniques and sourcing milk from local dairy farms.
AWARDS
World Championship Cheese Contest - Best of Class
2024, 2014
BEST Pearl Valley Cheese Cheeses
Best North American Rindless Cheeses
AWARDS
World Championship Cheese Contest - Best of Class
2024, 2014
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “Top 41 North American Rindless Cheeses” list until April 18, 2025, 1,043 ratings were recorded, of which 736 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.