Pre-shredded cheese is a great option if you don’t feel like grabbing a chunk of cheese—just pour it straight from the bag and go. However this handy ingredient is known for one property that can make a big difference in your dish: It doesn’t melt at least not to the uniformly gooey consistency of standard block cheese. This might not be a deal-breaker if you’re topping a baked potato or mixing some into a green salad but using pre-shredded cheese is one of the most common mistakes when making cheese fondue pizza or other dishes that require meltability. Instead of yielding photogenic cheese pulls the dairy product remains separated and only partially melted—an unappealing sight with a clumpy mouthfeel.
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URGENT WARNING! 2 Reasons I NEVER Buy Shredded Cheese!
The culprits behind pre-shredded cheese’s inability to melt are the very additives that make it look nice and separate in the package: cellulose or anti-caking agents that contain one or more starches. (Block cheese doesn’t contain anti-caking agents which is why it melts so nicely.) All store-bought pre-shredded cheese contains a mixture of these agents; there’s no way around it. So as time-consuming as it is—especially if your recipe calls for a lot of cheese—you’re better off buying a block of cheese and grating it yourself.
There are several anti-clumping agents on your bag of pre-shredded cheese and while these additives prevent the cheese from melting they do serve an important purpose in terms of shelf life. Without these additives the cheese would no longer be grated by the time you see it in the store; it would be a big lump that you would eventually have to grate anyway.
Cellulose is a common coating used to keep pre-sliced cheese grated. This carbohydrate is extracted from cotton and trees (it’s actually wood pulp) and then processed into a fine powder using salt and acetic acid. While it may sound a little odd to have wood pulp in your cheese cellulose is actually a safe and common ingredient in many food products including some salad dressings and peanut butter where it helps maintain texture and keep the components well-blended.
