Cheese alternatives are products used as culinary replacements for

cheese Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk (usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats or sheep). During prod ...

. They are usually products made by blending other fats or proteins and used in

convenience food Convenience food (also called tertiary processed food) is food that is commercially prepared (often through processing) for ease of consumption, and is usually ready to eat without further preparation. It may also be easily portable, have ...

s. The category includes

vegan cheese Vegan cheese is a category of non-dairy, plant-based cheese alternative. Vegan cheeses range from soft fresh cheeses to aged and cultured hard grateable cheeses like plant-based Parmesan. The defining characteristic of vegan cheese is the excl ...

s as well as some dairy-containing products that do not qualify as traditional cheeses, such as

processed cheese Processed cheese (also known as process cheese; related terms include cheese food, prepared cheese, cheese product, and/or government cheese) is a product made from cheese mixed with an emulsifying agent (actually a calcium chelator). Additiona ...

. These foods may be intended as replacements for cheese, as with vegan products, or as alternatives, as in the case of products used for salad bars and pizza-making, that may have other properties such as lower cholesterol content or different melting points that make them attractive to businesses.

Vegan cheese

Vegan cheese Vegan cheese is a category of non-dairy, plant-based cheese alternative. Vegan cheeses range from soft fresh cheeses to aged and cultured hard grateable cheeses like plant-based Parmesan. The defining characteristic of vegan cheese is the excl ...

may be made from

soybean The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. Soy is a staple crop, the world's most grown legume, and an important animal feed. Soy is a key source o ...

s, rice, almonds,

nutritional yeast Nutritional yeast (informally called nooch) is a deactivated (i.e., dead) yeast, often a strain of ''Saccharomyces cerevisiae'', that is sold commercially as a food product. It is sold in the form of yellow flakes, granules, or powder, and may ...

and other non-dairy ingredients. It is aimed at

vegans Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products and the consumption of animal source foods, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. A person who practices veganism is known as a vega ...

and others wanting to avoid animal products, for moral, environmental, religious or health reasons, including

lactose intolerance Lactose intolerance is caused by a lessened ability or a complete inability to digest lactose, a sugar found in dairy products. Humans vary in the amount of lactose they can tolerate before symptoms develop. Symptoms may include abdominal pain ...

or a desire to avoid

cholesterol Cholesterol is the principal sterol of all higher animals, distributed in body Tissue (biology), tissues, especially the brain and spinal cord, and in Animal fat, animal fats and oils. Cholesterol is biosynthesis, biosynthesized by all anima ...

. Vegan cheeses may be lower in fat compared to dairy cheese, are cholesterol-free and are often a source of soy protein and

isoflavones Isoflavones are a type of naturally-occurring isoflavonoids, many of which act as phytoestrogens in mammals. Isoflavones occur in many plant species, but are especially high in soybeans. Although isoflavones and closely-related phytoestrogens are ...

. Many have

calcium Calcium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to it ...

added. Several brands melt similarly to dairy cheese, while others stay mostly firm, or melt only when grated.

Analogue pizza cheese

One variant of

pasteurized In food processing, pasteurization ( also pasteurisation) is a process of food preservation in which packaged foods (e.g., milk and fruit juices) are treated with mild heat, usually to less than , to eliminate pathogens and extend shelf life ...

processed cheese dairy products is, according to a hospitality industry source, designed to melt well on pizza, while remaining chewy; this has been described as "artificial cheesy substance that's much quicker and cheaper to produce than the real thing". In many cases the dairy fat required for anything described as cheese is replaced by cheaper vegetable oil and additives; this is not illegal if not described as cheese. These products are sometimes referred to as "analogue

pizza cheese Pizza cheese encompasses several varieties and types of cheeses and dairy products that are designed and manufactured for use specifically on pizza. These include processed and modified cheese, such as mozzarella-like processed cheeses and ...

". They are used on some commercially produced pizzas. They may be formulated for processing with basic

cheese-making Cheesemaking (or caseiculture) is the craft of making cheese. The production of cheese, like many other food preservation processes, allows the nutritional and economic value of a food material, in this case milk, to be preserved in concentrate ...

equipment, but without the additional equipment and processing that mozzarella cheese requires, such as the processes of mixing and molding. They tend to have a soft texture and once melted, may have a slightly "stringy" quality when pulled or bitten into. They may lack in a fusion, or melt together when cooked. It has been stated that pizza cheese appears to be the leading type of cheese analogue produced globally. In 1987 it was asserted that—at that time—each year in the United States over 700 million frozen pizzas were sold, three quarters of which contain cheese substitutes.

References

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