White cheese includes a wide variety of cheese types discovered in different regions, sharing the sole common characteristic of their white hue. The specific type of white cheese can vary significantly depending on the geographical location.
Names
*
gebna beda
* , jubna bayda –
Akkawi,
Jibneh Arabieh,
Nabulsi cheese
* , ''
bjalo sirene''
*
* –
Quark
A quark () is a type of elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nucleus, atomic nuclei ...
or
brined white cheese
* , ''lefko tyri'' – any
brined white cheese that is not
feta
Feta ( ; ) is a Greek brined white cheese made from sheep milk or from a mixture of sheep and goat milk. It is soft, with small or no holes, and no skin. Crumbly with a slightly grainy texture, it is formed into large blocks and aged in brin ...
* , ''
gvina levana''
* –
ricotta
Ricotta () is an Italian whey cheese made from sheep, cow, goat, or Italian water buffalo milk whey left over from the production of other cheeses. Like other whey cheeses, it is made by coagulating the proteins that remain after the casein h ...
,
mozzarella
Mozzarella is a Types of cheese#Semi-soft cheese, semi-soft non-aged cheese prepared using the ('stretched-curd') method with origins from southern Italy.
It is prepared with cow's milk or buffalo milk, taking the following names:
* or mozz ...
* , ''
belo sirenje''
* – fresh
Minas cheese
Minas cheese ( or , , literally "cheese from Minas") is a type of cheese that has been traditionally produced in the Brazilian States of Brazil, state of Minas Gerais.
It comes in three varieties, named (fresh), (half-aged) and (aged). A fo ...
* –
telemea
*
*
* –
costeño cheese
Costeño cheese is a dairy product from the Colombian Caribbean Region. It is fresh (or blanco), soft, and salty. Some harder varieties have more salt.
Production
Raw milk is separated into solid curds and liquid whey by adding rennet, whe ...
,
cuajada
Cuajada ( milk curd) is a dairy product traditionally made from sheep's milk, but now it is more often made industrially from cow's milk. It is popular in the northern regions of Spain (Asturias, Cantabria, Basque Country, Navarre, Aragon, Casti ...
,
llanero cheese,
Oaxaca cheese
Oaxaca cheese () ( ), also known as quesillo and queso de hebra, is a white, semihard, low-fat Cheeses of Mexico, cheese that originated in Mexico. It is similar to unaged Monterey Jack, but with a texture similar to mozzarella or string cheese.
...
,
panela cheese,
queso de mano
''Queso de mano'' ("cheese of the hand") is a type of soft, white cheese (queso fresco) most commonly associated with Venezuelan cuisine. It is most often used as a filling for arepas and cachapas, cachapa. The taste and consistency of the chees ...
*
*
White cheese by region
The Americas

In
Latin America
Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
, (
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas
**Spanish cuisine
**Spanish history
**Spanish culture
...
) or (
Portuguese) refers to various white cheeses, with the specific type varying by region.
is considered an easy cheese to make, as it requires no careful handling and does not call for
rennet
Rennet () is a complex set of enzymes produced in the stomachs of ruminant mammals. Chymosin, its key component, is a protease, protease enzyme that curdling, curdles the casein in milk. In addition to chymosin, rennet contains other enzymes, su ...
or bacterial culture. It is usually made by heating whole fresh milk to near-boiling, adding an acidifying agent such as vinegar, stirring until curds form, then draining the curds in
cheesecloth
Cheesecloth is a loose-woven gauze-like carded cotton cloth used primarily in cheesemaking and cooking. The fabric has holes large enough to quickly allow liquids (like whey) to percolate through the fabric, but small enough to retain solids lik ...
for three to five hours. Such cheeses are also known as "bag cheeses," as the curds are normally hung in a bag of cheesecloth to drain. As it is highly perishable, it must be refrigerated or used immediately once the whey has drained out.
and ' may be eaten alone or added to other dishes. They are often used as a topping for spicy Mexican dishes such as
enchilada
An enchilada (, ) is a Mexican cuisine, Mexican dish consisting of a corn tortilla rolled around a filling and covered with a savory sauce. Enchiladas can be filled with various ingredients, including meats, cheese, beans, potatoes, vegetables, ...
s and
empanada
An empanada is a type of baked or fried turnover (food), turnover consisting of pastry and stuffing, filling, common in Culture of Spain, Spain, other Southern European countries, North African countries, South Asian countries, Latin American c ...
s or crumbled over soups or salads. Meltable versions are used to make
quesadilla
A quesadilla (; ; Mexican diminutive of ''quesada'') is a Mexican cuisine, Mexican dish consisting of a tortilla that is filled primarily with cheese, and sometimes meats, spices, and other fillings, and then cooked on a griddle or stove. Trad ...
s.
It is used to make
cheesecake
Cheesecake is a dessert made with a soft fresh cheese (typically cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta), eggs, and sugar. It may have a crust or base made from crushed cookies (or digestive biscuits), graham crackers, pastry, ...
in some parts of the world.
The following cheese names may refer to ' in the Spanish-speaking world or be considered similar to any of its local varieties:
asadero,
halloumi
Halloumi or haloumi is a cheese that originated in the Eastern Mediterranean. It is traditionally made from a mixture of goat milk and sheep's milk, and now, due to shortages, it increasingly contains cow's milk or milk from other animals such ...
,
Indian
paneer
Paneer (), is a fresh acid-set cheese, common in cuisine of South Asia, made from cow milk or buffalo milk. It is a non-aged, non-melting soft cheese made by curdling milk with a fruit- or vegetable-derived acid, such as lemon juice.
Pa ...
,
farmer cheese
Farmer's cheese is pressed curds or an unripened cheese made by adding rennet and bacterial starter to coagulate and acidify milk. Farmer's cheese may be made from the milk of cows, sheep or goats, with each giving its own texture and flavor. ...
,
pot cheese
Pot cheese is a type of soft, crumbly, unaged cheese. It is very simple to make and also highly versatile, making it a very popular cheese, but it may be hard to find in stores. Pot cheese is in the midway stage between cottage cheese and farmer ...
,
quark
A quark () is a type of elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nucleus, atomic nuclei ...
from Central and Eastern Europe
Brazil
In
Brazilian cuisine
Brazilian cuisine is the set of cooking practices and traditions of Brazil, and is characterized by European cuisine, European, Amerindian, African tribes, African, and Asian (Levantine cuisine, Levantine, Japanese food, Japanese, and most rece ...
, white cheese goes by the name ().
Minas cheese
Minas cheese ( or , , literally "cheese from Minas") is a type of cheese that has been traditionally produced in the Brazilian States of Brazil, state of Minas Gerais.
It comes in three varieties, named (fresh), (half-aged) and (aged). A fo ...
, a Brazilian cheese, is usually fresh.
Colombia
On the Caribbean coast, the most popular cheese is ''
queso costeño Queso (Spanish for "cheese") may refer to:
* Chile con queso, a cheesy sauce
* Queso Records
* Queso blanco, a white cheese
* Queso Chihuahua
In Mexico, queso Chihuahua is commonly recognized as a soft white cheese available in braids, balls or ...
''. It can be either hard and salty or soft and low in salt. People mainly have it with breakfast, in dishes like ''mote de queso'', or grated in foods like arepas and bollos (especially the hard and salty kind). One variation is known as ''queso de capa de Mompós''.
Mexico

Mexican cuisine features two main variations of white cheese. , traditionally made from
cow's milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Milk contains many nutr ...
, and (), which may include a combination of cow's and goat's milk. While certain types like
Oaxaca cheese
Oaxaca cheese () ( ), also known as quesillo and queso de hebra, is a white, semihard, low-fat Cheeses of Mexico, cheese that originated in Mexico. It is similar to unaged Monterey Jack, but with a texture similar to mozzarella or string cheese.
...
melt when heated, the majority simply become soft when exposed to heat.
If it is pressed, and more water is removed, it becomes known as .
In regions such as Guerrero, Zacatecas, and San Luis Potosí, goat's milk ''cuajada'' (curd) is utilized in desserts like ''gorditas de cuajada'' and ''panes de dulce''.
In Jalisco, where it is commonly known as ''panela'', this cheese variety is employed in crafting ''pan de cuajada'' and ''tamales de cuajada''.
Many
Mexican home cooks make their own instead of purchasing it; when made for the evening meal, it is often prepared in the early afternoon and left to drain until evening.
Dominican Republic
In
Dominican Republic cuisine
Dominican cuisine is made up of Spanish cuisine, Spanish, Indigenous Taíno, Middle Eastern cuisine, Middle Eastern, and Cuisine of Africa, African influences. The most recent influences in Dominican cuisine are from the British West Indies and ...
' is a firm, salty cheese used for frying: .
Nicaragua
In
Nicaraguan cuisine, ' is a firm cheese used for frying: . Cheese is one of the most popular dairy products in the daily diet. You can find various kinds, including ''cuajada fresca'' (fresh curd), ''cuajada ahumada'' (smoked curd) with and without chili, and ''cuajada ahumada'' with spices. The smoking process varies. They shape small balls, put them on a wooden grill called ''tapezco'', and light a fire underneath using firewood that produces lots of smoke. Another way is to bake them in an oven for 10 minutes until they turn golden and get that smoky flavor. People enjoy these cheeses with ''güirila'' or corn tortillas, or use them as fillings in ''tamales''. They also mix cheese into corn ''masa'' in ''revueltas'' and use it as a filling in griddled ''quesadillas'', or add ''rapadura de dulce'' or sugar for fillings in oven-baked ''empanadas''.
Peru
In
Peruvian cuisine
Peruvian cuisine reflects local practices and ingredients including influences mainly from the indigenous population, including the Andean and Amazonian cuisine, and cuisines brought by immigrants from Europe (Spanish cuisine and Italian cuisine) ...
, several recipes mix ' and spices to make a spicy cold sauce eaten over peeled boiled potatoes, such as ''
papa a la huancaína'' or ''
ocopa''.
Puerto Rico
In
Puerto Rican cuisine, ' is a firm cheese used for frying and typically paired with guava paste. The cheese also goes by ' and . Although still popular, it has been losing consumers due to higher-quality cheese becoming available on the island.
Venezuela
Venezuelan cuisine
Venezuelan cuisine is influenced by its EuropeanKohnstamm, Thomas; Kohn, Beth"Venezuela."Lonely Planet. Accessed October 2011. (Italy, Italian, Spain, Spanish, Portugal, Portuguese, and France, French), West African, and indigenous traditions. Ve ...
has a large diversity of white cheese ('), varying in texture and flavor, usually named after a geographical region. Examples include ''queso blanco duro'' (hard white cheese called ''llanero''), ''queso semi-blando'' (semi-soft cheese, called ''paisa'' or ''palmita''), or very tender types like ''guayanés'' cheese or ''queso de mano''. The hard version is grated as a side for the national dish ''pabellón'', and it's also used as a topping for pasta and as a filling for ''arepas'' and ''empanadas''. The softer types are used as fillings for ''arepas'' and ''cachapas''.
Eurasia and North Africa
White cheese is a traditional food in
Balkan
The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
and
Middle eastern
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
regions.
Most cheese produced in the middle east is white cheese, and most is pickled in salty brine, it is common to soak cheese in water to desalt it prior to consumption, in warm areas with no access to refrigeration, brining is an effective method for conserving cheese. While the preparation method and ingredients of the different cheeses may differ, there are many instances where different varieties of cheese do not possess a well documented name.
Central and Eastern Europe
Quark
A quark () is a type of elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nucleus, atomic nuclei ...
, a type of fresh cheese in Central and Eastern Europe, is known by different names in various regions, such as twaróg (Polish), tvorog (Russian), topfen (Austrian), biezpiens (Latvian), and varškė (Lithuanian).
Cyprus
Halloumi
Halloumi or haloumi is a cheese that originated in the Eastern Mediterranean. It is traditionally made from a mixture of goat milk and sheep's milk, and now, due to shortages, it increasingly contains cow's milk or milk from other animals such ...
cheese is a very popular Cypriot cheese, usually made from sheep or goat milk, with a semi-hard to hard texture, but is elastic when heated.
Egypt
Domiati
Domiati cheese (), also referred to as "white cheese" (, ), is a soft white salty cheese made primarily in Egypt, but also in Sudan and other Middle Eastern countries. Typically made from buffalo milk, cow milk, or a mixture, it can also be mad ...
, a soft, white, salty cheese, is primarily produced in Egypt and some Middle Eastern countries.
France and Belgium
Fromage blanc
''Fromage blanc'' (; ; also known as ''maquée'') is a fresh cheese similar to cream cheese originating from the north of France and southern Belgium. The name means "white cheese" in French language, French. ''Fromage frais'' ("fresh cheese") di ...
is a fresh cheese from France and Belgium.
Greece
Greece offers a range of white cheeses. Among these options are
feta
Feta ( ; ) is a Greek brined white cheese made from sheep milk or from a mixture of sheep and goat milk. It is soft, with small or no holes, and no skin. Crumbly with a slightly grainy texture, it is formed into large blocks and aged in brin ...
, a brined curd cheese.
Manouri, a semi-soft, fresh white whey cheese, is crafted from goat and/or sheep milk whey remaining after cheese production.
Mizithra
Mizithra or myzithra ( ) is a Greek cuisine, Greek whey cheese or mixed cheese, milk-whey cheese from sheep milk, sheep or goats, or both.Rosemary Barron, Barron, Rosemary (1991). ''Flavors of Greece.'' William Morrow, It is sold both as a fresh ...
, another choice, is an unpasteurized fresh cheese. It's a Greek traditional delicacy made using milk and whey sourced from sheep and/or goats.
Italy
Italy has a variety of white cheeses. Among them,
Asiago cheese
Asiago ( , , ) is a cow's milk cheese, first produced in Asiago in Italy, that can assume different textures according to its aging, from smooth for the fresh Asiago (called , which means "pressed Asiago") to a crumbly texture for the aged che ...
is a cow's milk cheese known for its varying textures according to its aging, from smooth for the fresh Asiago (Asiago Pressato) to a crumbly texture for the aged cheese (Asiago d'allevo) of which the flavor is reminiscent of Parmesan. Another Italian cheese is
Mascarpone
Mascarpone (, ; ) is a soft Italian cuisine, Italian Acid-set cheese, acid-set cream cheese. It is recognized as a ''prodotto agroalimentare tradizionale'' (PAT).
Production process
After Denaturation (biochemistry), denaturation of cream, the ...
, a cheese made from cream, coagulated by the addition of citric acid or acetic acid.
Mozzarella
Mozzarella is a Types of cheese#Semi-soft cheese, semi-soft non-aged cheese prepared using the ('stretched-curd') method with origins from southern Italy.
It is prepared with cow's milk or buffalo milk, taking the following names:
* or mozz ...
, originally from southern Italy, is a fresh cheese traditionally made from Italian buffalo and later cow's milk by the pasta filata method. There also is
Ricotta
Ricotta () is an Italian whey cheese made from sheep, cow, goat, or Italian water buffalo milk whey left over from the production of other cheeses. Like other whey cheeses, it is made by coagulating the proteins that remain after the casein h ...
, a whey cheese made from sheep (or cow, goat, or Italian water buffalo) milk whey left over from the production of cheese.
Levant
In
Levantine cuisine
Levantine cuisine is the traditional cuisine of the Levant, in the sense of the rough area of former Ottoman Syria. The cuisine has similarities with Egyptian cuisine, North African cuisine and Ottoman cuisine. It is particularly known for its ...
, a variety of white cheeses exist, including:
Akkawi, a salty, brined, and semi-hard white cheese that is named after the city of
Akka
Akka or AKKA may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Akka (film), ''Akka'' (film), a 1976 Indian Tamil film
* Akka (TV series), ''Akka'' (TV series), a 2014–2015 Indian Tamil soap opera
* Akka, a character in the children's novel ''The Wonderful ...
,
Nabulsi cheese, a cheese flavored with
mastic and
prunus mahaleb
''Prunus mahaleb'', the mahaleb cherry or St Lucie cherry, is a species of cherry tree. The tree is cultivated for a spice obtained from the seeds inside the cherry stones. The seeds have a fragrant smell and have a taste comparable to bitter alm ...
often used in making
knafeh nabulsieh, it is named after the city of
Nablus
Nablus ( ; , ) is a State of Palestine, Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 156,906. Located between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a ...
,
baladi cheese, a fresh cheese typically made from goat milk, it sometimes called ''mountain cheese'' due to the fact its often made in the mountains of
Lebanon
Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
, and ''mujaddal'' cheese, a sort of
braided cheese.
There are also varieties of fermented cheese common to this region, like
shanklish.
The Philippines
In
Philippine cuisine
Filipino cuisine is composed of the cuisines of more than a hundred distinct Ethnic groups in the Philippines, ethnolinguistic groups found throughout the Philippines, Philippine archipelago. A majority of mainstream Filipino dishes that comp ...
, ''
kesong puti'', a soft, white cheese, similar to
queso blanco
White cheese includes a wide variety of cheese types discovered in different regions, sharing the sole common characteristic of their white hue. The specific type of white cheese can vary significantly depending on the geographical location.
Na ...
and cottage cheese, is made from unskimmed carabao's milk, salt and rennet.
Portugal
In
Portuguese cuisine
Portuguese cuisine () consists of the traditions and practices of cooking in Portugal. The oldest known book on Portuguese cuisine, entitled ''Livro de Cozinha da Infanta D. Maria de Portugal'', from the 16th century, describes many popular dish ...
, () refers to a popular mild, soft, creamy, white
unaged cheese used throughout the
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...
. In the
Azores
The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...
' is typically served with the fresh pepper sauce .
Romania
Caș
Caș () is a type of semi-soft white fresh cheese produced in Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary ...
is a type of semi-soft white fresh cheese made from sheep or cow milk, produced in Romania. Another type of white cheese traditionally made in Romania is
telemea, a salty variety, made of sheep or cow milk.
Turkey
Beyaz peynir
Beyaz peynir (, ) is a brine cheese produced from unpasteurized sheep, cow or goat milk. The cheese has a slightly grainy appearance and is similar to lighvan, feta, sirene and other Balkan white cheeses. Vegetable rennet is added to the she ...
is a salty, white cheese made from unpasteurized sheep (or cow) milk. The cheese has a slightly grainy appearance and is similar to Greek ''feta'' cheese.
Southeastern Europe
Sirene, / Sirenje (Bulgarian: сирене, pronounced
�sirɛnɛ Macedonian: сирење, pronounced
�sireɲe Serbian/Croatian: сир, sir, Albanian: djath i bardhe) or known as "white brine sirene" (Bulgarian: бяло саламурено сирене,
�bjaɫo sɐɫɐˈmurɛno ˈsirɛnɛ is a type of brine cheese made in South-Eastern Europe, especially popular in Bulgaria, the Republic of North Macedonia and other Balkan countries.
References
{{Brazilian cheeses
Acid-set cheeses
Brazilian cheeses
Mexican cheeses
Cow's-milk cheeses
Portuguese cheeses
Spanish cheeses