Yes, the bloomy rind is completely safe to eat and even keeps the inside safe from any potentially unwanted microorganisms during production. The rind on Brie not only protects and encases the cheese – it also adds a subtle, earthy flavor. As a rule of thumb, the natural rinds of most cheeses are edible.
What is the outside coating on brie?
Brie is a bloomy rind cheese. That means that cheesemakers inoculate the cheese with edible mold that blooms on the outside of the paste. That mold is then patted down, over and over again, to form the rind.
Can you eat the rind on Brie cheese?
The short answer: yes, for the most part. The rinds on these cheeses, think Brie and blue cheese, are an essential part of the cheese’s flavor. These rinds, which can include wheels of cheese rubbed with cocoa, Merlot or cinnamon, give an extra kick to a particular cheese.
Do I remove the outer layer of brie before cooking?
Do you take the rind off before baking? Keep the rind on, as it will help the cheese hold its shape so it doesn’t all melt out. The rind is also edible, so you can enjoy it with the melted cheese, or simply remove the top layer after baking and dunk in crusty bread like a fondue.
Can you bake brie without the rind?
No, you don’t have to remove the rind before baking brie. The rind is edible and I don’t even think you can taste it after the brie is baked. If you want to remove the rind, you can use a sharp knife to carefully cut off the thin rind of the cheese at the top of the wheel. This is easier to do when the brie is cold.
How can you tell if brie has gone bad?
The first thing that you should do is to check the rind of the brie. It should be mostly white and powdery in appearance. If it has any signs of gray, or it has become flaky, then it is likely that the cheese has started to go bad. You should not eat it past this point.
Do you take the white coating off of brie cheese?
Yes, you can eat the rind of Camembert, Brie, or any soft-ripened cheese. The white mold is Penicillium camemberti (a.k.a. P. candidum), which gives these cheeses their characteristic bloomy rind. The rind is totally edible and adds texture and flavor to the cheese.
Why does Brie taste like mold?
Bries (and all commercially produced cheeses in this country) are made from pasteurized milk, which may account for the rather uninspired taste of the rind. It would be a huge mess and enormous waste of time to remove the rind from a wheel of brie before baking it.