Swedish Cheese: Main Types and Cheeses to Know
Swedish cheese includes semi-hard cow's milk cheeses such as Herrgardsost, Svecia, Grevé and Gräddost. It also includes blue-veined cheeses such as Adelost and Sörmlands Ädel, and Prästost, a semi-soft cheese whose name means priest cheese.
Some of these cheeses come from a specific part of Sweden. Wrångebäcksost is made in the Guldkroken region on the western shore of Lake Vättern, and Sörmlands Ädel comes from Södermanland.
Grevé was first produced in 1964 at Örnsköldsvik. Svecia comes from the low-lying areas of Sweden.
Main types of Swedish cheese
Semi-hard Swedish cheeses
Herrgardsost is aged from three months to two years. It has small round holes and a mild, nutty taste.
Wrångebäcksost ripens for at least nine months. Svecia is aged for at least two months and sold in wax-covered cylinders that weigh 26 to 33 lb. Gräddost and Grevé are also semi-hard Swedish cheeses.
Semi-soft and blue Swedish cheeses
Adelost is a blue cheese with blue-gray veins and a sharp, salty flavor. Sörmlands Ädel is a blue-veined cheese made from organic cow's milk, and it matures for 5 months to a year.
Prästost is another of the semi-soft Swedish cheeses.
Swedish cow's milk cheeses
Grevé, Sveciaost and Gräddost are three Swedish cow's milk cheeses. Grevé is made along the lines of Emmental and tastes nut-like and slightly sweet.
Sveciaost is brined, pale yellow and has no rind. Gräddost melts so well that Swedish pizzerias made it their standard cheese in the 1970s.
How is cheese eaten in Sweden?
Breakfast in Sweden is usually open sandwiches (smörgås), sometimes on crisp bread (knäckebröd). The bread is most often buttered and topped with foods like hard cheese, cold cuts, ham, and tomatoes or cucumber, according to the Wikipedia article on Swedish cuisine.
Another breakfast topping is messmör, a sweet Norwegian spread made from butter and whey. Adelost is used as a table cheese.
Swedish Cheeses
Swedish Cheese Questions
What is priest cheese?
Priest cheese is the English name for Prästost, a semi-soft Swedish cheese made from cow's milk. The name comes from the centuries when farmers paid their tithes to the church in dairy goods. Today it is made in factories from pasteurized milk and sold under the Präst trademark.
What is Herrgård cheese?
Herrgård cheese, or Herrgardsost, is a semi-hard Swedish cheese made from cow's milk. It is aged for three months to two years. The cheese has small round holes and a waxed surface, and it has a mild, nutty and creamy taste.
What is Adelost cheese?
Adelost is a semi-soft Swedish blue cheese made from pasteurized cow's milk. Its light cream-colored inside has blue-gray veins running through it, and its name means noble cheese. It is known for a sharp, salty flavor, and people use it as a table cheese.
Is Brunost a Swedish cheese?
No. Brunost is a Norwegian whey product from Gudbrandsdalen in Norway. It is made by boiling whey with milk and cream until the milk sugars caramelize. The result is brown, sweet and firm enough to slice, and people eat it like cheese on sandwiches, crispbread and waffles.
What is Swedish cream cheese?
The Swedish cheese whose name means cream cheese is Gräddost, a semi-hard cheese made from cow's milk. It tastes mild, creamy and slightly sour and is usually sold at 60% fat. It melts very well, which is why Swedish pizzerias made it their standard cheese in the 1970s.