Brunost Cheese
Brunost cheese is a sweet, brown, semi-soft Norwegian cheese made by boiling whey, milk and cream until the milk sugars turn to caramel. It tastes like caramel, with a tang that is stronger in types made with goat's milk.
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Key Facts
| Country of Origin | Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Norway, Sweden |
| Specific Origin | Gudbrandsdalen, Norway |
| Milk Type | Cow's and goat's milk |
| Milk Treatment | Pasteurized or unpasteurized |
| Rind | Natural |
| Texture | Semi-soft |
| Flavor | Caramel, sweet |
| Colors | Brown |
| Age | Unaged, ready once packed and refrigerated |
| Also Known As | mysost, mesost, meesjuusto, mysuostur, myseost, Braunkäse, geitost, Ekte Geitost, Gudbrandsdalsost |
What is Brunost Cheese?
Scandinavians have been boiling whey down 10:1 into a brown, cheesy spread for at least 2,500 years. A 2016 dig in central Jutland turned up cheese residue on pottery from about 650 B.C.E. that may be a relative of brunost. The modern firm, fatty version is credited to the milkmaid Anne Hov of Gudbrandsdalen, who in 1863 at the Valseter mountain farm added cream to the whey and boiled it in an iron pot until the fluid content dropped below 80 percent. She called it feitost, or fat cheese; the name later became fløtemysost.
After moving to Rusthågå farm in Nord-Fron Municipality, Hov scaled up production and added goat's milk for a sharper taste. The trader Ole Kongsli shipped it to contacts in Christiania as Gudbrandsdalsost, and the sales that followed helped pull the valley out of recession. In 1933, at 87, Hov received the King's Medal of Merit. Today the Norwegian co-operative Tine is the largest producer with 13 varieties, followed by Synnøve Finden.
Production is slow boiling. Milk, cream and whey are cooked together for several hours until the water evaporates and the heat turns the milk sugars to caramel, which supplies both the brown colour and the sweetness. There is no ripening period; the product is ready as soon as it is packed and refrigerated. Low-fat versions come from raising the share of whey against milk and cream.
The texture is firm, a little softer than Gouda, and it cuts and shapes cleanly instead of crumbling. Norwegians split brunost into types made only with cow's cream and milk and types containing goat's milk, the latter called geitost or gjetost. Gudbrandsdalsost, a blend of cow and goat milk with cream and whey, is the most popular at home and abroad. Fløtemysost is milder without goat's milk. Ekte geitost uses only whey and goat's milk and tastes intense and chèvre-like.
Most brunost goes on sandwiches, crispbread and biscuits, including the matpakke lunch box that many Norwegians carry to work. Its texture shifts if it sits out of the fridge, but the taste holds, which suits packed lunches. It is also standard on waffles and goes into gravy for game meat. Nutritionally it carries calcium, protein, vitamin B and iodine, and no salt, but the natural sugar, fat and lactose levels are all high.
What Does Brunost Cheese Taste Like?
Brunost cheese tastes sweet and caramel-like, with a tang. The tang is stronger in types made with goat's milk. Its sweetness and its brown color both come from milk sugars that turn to caramel during boiling.
The taste depends on the type. Fløtemysost has no goat's milk, so it tastes milder. Gudbrandsdalsost mixes cow's milk and goat's milk.
Ekte geitost uses only whey and goat's milk. It has a strong taste like chèvre, a French goat cheese, and that strong taste makes it seem less sweet.
The texture is firm but a little softer than Gouda, and it does not crumble. Brunost is not aged, so it is ready to eat as soon as it is packed and refrigerated.
How Do You Eat Brunost Cheese?
Brunost is a semi-soft cheese that cuts cleanly and holds its shape, so it is easy to slice.
- Put slices on bread, crispbread or biscuits.
- Lay slices on Norwegian waffles.
- Use it in a packed lunch sandwich. Its texture changes if it sits out of the fridge, but its taste stays the same.
- Stir it into gravy for game meat.
Substitutes for Brunost Cheese
These cheeses share some of brunost's sweetness or its sliceable texture.
- Requeijão Moreno comes from Minas Gerais in Brazil. It is made by boiling cow's milk until it caramelizes and turns brown, and its taste and texture are very close to brunost made only with cow's milk.
- Jarlsberg Cheese is a semi-hard cow's milk cheese from Norway with a mild, sweet and nutty flavor.
- Gouda Cheese is a semi-hard cow's milk cheese with a sweet to nutty flavor. It is a little firmer than brunost.
What Does the Name Brunost Mean?
Brunost means "brown cheese" in Norwegian. It is a common Norwegian name for mysost, which means "whey cheese".
Other Nordic languages have their own names for mysost: myseost in Danish, mesost in Swedish, mesjuusto in Finnish, and mysuostur or mysingur in Icelandic.
Types that contain goat's milk are called geitost or gjetost, meaning "goat cheese". Ekte geitost means "true goat cheese". Gudbrandsdalsost means "Gudbrandsdal cheese", and in the US it is often just called gjetost. Fløtemysost means "cream whey cheese".
Where to Buy Brunost Cheese
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is brown cheese made of?
Brown cheese is made from whey, milk and cream. Whey is the liquid left after cheese is removed from the milk, so brunost is not technically a cheese. Makers boil the mixture for several hours until the water evaporates. Some types add goat's milk, and ekte geitost uses only whey and goat's milk.
Why is brown cheese brown?
Brown cheese is brown because its milk sugars turn to caramel. Makers boil whey, milk and cream for several hours. As the water evaporates, the heat turns the milk sugars into caramel. This same step gives brunost its sweet, caramel-like taste, so the color and the flavor have one cause.
What is the difference between fløtemysost and Gudbrandsdalsost?
Gudbrandsdalsost has goat's milk and fløtemysost does not. Gudbrandsdalsost mixes cow's milk and goat's milk with cream and whey. It is the most popular brunost in Norway and in other countries. Fløtemysost has no goat's milk, so it tastes milder. It is the second most popular type in Norway.
What is the difference between brunost and messmör?
Messmör, called prim in Norwegian, is a soft, sweet spread often sold in tubes across the Nordic countries. It is the older of the two foods. Makers boil the whey for a shorter time than for brunost and add no milk or cream. Brunost is firmer and cuts into clean slices.
Is there Swedish or Danish brown cheese?
People in Scandinavia have boiled whey into a brown spread for at least 2,500 years. Sweden has messmör, a soft, sweet whey spread. Danish calls this whey cheese myseost and Swedish calls it mesost. Firm brunost is mainly made and eaten in Norway, and it is also sold in South Korea.
How Does Brunost Cheese Compare?
The most relevant cheeses to compare Brunost against.
