Most cheeses are available all year round, but a few traditionally-made cheeses, such as Gruyère and Vacherin Mont d’Or, have a season when they are considered to be at their best.

If possible, it’s best to buy cheeses from a specialist who stores their stock well and will be able to suggest which cheese will be best for your purpose. Specialist suppliers will also allow you to taste a range of cheeses before purchase.

Ideally, cheeses should be stored in a cool place such as a larder, cellar or garage at about 8–15C/46–59F, although they can also be kept in the salad drawer of the fridge, well-wrapped to prevent them from drying out. Cling film is not an ideal wrapping for cheese, as moisture can build up underneath it and encourage mould growth. Waxed paper is much better, but aluminium foil can also be used, particularly for blue cheeses. Some soft cheeses, such as Brie, may benefit from being left for a few days before eating: ask your cheesemonger for advice as to their ripeness, or wait until a couple of days before the use-by date to eat them. Cheese should be brought to room temperature (removed from the fridge) an hour or two before serving. Most cheeses can be frozen without adverse effects to their flavour, but hard cheeses may become crumbly on defrosting.

As well as being popular on its own, particularly when served with biscuits and fruit at the end of a meal, cheese is a common ingredient in cookery, whether as a last-minute garnish, or melted into sauces, soufflés or other hot dishes.

Vegetarians should bear in mind that many cheeses are made using animal rennet: always check the label if this is a concern. Pregnant women, and those with compromised immune systems, should avoid many soft-rinded cheeses, such as Brie, blue cheeses and those made from unpasteurised milk.

It is worth ing that some cheeses are as much as 75% fat and can also have a high salt content. However, cheese is highly nutritious, as it retains nearly all the fat and fat-soluble vitamins from the milk, as well as much of its protein and many of the minerals.

Air fryer cheese toastie

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Air fryer cheese toastie

Aligot with roasted onions and apples

Apple crumble cheesecake with salted caramel sauce

Aubergine and mushroom cannelloni

Auvergne brunch

Buyer's guide

Storage

Preparation

Other considerations

Varieties of cheese

Brie

Burrata

Caerphilly

Camembert

Cheddar

Cheshire cheese

Cottage cheese

Cream cheese

Curd

Danish blue

Dolcelatte

Double Gloucester

Edam

Emmental

Feta

Fontina cheese

Fromage frais

Goats' cheese

Gorgonzola

Gouda

Gruyère

Halloumi

Lancashire cheese

Manchego

Mascarpone

Mozzarella

Paneer

Parmesan

Pecorino

Quark

Red Leicester

Ricotta

Roquefort

Smoked cheese

Stilton

Vacherin

Wensleydale

Typically made with cheese

Burrito

Cauliflower cheese

Cheese sauce

Cheese straws

Fondue

Gratin

Macaroni cheese

Toastie

Welsh rarebit

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