Scamorza cheese is an iconically Italian cheese, similar to provolone, that can be used on pasta bakes and pizzas or baked. But, it’s not easy to come by. If you manage to get a few, then how do you store them?
Can You Freeze Scamorza Cheese?
Yes, you can freeze scamorza cheese for up to 12 months. We recommend wrapping the cheese in baking paper and cling film before placing the entire thing into an airtight container.
Do Does Scamorza Cheese freeze well? Yes
Can you refreeze Scamorza Cheese? Yes
How to Freeze Scamorza Cheese
Before you read our method for freezing scamorza, the most important thing uo need to know is that it MUST be kept airtight. This is why we wrap it in multiple layers to keep it as protected as possible:
- Wrap Once: The first layer we recommend for any type of cheese or meat is a layer of baking paper, butcher’s paper, or something similarly breathable.
- Wrap Agin: Follow this with a layer of plastic wrap, ensuring a good seal all the way around the cheese.
- Bag Up or Place Into a Container: After you’ve double-wrapped the scamorza cheese block, we suggest placing it into an airtight container that’s barely big enough.
- Label and Freeze: Finally, label the container and then place it into the freezer.
We suggest this multi-layer approach because the enemy of cheese and meat in the freezer is freezer burn due to increased moisture levels.
This typically happens through condensation within the cling film layer, which comes into contact with the cheese as it freezes – this ice spreads through the cheese, giving it freezer burn.
To prevent this, the double-layer solution means condensation and frost will form on the baking paper layer between the paper and the cling film. This greatly reduces the rate of freezer burn.
3 Tips for Freezing Scamorza Cheese
Now you know how to freeze it, we’ve got our 3 top tips which we strongly recommend following when freezing scamorza cheese to have the best results:
Ensure It Is Well Sealed
We’re sure to recommend this because cheese as milky as scamorza will absorb flavours from your freezer – you most certainly don’t want the cheese to take on the flavours and mustiness of a freezer.
Freeze In Small Portions
Creating small parcels of cheese would allow you to portion the cheese in advance, particularly if you only use the cheese for one or two meals. For example, you could freeze enough cheese for two or three pizzas in one go; defrosting it at once is quicker than defrosting and refreezing a large block.
Freeze It ASAP
Milky cheese such as scamorza is liable to oxidize over time. This means that it can lose flavour and become somewhat stale. Not letting the cheese sit out is the best way to prevent this.
How Long Can You Freeze Scamorza Cheese?
You can freeze scamorza for up to 12 months, provided you follow the directions we laid out above.
This cheese freezes so well because there’s little excess water within the cheese that could help the rest of the block succumb to freezer burn.
Instead, the high fat and protein content mean it’s a little more immune to freezer burn – frost will take much longer to spread to within the cheese itself.
How Do You Defrost Scamorza Cheese?
To defrost scamorza cheese, we suggest placing the entire package into the fridge to thaw overnight. This will bring it to fridge temperature, which will allow it to be stored for a short while before needing to be used and cooked.
You could also defrost scamorza cheese in smaller increments by slicing portions off a large block of the frozen cheese.
Because the cheese is protein and fat based, you likely won’t need to slice through a block of ice, as ice won’t settle into the structure of the cheese.
Can You Refreeze Scamorza Cheese?
Yes, you can refreeze scamorza cheese. The reason for this is that the scamorza, like most cheese, is very high in fat and protein, with little to no water in the bulk of it. It can be frozen and refrozen without worrying about freezer burn sets.
In the case of freezing scamorza cheese, all the cold is really doing is allowing you to halt bacterial progress entirely. This will allow you to be sure the food doesn’t spoil.
Does Scamorza Cheese Freeze Well?
Yes, scamorza cheese freezes very well. As a rule of thumb, most different types of cheese freeze very well since there’s little water in them. While they may become more crumbly over time, they typically don’t undergo any major degradation during freezing and thawing.
To be sure that your scamorza cheese freezes well, we urge you to prevent additional liquid from getting to the cheese, whether in the form of condensation or frost. This can allow for freezer burn, which would damage the cheese.
Related FAQs
If you’ve still got questions about freezing scamorza cheese or scamorza in general, then these may help:
If you’re not going to freeze scamorza, then you should store it in the fridge. Wrap it in a sheet of baking paper and then a sheet of cling film to keep it airtight.
Scamorza has quite a long shelf life when stored correctly. It will keep in the fridge for between 3 and 4 months.
