Yesterday’s (perhaps over-long) treatise on the difference in European and American Cheese Culture got me thinking… There’s one striking difference between the EU and US cheese scenes I didn’t ad-dress. Why is there no ‘European Cheese’?
Nothing else like it: ‘Real’ American (Processed) Cheese in a classic Grilled Cheese Sandwich!
I think it’s fair to say that probably everybody over the age of three in North America knows what a Grilled Cheese Sandwich is. And most have consumed at least one in their lives.
And Everybody who’s old enough to understand the question will probably agree that it’s not a REAL Grilled Cheese unless it’s stuffed with one or more melted slices of American (Processed) Cheese.
Not real cheese
In fact, American cheese is not real cheese. It’s got some in it, but it’s largely vegetable oil, milk solids and other additives to ensure it comes off the factory assembly line with a consistent colour, flavour and texture.
Processed Cheese was first commercialized in response a US government call for food scientists to develop a spreadable cheese that could be canned, and would last indefinitely in soldiers’ field ra-tions during the First World War. It was Canadian J.L. Kraft who tweaked the formula to what we call Processed Cheese today, patenting his combination of ingredients and method in 1916.
All the additions and processing have resulted in ‘American’ cheese having to be labelled ‘Processed Cheese Food’ or some other designation to differentiate it from ‘real, ‘whole’ cheese.
So why is it such a universal staple?
It’s not, really. Except, maybe, at Fast Food joints. According to Google Search, “Yes, you can find American cheese in Europe, usually in specialty stores or the ‘international’ aisle, but it’s often the individually wrapped, processed ‘singles’ (like Kraft) that Europeans find odd, contrasting with their own traditional, diverse cheeses and leading to perceptions of it being ‘fake’ or just for fast food. While true deli-style American cheese is harder to find, many countries have similar processed ‘burger cheese’ or ‘melting cheese’.”
There is no ‘European’ or ‘British’ Cheese
Notable in its own right is the striking (when you really think about it) fact that while ‘American Cheese’ is a national icon in the US, there is no ‘European Cheese’.
The Cheese Culture is so different in the Old World that something like Processed Cheese simply isn’t needed on an every-day basis.
My take
I have to declare a personal bias at this point. I come from a long line of cheese making folks from the North of England, on my Dad’s side. I grew up with real, small-factory Eastern Ontario Cheddar, and never even suspected it was related in any way to Processed Cheese slices until I started school and began comparing lunches with the other kids.
While I sometimes disparage Processed Cheese as ‘not real cheese’, I will admit it has earned a place in food history as a food created for the army that has taken it’s place in menus in many locales where US and allied troops served during the two world wars of the last century. Just like SPAM…
~ Maggie J.