How to Store Milk, Cheese and other Dairy Products

All dairy products will last longer if refigerated. Most can be kept even longer if frozen; but as a general rule, buying fresh, keeping in the refrigerator and eating before the stated use by date is best.

Storing milk

Milk is one of the most complete of all foods. In a mixed diet it is particularly significant as a source of protein, calcium and riboflavin. It is especially needed for growing children,  pregnant women, nursing mothers and the elderly. Milk is also very versatile food. It can be drunk as is or made into many interesting and nutritious dishes.

Milk is a perishable food- the following points should be remembered:

1. Do not leave milk in the sunlight as it destroys the B vitamins.
2. Keep milk in a cool place, preferably a refrigerator.
3. Milk should be kept in a clean container.
4. Milk should always be used in rotation. Pasteurised milk will keep for 2 - 3 days in a refrigerator, 1 - 2 days in a cool place.
   
   

Storing Yoghurt

Homemade yoghurt can be stored for up to 1 week in a refrigerator. If however, you are buying pre-prepared yoghurt it is important for you to refer to the “best before” date printed on the yogurt pot. Refrigerate it immediately after you buy it. Once opened, use the yogurt within a week and also before reaching the best before date. Seal opened yoghurt tightly to
avoid it being exposed to other foods with strong odours.

Storing Cheese

With your cheese variety chosen it is important to ensure that the cheese you buy is fresh and at its best. Knowing how to buy high-quality cheese and how to store and prepare it will help to save you money. As long as you are choosing a cheese with mold added the presence of blue and green mold on a rind is generally fine, whereas shades of yellow or pink indicate spoilage. Also try not to select cheese where the rind is brittle and cracked or if there is a strong smell of ammonia.

Serving and Storage Tips

•  Un-pasteurised cheese with a range of flavours should not be sliced until purchase otherwise it will start to lose its subtlety and aroma.
  
  
•  Keep the cheese in conditions in which it matures. Hard, semi-hard and semi-soft cheeses are stored in the temperatures from around 8 - 13 C.
  
  
•  Keep the cheese wrapped in the waxed paper and place it in a loose-fitting food-bag not to lose humidity and maintain the circulation of air.
  
  
•  Wrap blue cheeses all over as mould spores spread readily not only to other cheeses but also to everything near.
  
  
•  Chilled cheeses should be taken out of the refrigerator one and a half or two hours before serving.
  
  
•  Cheeses contain living organisms that must not be cut off from air, yet it is important not to let a cheese dry out.
  
  
•  Do not store cheese with other strong-smelling foods. As a cheese breathes it will absorb other aromas and may spoil.
  
  
•  Wrap soft cheeses loosely. Use waxed or grease proof paper rather than cling film.
  
  
•  Let cold cheese warm up for about half an hour before eating to allow the flavour and aroma to develop.