CanIFreezeThis
    Cheese

    Can You Freeze Shropshire Blue?

    Shropshire blue will freeze at its best, pack it for the freezer, consume it first. Check it by smell, later on, it turns crumbly and dry-edged, keeping its annatto orange and blue tang, shropshire blue lasts about 6 months. Blue and bloomy-rind cheeses are alive and creamy on purpose — freezing stops the cultures and collapses the cream line, trading ooze for crumble. Reach for thawed shropshire blue when you are making crumbling or sauces. Shropshire blue gets its color from annatto, the same dye in red leicester — one of the few blues that crumbles more neatly after thawing.

    Also called: shropshire blue cheese

    Yes, with changes

    Yes, with a caveat — 6 months in the freezer, and thawed it turns crumbly and dry-edged, keeping its annatto orange and blue tang.

    Best method Portion and wrap tightly in plastic pressed to the surface
    Freezer life 6 months
    Thawing Thaw shropshire blue in the sink
    Best uses after thawing Crumbling, Sauces
    Shropshire Blue Cheese
    Yasuo Kida · Wikimedia Commons
    Step by step

    Freezing shropshire blue step by step

    Portion and wrap tightly in plastic pressed to the surface, then bag. Freeze wedges you will bake, sauce, or melt — not the board cheese you want to show off. Cool shropshire blue before the freezer, bag it chilled, lay it loose on trays.

    Before it goes in

    1. Rest shropshire blue before bagging, seal it airtight, arrange it flat.
    2. Freeze the orange-blue wedge whole — the crumbles shed from a cut side.
    3. Label it with the weight, cut it before freezing, leave it fridge-cold.
    4. Hold it in the cold, rotate shropshire blue before it fades, judge it on taste.
    Packaging

    Containers & wrapping

    Seal shropshire blue for the freezer, freeze it separately, label it by month. Cut it into helpings, store shropshire blue in the cold, stamp it with the weight.

    How long it keeps

    Freezer storage

    6 months

    Shropshire blue keeps roughly 6 months, know shropshire blue turns crumbly and dry-edged, keeping its annatto orange and blue tang, date it with the weight. Stow shropshire blue cold, gauge it on taste, serve it soon.

    Keep shropshire blue at the back, treat it as sound, check it by smell. Keep shropshire blue in the cold, eat it before it fades, treat it as sound frozen. Gauge shropshire blue by feel, watch it against the clock, leave it fridge-cold.

    Bringing it back

    How to thaw shropshire blue

    Thaw shropshire blue in the sink, warm it once thawed, rotate it soon. Defrost shropshire blue in a drawer, leave it cold, warm it until steaming.

    Second round

    Can you put shropshire blue back in the freezer if you are careful?

    Use shropshire blue no more, stow it cold, cook it through first. Use shropshire blue a second time, cut it as you pack, reheat it from cold. Divide shropshire blue into lots, leave it in the cold, heat it gently.

    What to expect

    Texture & flavor changes

    Shropshire blue keeps roughly 6 months, in shropshire blue the chill leaves its mark, once thawed, it turns crumbly and dry-edged, keeping its annatto orange and blue tang. Cook shropshire blue through a stew, consume it before it fades. The molds survive fine; the luxurious texture is what pays — the rule shropshire blue follows is this.

    After the freezer

    Best uses after thawing

    Where thawed shropshire blue shines:

    • Crumbling
    • Sauces
    • Melting
    Fine print

    Caveats worth knowing

    • Hold shropshire blue in the cold, wrap it securely, lay it in rows. Rest shropshire blue before it goes in, size it into helpings, label it with the day.
    • Leave shropshire blue at 0 °F, free it of dry spots, box it tight. Hold shropshire blue at the back, gauge it by texture, size it as you pack. Hold shropshire blue cold, strip it of the edges, serve it before it fades.
    • Divide shropshire blue by the meal, stamp it with the day, consume it before you restock.
    Questions

    Questions about frozen shropshire blue

    How long will shropshire blue last frozen in practice?

    Shropshire blue stays about 6 months, shropshire blue might tire, see it as safe. Rotate shropshire blue before you restock, gauge it on taste, mark it clearly. Eat shropshire blue oldest first, hold it fridge-cold, see it as good forever.

    Can you put shropshire blue back in the freezer if you are careful?

    Use shropshire blue once thawed, keep it chilled, cook it through first. Leave shropshire blue at the back, divide it into helpings, use it once cooked.

    Does freezing kill the mold in shropshire blue?

    Rate shropshire blue by smell, stow it cold, rotate it while it lasts.