Cottage cheese is a type of fresh cheese with a mild flavor and a creamy, heterogeneous texture made from skimmed milk – hence the low milkfat content. It is made by adding an acid – like vinegar or lemon juice – to the milk which causes the milk proteins (curds) to separate from the liquid (whey). The curds are then drained and mixed with cream and salt, which is what gives cottage cheese slightly tangy taste and creamy texture. The addition of a "dressing" to the curd grains is primarily responsible for the taste of the finished food. Cottage cheese is not aged.
It was first referred to as 'cottage cheese' in United States to reflect that it was being made in farm cottages using milk left over from butter making.
Cottage cheese can be relatively low in milkfat/calories for the amount of protein it provides and is a rich source of vitamin B<sub>12</sub>. Cottage cheese comes in different fat levels, including low–fat and fat–free – but even an original 'full fat' version is less calorific than a chunk of hard cheese or wedge of soft cheese.
Dietitians identify cottage cheese as a top choice for overall health due to its high protein and low-fat profile.
History
Origin
thumb|upright=1.35|The famous "Frieze of the Dairy" showing the façade of the Temple of the Great Goddess of Life, [[Ninhursag, at Tell al-'Ubaid, depicts priests engaged in the production of cow dairy in the stables of the complex, underscoring the sacred value attributed to this food, Sumerian Gallery of the Iraq Museum in Baghdad.]]
The first pictorial evidence for cheesemaking was found on a frieze at the Temple of the Great Goddess of Life, Ninhursag, in Mesopotamia in the Fertile Crescent – a region which covers modern day Iraq – and is 5,000 years old. The frieze depicts priests engaged in the production of cow dairy and perhaps creating curd mixture somewhat similar to cottage cheese.
A fictional story on the origin of cheese was taken from Homer's Odyssey, in which the poet describes how the Cyclops, Polyphemus, made cheese by storing milk in animal stomachs. The enzyme rennin from animals stomachs induces a coagulation process separating the curds from the whey.
As Rome expanded its empire, it spread the knowledge of cheese, discovering many new forms. The Romans introduced cheesemaking to England.
United States uses
thumb|right|Home-made cheese in [[cheesecloth traditional method]]
Immigrants to United States brought the tradition of fresh cheesemaking with them and by the mid-1800s the term cottage cheese entered the American vocabulary.
The first American cheese factory opened in 1868, beginning the wholesale cheese industry in the United States. The use of industrial cheese in the United States, in general, increased greatly at the end of the 19th century; by the turn of the 20th century, farm cheese production had become significant.
In 2016, a Wall Street Journal article speculated that cottage cheese might be ready for a resurgence following the increased use of Greek yogurt due to its high protein and low sugar levels.
Manufacture
thumb|right|A container of cottage cheese
Since the 1930s, industrial cottage cheese has been manufactured using pasteurized skim milk, or in more modern processes using concentrated nonfat milk or reconstituted nonfat dry milk. In the United States, the FDA allows the additive in many dairy products (not whole milk) up to 1% of total volume by weight. It may also be used in Canada and the European Union. In the US, the FDA does not restrict nanoparticle technology used in food, but in Europe, it must be first submitted for approval as a food ingredient. According to the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies, it is found in hundreds of products, not always labeled as such, including many organic products; however, several large US producers have denied using it.
Cottage cheese may be marketed as a small-curd (<4 mm diameter) or large-curd (>8 mm diameter). Other than supplying nutrients, there is little evidence that consuming cottage cheese provides any direct health effects.
Consumption
thumb|Cottage cheese and [[kabanos breakfast]]
In the United States and Canada, cottage cheese is used in many culinary dishes. It can be combined with fruit and sugar, salt and pepper, fruit purée, tomatoes, or granola and cinnamon. It can be eaten on toast, in salads, as a chip dip, as a replacement for mayonnaise in tuna salad, and as an ingredient in recipes such as jello salad and various desserts. Cottage cheese is also consumed with fruit, such as pineapple, pears, peaches, or mandarin oranges.
The sour taste of the product is due to lactic acid, which is present at 124–452 mg/kg. Formic, acetic, propionic and butyric acids contribute to the aroma.