Hi
I have a Saffron Manchego that has been aging in my wine fridge cave for about 8 weeks now. Noticed that it was not drying well on one top side. Kept it dry by wiping daily and flipping as needed. Still never really dried up like the other sides. Just kept that 'spongy' feel to it and had a an orangy tinge. Decided it was time to slice it off to see if the cheese was okay underneath...whew! It still looked good and was firm. Now - did I do the right thing in slicing that off? I'm hoping that it will develop some sort of rind now so I can go head and rub with oil/paprika.
Any insight as to what happened? Is it okay that I sliced it off and will it develop a rind now?
The cave has temp and humidity controllers and all the other cheeses are doing great. Temp at 12, RH 85%.
Thanks!!
Mina, the orangy tinge could be b. Linens. Did it have any sort of smell? (Usually the smell of b. Linens is delightfully described as "stinky," as in old socks. :))
it did, but i was concerned with the spongy-ness of it. it never dried up no matter what i tried. and stayed a little slimy. and only on that one side...
should i go ahead and oil as i had planned? or should i wait for some sort of rind to develop on this fresh side?
I'm not sure what sort of a rind you will be able to develop at this point. Does it have any cracks or holes in the exposed paste? If so, I'd worry about mold setting in. (That's one of the advantages of b. Linens - it out-competes the molds!) On the other hand, if mold is going to be a problem, even if you go ahead and oil it, it probably won't do much to hinder the mold.
To be honest, if it were me, I'd probably be looking to vacuum-bag it at this point!
Thankfully no cracks or holes. Looks great otherwise.
Its drying up a little. Think I may have to bag it but I will give iy another day or two.
Thanks!