Good morning. Go get the lactase. Today’s edition is cheese forward.

• If you have an underrated cheese rec (like Havarti), reply to let us know.

RECIPE BREAKDOWN 🤯

Universal cheese sauce framework

Cheese sauces make our favorite foods: nachos, mac & cheese, philly cheese steaks, loaded fries, and queso.

• But there’s a problem: you can make cheese whiz, queso, mac & cheese, etc in hundreds of different ways. Just to make one dish, you have to parse through tons of recipes to decide.

What if there was a mother cheese sauce blueprint that could make you a creamy, versatile cheese sauce base that could be used in any of the above applications?

We think we have it figured out:

• 1 part grated cheese base (see the cheese choice section below)

• 1 part evaporated milk

  • salt, seasonings, or extra aromatics to taste (like sautéed peppers/onions in a queso application, for instance)

That’s it. Why does it work?

• Evaporated milk is a natural emulsifier due to its high concentration of casein milk proteins, meaning you don’t need to make a roux base or mix in other stabilizers.

Choosing cheeses

In general, you want a mix of good melting cheeses and flavorful cheeses.

For great flavor & texture, try a 50/50 blend of a melting base cheese & a flavor-adjusting cheese.

• For a stronger flavor, you can go up to 75% flavor-adjusting cheese, and just 25% melting base cheese, especially if it’s a great melter/emulsifier like American/Velveeta.

NOTES: Using only flavoring cheeses will result in a grainy sauce, since they are aged or don’t melt as smoothly.

• Avoid these non-melting cheeses: paneer, queso fresco, feta, halloumi, cottage, ricotta

Once you’ve picked your ideal cheese blend, you’re ready to make your cheese sauce: Combine the grated cheese blend and evaporated milk in a saucepan. Gently heat and whisk until melted and homogenous. Taste and adjust with seasonings if needed.

RECIPE RECOMMENDATIONS ✅

Cheese pull nation

Try out some of the best cheese dishes on Cook Well:

FOOD TRENDS 🚀

Is TikTok the new Google Maps?

How is everyone finding restaurants these days?

People used to use platforms like Yelp or Google to find great restaurants, but have newer platforms taken over? Instagram and TikTok have largely helped boost a restaurant’s business when a video goes viral. Businesses have started to focus on these platforms to promote themselves.

• TikTok does share some features with platforms like Yelp, like sharing the location. There’s content organized by ‘food and drink’ and ‘hotels’ etc. It’s not the perfect alternative yet, but Gen Z is using it to find restaurants.

Not a perfect system: While videos may be edited to show visually appealing content, the actual dining experience might not meet expectations. Popular venues often experience increased wait times due to social media exposure. Additionally, it's worth noting that many establishments engage in sponsored content partnerships with influencers, which may influence the authenticity of reviews.

READER Q&A 🧠

Cheese dips

Answer: Last year we covered queso making tips, but we didn’t get into regional variations:

• Queso, cheese dip, and queso fundido are all forms of a melty dairy treat, but each have their own taste and texture.

Queso originated as Tex-Mex. It’s a melted cheese dip with peppers, onions and spices. It’s typically made with a stabilized cheese like Velveeta or American cheese. There are upscale versions, but the classic combo is Velveeta mixed with a can of Rotel.

Cheese dip is just melted cheese with nothing added to it. This is a more American version of queso. It’s found in the mid-west and southeastern parts of the US.

Queso fundido originated in Northern Mexico and is more similar to fondue. It has a nice cheese pull and is typically served flambé style (sometimes it’s referred to as queso flameado). Often chorizo is added and served with tortillas for dipping.

• Instead of being creamy, queso fundido (meaning “molten cheese”), its texture is more unctuous.

Have a culinary question? Reply to send it in for a chance to be featured and get your question answered.

WINNING READER SUBMISSION 🏆

Pan sauce perfection

This week’s dinner winner is Daniel B., who made pan-seared scallops with a shallot and white wine pan sauce, paired with some mashed potatoes cilantro oil and chili oil and spinach. You can learn how to perfect your pan sauce here.

Reply with your best home-cooked food photos for a chance to win & be featured!

EXTRA HELPINGS 🍽️

A read: Why Your Favorite Restaurants Sound Like That

In a minute or less: Jam, Jelly & Marmalade

What we’re watching: The Best Way to Make Sushi at Home

Food science: Blooming Aromatics

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