Cheese – the shelf life of opened cheeses

cheesestorage-lifetime

I am a cheese lover. I always enjoy finding unique cheeses and trying them. However I always end up with a plethora of opened cheeses which opens up the question of; What is the shelf-life of opened cheeses? Do they differ per cheese. I don't want to waste the cheese!

Best Answer

Yes, it differs by cheese.

As a very general and vague rule, the softer the cheese, the less time it will last. Large chunks may last longer than small or grated pieces.

A ripe Camembert is at its peak for hours. A nice chunk of Parmesan may last for weeks.

Dairy Googness summarizes as follows:

  • Fresh cheese: a few days to 2 weeks
  • Soft cheese: 1 week
  • Semi-soft cheese: 2 to 3 weeks
  • Firm cheese: 5 weeks
  • Hard cheese: 10 months

Note: my opinion on the above is that the firm and hard times are a little long for opened cheese.

Eat By Date is more conservative, suggesting only up to a couple of months for opened hard cheeses.

You can also freeze cheese with minimal loss of quality, which will substantially increase its shelf life.