Extremely Moldy Blue Brain Cheese Looks Like It Belongs In A Sci-Fi Film

You (hopefully) haven't seen zombie brains in real life, but if you had to summon a mental image, it might look something like blue brain cheese. But don't let its odd appearance affect the way you think about this soft cheese — the moldier, messier, and freakier cousin of blue cheese. A product of Switzerland, blue brain cheese is made out of raw milk from Fleckvieh cows. Its outer layer has grooves and ridges much like a brain, a texture that blue brain cheese develops due to a mold called geotrichum candidum. The blue hue comes from a kind of fungus called penicillium roqueforti, which leads the cheese to develop a spicy, piquant flavor.

Blue brain cheese develops different colors and flavors depending on how long it has been aged. The older the cheese, the darker it gets on the outside, and the more intense the flavors become. The cheese can turn orange, yellow, or black depending on its age, and which of the wild ambient molds it picks up along the way. Blue brain cheese usually comes in a plastic dome that allows it to age properly. Given the amount of mold on the cheese and the way it only looks more radioactive with time, you might be surprised to know that when young it has a surprisingly mellow flavor, which intensifies, deepens, and sharpens as it ages. 

No one set out to create a kind of cheese that looked like a brain. The origin story of blue brain cheese involves a Swiss family who forgot about a batch of raw cow milk cheese they had left to mature in a damp cave. The cheese was supposed to turn out creamy with the aroma of rosemary, but within the confines of darkness, it grew moldy and morphed into something else entirely. As unappetizing as it must have looked, the family didn't give up on it after they found it weeks later. After all, its core was still soft and creamy. That's how the blue brain cheese was born.

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One of the moldiest cheeses in the world, Blue Brain from Switzerland. #bluecheese #brain #mold #cheesemonger #cheesetok #cheese #cheesetique #cheeselady #fypシ #foryou #foryoupage

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Blue brain cheese is incredibly hard to find in the U.S. because it's made with raw milk. If you're lucky enough, you might be able to find some around the holidays (imagine getting your hands on it during Halloween). It's mostly sold at artisan cheese shops in Germany, Switzerland, and the U.K.

Blue brain cheese might have a cocktail of mold, yeast, and bacteria, but it's completely safe to eat. Also, unlike other varieties of blue cheese, it does not have blue veins on the inside. Granted the cheese might not exactly make your mouth water when you lay your eyes on its exterior, but it is palatable. If you're brave enough to try it, pair it with Prosecco and anything sweet like sweet crackers, honey, or fruits.