How Cottage Cheese Is Made Into Such Small Curds

You may have noticed that TikTok can't get enough cottage cheese lately. Consequently, this dairy staple has taken on a whole new life. Whether you've been eating cottage cheese forever or you're one of the many new fans of the creamy yet crumbly snack, you may have some questions about this unique cheese. What is it? Why is it partially solid and partially liquid? How do they get curds of different sizes? Cottage cheese is unusual, but it does have at least one thing in common with its fellow cheeses: It starts as milk before it's fermented.

To turn milk into cottage cheese, enzymes or probiotics are added to the milk. This process creates lactic acid, which then separates the substance into two different textures —  curds and whey. The curds are distinctly solid, while the whey is liquid. This is what gives cottage cheese its unusual, heterogeneous texture. To turn this block of cheese and liquid into the texture we know and love, it's up to a curd cutter. A curd cutter is a tool with multiple blades that can cut cheese into the curd size of your choice. As it turns out, TikTok is onto something with this particular food obsession. You actually should be eating more cottage cheese. It's full of vitamins and nutrients and high in protein.

Different brands and styles of cottage cheese have varying sizes of curds. The idea is that the curds should be bite-sized. However, different curd cutters will produce differently-sized curds. Some even opt to use a knife and cut the curds by hand. There are specific guidelines for what size knife should be used for different curd sizes. Co-founder and CEO of Good Culture Jesse Merrill told AllRecipes, "Cutting into the curd releases a bunch of whey. We then drain out the whey, and that leaves you with a nice curd. You mix the curd with cream after that."

If you're a cottage cheese fan, you've probably already noticed there's a wide variety of cottage cheese. Some folks prefer a more liquidy, soup-like style of cottage cheese, while others prefer cottage cheese that is drier, more solid, and more similar to Feta cheese. It's not as difficult to know what you're getting at the store as you may think. It's all about curd size. Large curd cottage cheese has less liquid because more of the mixture is taken up by curds. If you prefer a more liquid cottage cheese, choose a small curd variety with more whey. Pick your favorite, and dig in.