WTF is American cheese?

[@EnderLord99]

Wait, *that*'s the formula of the melting salt? "NaCHO cheese" fits in more ways than I expected, then.

[@danriddick914]

Haha I had to look up if there was a "real" relationship between nachos and the chemical makeup... Turns out no - it's completely a coincidence. The word nacho comes from the guy who "invented" nachos - Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya. 😂

[@Hailfire08]

Most organic sodium salts can be written NaCHO with little numbers under each element. Sodium citrate isn't special there.

[@danriddick914]

@@Hailfire08 interesting! I had no idea!

[@davidtitanium22]

hehe chemistry joke but yeah lots of organic compounds are just various combinations of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, so CHO can be used to denote the composition, but for most functional purposes the carbon structure is more important than the composition so it's usually written differently

[@MrNicePotato]

@@danriddick914 That's simply because C,H,O are the essential elements in any carbohydrate. C=carbo(n), H2O=hydrate(water). So it's a nice coincidence any organic salt would end in xCxHxO, with x's stating the number of atoms in each molecule.

[@starRushi]

Since I'm early I just wanted to say you totally changed how I see food and you took a strict STEM non-food lover who always forgot to eat and turned her into someone who really enjoyed cooking. Thank you, because I (and also all of my friends who reap the rewards of my new interest) appreciate you greatly.

[@MinuteFood]

THANK YOU! Comments like this make it all really worthwhile!

[@starRushi]

@@MinuteFoodI'm sure I can speak for many to say it's really validating to see someone break down cooking into more scientific steps. It makes it very accessible for people who never had someone to teach them all the tricks to how to get a sense for what you're doing. For example, I never really knew how to cook based on look or smell and your videos make me feel less crazy for just wanting a clear explanation on what color or temperature something should be to be accurate.

[@mirrikybird]

@@MinuteFood Yea, I love being able to support this channel through patreon since it is like paying for a very affordable cooking class that deep dives into the science behind all the choices made in the kitchen and explains it in an incredibly clear and easy to understand way

[@prosamis]

Engineer here. She absolutely made me way more interested in food as both an art and a science

[@Jenachy]

And for those who may be opposed to buying sodium citrate because it's a "scary chemical powder", you can make a liquefied version of it by mixing citrus juice and baking soda

[@pufthemajicdragon]

IMO anybody freaking out over "scary chemical powder" should probably stay out of the kitchen 😆

[@bosstowndynamics5488]

And just to expand this, sodium citrate is literally just citric acid that's been neutralised with sodium bicarbonate, all of which are super common in food (and, particularly the latter, in your own body)

[@polarknight5376]

​​@@pufthemajicdragonit's just as processed and chemically as white sugar, cream of tartar, and baking soda.

[@DaxCyro]

@@pufthemajicdragon You misspelled chemistry lab. That's what a good aand wellstocked kitchen is :)

[@polarknight5376]

@@DaxCyro Chemistry is easier than cooking, because with chemistry if you follow procedure and something still goes wrong, you can simply blame the creator of the procedure or the chemicals for not being pure enough. With cooking you have no one to blame but yourself.

[@leandervr]

"American cheese - which was actually developed in Switzerland, and patented by a Canadian entrepeneur..." That's the most american thing I've ever heard.

[@Zaxares]

"Mmmm... 64 slices of American cheese." - Homer Simpson

[@shibibi1]

I always called if plastic cheese... Cause it's the cheese wrapped in plastic envelopes 😂 also, I'm aussie

[@huw3851]

American Cheese = Real Cheese with added fat. That may be even more American.

[@forbaldo1]

Canada is in north America

[@freddiepitts7611]

Nothing from the US is Actually anything to do with the US 😅

[@zyzamo]

To me the most offensive thing about american cheese is the way it's packed in singles. Can we please not waste so much plastic?

[@disjustice]

You can get it from the deli counter in most stores. It will usually be better quality, and taste more like real cheddar too, even from the same brand. Get the sliced on demand, not pre-sliced.

[@imadork123]

@@disjustice Only downside is that you have to keep it cooled or they will kind of stick together and be difficult to grab as individual slices later.

[@RodolfoHermans]

The second most offensive, after the fact that it tastes poorly, as most industrial food.

[@tinyderppotato5410]

@@imadork123 just buy a block of cheese and a cheese slicer, do the slicing yourself when you need it, keeps the cheese fresh

[@radfordmcawesome7947]

@@imadork123 kraft deli slices somehow are easy to separate even after warming up, but as the other commenter said, we could just slice on-demand

[@hcn6708]

You also don't need to buy sodium citrate as a product! You can make it (if you're ok with the lime or lemon flavor) using lemon/lime juice and sodium bicarbonate (make sure to stop when the bubbling stops)

[@asdfrozen]

You can also use alka-seltzer

[@ku8721]

Came down to say the same thing! Also you could make a béchamel sauce and add cheese to that probably a richer sauce but worth it as long as you don't break it

[@benjamingeiger]

You can also use powdered citric acid instead of lemon or lime juice. Just mix the two with just enough water to dissolve them. Note that it's an endothermic reaction, so you'll need to either wait a couple of minutes for the reaction to absorb enough heat from the air to finish or add a little bit of heat yourself.

[@Ryan-bj2vl]

I feel like I'm in bizarro world rn. I've been arguing for years that you can make your own cheese using this method and it's been like talking to a brick wall.

[@hanifarroisimukhlis5989]

With citric acid is cheap enough, why bother with lemon? If you're feeling chemist, use lye instead (make sure it's stoichiometric though).

[@IzzyCraft]

It should also note that kraft's basic american singles is a loose term like "cheese product" because they cut it with whey to save money. Where the kraft Deli Deluxe american is a "pasteurized process cheese" the more regulated term and what kraft was selling pre 00's.

[@vatvslpr]

It isn't that they use whey; that's actually allowed for "cheese food". The sticking point is milk protein concentrate, which is not allowed even though dried milk is. At least even the cheap Kraft singles list Cheddar Cheese as their first ingredient. Velveeta is probably the nastiest cheese doppelganger. It doesn't even list cheese as an ingredient(!), though it does contain canola oil, milk protein concentrate, whey protein concentrate, maltodextrin, lactic acid, and sodium alginate, none of which are allowed in "cheese", "cheese food", or "cheese spread". FWIW, Velveeta is now a "Pasteurized Recipe Cheese Product", which sound like it fits in Michal Pollan's "edible foodlike substances" category, except possibly for the "edible" part.

[@guybrush1701]

​@@vatvslprreminds me of SNL's Almost Pizza commercial

[@svenmorgenstern9506]

Whey to go, Kraft! 🤑

[@babilon6097]

Cheese... I grated my teeth for this pun at the end.

[@littleredpony6868]

Ain’t easy being cheesy

[@lewatoaofair2522]

Gouda one. I’m fondue of your puns.

[@cebo494]

Instead of sodium citrate, you can just mix American and other cheeses. There's enough citrate in the American to melt other cheese too. My go to mac uses equal parts American and cheddar by weight. I use the same total weight as the weight of dry pasta, so usually 1lb pasta with 0.5lb each of cheddar and American. Add a bit of milk, sometimes some butter, salt if needed, black pepper, and I sometimes add a touch of garlic powder, and it's delicious. Just make the sauce and dump in the cooked pasta and it's done.

[@nicojar]

Why would I ever mix American cheese with gouda or mozzarella or emmenthal or gruyère? Sounds like a good way to make good cheeses worse. Just leave the American cheese out of the recipe and use other, basic European cheese, and there you go: the taste is wonderful, and you're not coating your arteries with horrors. ;) (and keep your milk, butter and salt away)

[@KaitouKaiju]

​@@nicojarto melt it duh pay attention

[@cebo494]

@@nicojar Most people can buy american cheese at a grocery store. Few grocery stores sell sodium citrate, even if it's available online. You can get away with using very little american cheese if you just want to melt another cheese, probably something like 1:5 or maybe even 1:10. You wouldn't even be able to taste the american at that point. I just happen to know from experimentation that I like the taste of 50/50 american and cheddar for mac-n-cheese. I've tried it with more or less cheddar and didn't like it as much; it just doesn't taste like a "proper" american mac-n-cheese when you use too much of another cheese, but it tastes a bit too bland for my taste without enough of it. But not everyone wants an "authentic american" version of mac-n-cheese, so they can do whatever they want. The beauty of mac-n-cheese is in it's customizeability.

[@sheep4483]

@@nicojar a lot of block and slice cheeses you find in grocery stores (at least in the US) like gouda, gruyere, meunster, are actually basically just american cheese with different flavors, for that matter, american cheese is basically just normal cheese that's been melted with sodium citrate and a bit of liquid (milk/water), it's really not that weird, scarcely different from normal cheese, the taste is another matter though

[@bobrong9645]

@@nicojar I adore cheese, but let's be honest here: if you don't want your arteries to be "coated with horrors", cheese is not the food item for you.

[@locomotivefaox]

I know WAY too much about melting cheese going into this video. The perfect grilled cheese is knowledge many died to attain. Okay so if you're on a budget you, you can actually mix baking soda with lemon juice in a pan, making adhock sodium citrate solution for your cheese melting needs! You could evaporate this to get the powder seen in the video, but I've used it for macaraoni sauces and nacho dips just as is. (edited after ben's reply, thanks ben!)

[@missnaomi613]

Thank you!

[@benjamingeiger]

You don't even need to heat the baking soda. Just mix the baking soda and citrus juice and wait a few minutes (it's an endothermic reaction, so it's got to pull enough heat from the air to work, or you can gently warm the mixture). Also, if the flavor of citrus is a problem, you can instead use powdered citric acid and just enough water to dissolve them. You can usually find citric acid in the spice aisle of your local megamart.

[@locomotivefaox]

@@benjamingeiger Ta!

[@WD35]

Twokinds pfp W

[@John_Jack]

You can also just buy sodium citrate

[@iafozzac]

Another way to make cheese creamy is starch, used in pasta dishes like cacio e pepe and carbonara, where the starchy water is used to melt the aged cheese and, starch being an emulsifier, it keeps fats, water, and proteins all nice and suspended together

[@mangomongomognomagno]

Exactly, this is the best way to obtain a creamy cheese sauce without using extra fats or crappy ingredients like American "cheese"

[@interrobangings]

​@@mangomongomognomagnobe less pretentious

[@mangomongomognomagno]

@@GabrielButnaru yes, pasta water is used to make cacio e pepe creamy, but it isn't used for carbonara. Pouring the beaten eggs and grated pecorino in a bowl with the hot pasta is enough to cook them and you obtain the perfect consistency

[@interrobangings]

@@GabrielButnaru I'm adding cream to my carbonara and I hope your nonna is rolling in her grave. Be Less Pretentious

[@bosstowndynamics5488]

Starch is a thickener but not, strictly speaking, an emulsifier. It's just that starch thickened sauces take ages to settle out so it works OK if you serve it there and then. As explained in the video though, it's really not that big of a deal to use American cheese since it's just cheese and sodium citrate (aka neutralised citric acid).

[@inf0phreak]

FYI "The Laughing Cow" is actually French, to this day in Europe it goes by the name "La vache qui rit" or "LVQR".

[@Ludix147]

There's also a variant brand that goes by "kiri"

[@hundvd_7]

> it goes by the name "La vache qui rit" It actually depends on the place and time. 10 years ago, its name was mostly translated. Nowadays, most countries use the French name, And in some of them, both versions exist side-by-side.

[@escape209]

In the UK it's The Laughing Cow

[@ArcadiGarciaRius]

In Spain it's "La Vaca que Ríe"!

[@cameroneridan4558]

It most certainly is *_Die Lachende Kuh_* in Germany and *_Krówka Śmieszka_* in Poland

[@TizonaAmanthia]

yup. the sodium citrate "hack" is something Adam Ragusea turned me on to a couple years ago.

[@arealsliceofcheese]

For most of you this was a normal video, for me it was your equivalent of a gory r rated movie with a history listen sprinkled in

[@user-pc3nc3hg6w]

Aged hard cheese taste the best both in solid and melted form!

[@robertallan6373]

And better for you.

[@PattiWinker]

I suspect some of these commentators didn’t actually watch, or comprehend, the video. Lots of good science. Thank you!

[@CameraMan-it4qz]

This reminds me of the Adam reguesea series “WTF is”.

[@wasneeplus]

I've never had any issues with getting non-processed cheese to melt the way I like, and as a bonus it doesn't taste like ass.

[@dyscotopia]

See Cheese in a title, and immediately click. The cheese must flow

[@Rolerus]

Liked your nice way of presenting the knowledge around this cheese. Especially the part with the Sodium Nitrate. Here just a side information. In german they are called "Scheibletten" and in italian "Sottilette". By the way for me (german/italian speaker) it sounds funny how you pronounce Gouda. With no "o" sound. But nevermind. The Dutch they pronounce the "G" simliar to an "Hr". Even difficult to explain. Greetings

[@fabriciomanuel8775]

Oh wow I wasn’t expecting this to be so fascinating, and something that I’ll probably end up applying in the kitchen.

[@herostempus5794]

I love using sodium citrate to make mac and cheese. However I don't keep sodium citrate on hand because it is too niche of an ingredient. Instead I keep my pantry stocked with baking soda and citric acid and react them as needed at a ratio of 1 part baking soda to 0.84 parts citric acid.

[@origamiscienceguy6658]

Parts by volume, or mass?

[@herostempus5794]

@@origamiscienceguy6658 mass

[@Ridnarhtim]

Call me crazy, but I care more about how my cheese tastes than how it melts.

[@Menemey]

Crazy

[@diablo.the.cheater]

Okay, mr "crazy, but I care more about how my cheese tastes than how it melts." i will call you "crazy, but I care more about how my cheese tastes than how it melts." from now on.

[@nawenyxar4378]

I hate melt cheese. Yeah, I know, nobody cares.

[@senorbolainas2991]

And like... how many uses does melted cheese have? other than pizza, bread, fondue and lasagna?

[@vimtheprotogen2855]

But American cheese does taste good? It’s not a complex taste, but it doesn’t have to be

[@timb7085]

As always - Love the very informative and educational video - all presented in a fun way - I keep learning things - big thanks for the great video!

[@ryukisai99]

As a french and a cheese junkie i have to confirm that i do not see this as cheese. But more importantly, if you're happy with it, I'm 100% fine with it.

[@scaredyfish]

Sorry, but that chewy mass of protein sitting in a mess of oil looks delicious.

[@jeil5676]

Agree. It gets even better when you cook it down and it gets crispy.

[@Enden31]

And the taste of the plastic individual packaging and its microplastic residues is incredible and totally healthy !

[@polarknight5376]

There's actually zero evidence on how microplastics affect us, or whether or not they even have any negative effects.

[@shivorath]

Buy it in a block then? No one is making you buy American in singles any more than they are making you buy cheddar, pepper jack, provolone, or any other cheese in singles.

[@cloudkitt]

You shouldn't be getting kraft singles anyway. There's almost no reason to not get American cheese at the deli counter. It's better *and* cheaper.

[@polarknight5376]

@@cloudkitt Kraft singles also aren't American cheese. They're ultra-pasturized dairy product.

[@abyssreborn4213]

Which is the definition of what American cheese is, yes.​@@polarknight5376

[@martineyles]

Other options are mixing american cheese and "real" cheese (if you're not able to get Sodium Citrate on its own), making a roux (milk, flour, butter) with cheese or using wine as used in fondue.

[@pepperonijabroni5353]

I love your super helpful description boxes

[@Roach18]

0:33 Why are the individual pieces packaged in plastic??

[@vladimir520]

I'm Romanian and that's how they come here, how do you buy them?

[@Roach18]

@@vladimir520 Cheese comes in transparent plastic containers with a plastic foil over the top which you can rip off, or at least that's how the company packaging the cheese I buy does it.

[@DreadEnder]

I exactly what I was thinking.

[@DreadEnder]

@@Roach18I get cheese in a hard plastic container with soft plastic lid (for Parmesan) and in a soft plastic bag for cheddar. Don’t know about others.

[@Biouke]

In France you will find most processed "American" cheese packaged like this, other cheeses are packaged normally but you won't find a loaf of processed cheese except maybe at retailers that sells directly to restaurants. And the ones containing the most cheese in it vs. chemicals are yellow rather than orange-y. I think it has to do with both culture (processed cheese being used mostly for burgers and sandwiches, not something you put in pasta on on the table) and availability of the main ingredient, Cheddar cheese. It's simple, 10~15 years ago you just couldn't find cheddar in retail except from the 12% contained in those individual plastic-wrapped processed slices. And even now, it's a bit pricey. Gouda is much more common, thought.

[@CopenhagenLion]

I don't think the Dutch are going to be very happy with the way you pronounce Gouda

[@Vanders456]

Rhymes with "how", not "who"!

[@MLWJ1993]

Meh, they get the pronunciation wrong all the darn time. Probably on us for making it difficult to begin with 😂

[@oyoo3323]

​@@MLWJ1993 "ou" is pronounced the same way in native English vocabulary as it is in Dutch (e.g. mouth, round, foul etc.). It is only pronounced the same as "oo" in French loanwords (e.g. randez-vous, silhouette, route, souvenir etc.). So how is it in any way the Dutch's fault for some English speakers subconsciously assuming their cheese to be French?

[@Biouke]

@@oyoo3323 Thank you, I'm French and just learnt how to properly pronounce "gouda" with your comment :D

[@oyoo3323]

@@Biouke you're welcome. By the way, the same applies to Dutch itself. Dutch too has a fair number of French loanwords (especially the Flemish dialects), and though in native Dutch vocabulary "ou" is pronounced the same as in native English vocabulary (after all, Dutch and English are close relatives), even in Dutch, in French loanwords, "ou" is pronounced more similarly to how it is in French.

[@jerichobeach2967]

3:35 the backstory of “american” cheese being completely unamerican is the most american thing ever

[@theninja4137]

The US pronounciation of Gouda kills me (as someone who worked near the Dutch city of Gouda [How-duh] for some time)

[@battleoid2411]

Maybe try spelling it correctly then

[@theninja4137]

@@battleoid2411 spelling what correctly?

[@battleoid2411]

@@theninja4137 if you guys want to say howduh, why spell it gouda

[@theninja4137]

@battleoid2411 Dutch is close to phonetically consistent. G is always pronounced like a raspy h, anyone seeing a Dutch word and having a basic grasp of Dutch knows how to pronounce it. English on the other hand is so inconsistent that it's hard to say what the exception to the rule is, because there is no real rule to begin with Tldr: it is spelled how it is written, just not from the language you speak.

[@eragon78]

@@theninja4137 English tends to be inconsistent because its an amalgamation of multiple different languages, so it kinda takes "rules" from many of the roots it has. Its a Germanic language, but we take a lot from many of the romance languages, like Spanish and French. Even some Latin. This leads to just vast inconsistencies on how things are spelled or pronounced. So yea, English is a mess lol.

[@FairMiles]

I LOVED the chemical curls!!! 🥰

[@Brighton24601]

As soon as you mentioned adding sodium citrate to other cheeses to make them melty, I was like, is Adam Ragusea’s video in the description? Yes it is. Also I absolutely need one of the NaCHO shirts that Dan from ATK rocks.

[@seanmalloy7249]

One thing you have to take into consideration if you're using sodium citrate to make an aged or hard cheese melt smoothly for, say, a dip, is that if you don't add enough other liquids to the resulting mix, you have to keep it warm or it will solidify back into a block, not useful at all as a dip.

[@NickShvelidze]

Mmmm, 64 slices of American cheese

[@nicholasvinen]

63...

[@theretard666]

I think I'm blind...

[@narsa1]

62..​@@nicholasvinen

[@kirishima638]

@@narsa161…

[@darling_insanitea]

60…

[@etienne8110]

I ll never understand how some will prefer a nicely melting tasteless product full of chemicals, rather than melted comté or gruyere, that will have a puddle of grease, but natural and tasty. Real cheese for the win. American cheese isn t even good enough for dogs...

[@fclefjefff4041]

😂 Check out the queen strutting around over here

[@kooooons]

As i'm needlessly pedantic, I'd like to point out that gouda isn't french, it's dutch. So the "OU" in gouda is not pronounced like "oo" (as the French would do). Gouda rhymes with Louder. but also the dutch pronounce the G like the scotch pronounce the "ch" in "Loch ness".

[@johnhudelson2652]

I call American cheese "plastic cheese".

[@gowzahr]

"[American cheese is] the undisputed champion of ooey gooey goodness" Ooey, check Gooey, check Goodness? Not even close.

[@speedy01247]

I'm going to disagree with you there.

[@eragon78]

Taste pretty good to me.

[@SmartyPoohBear]

I was expecting her to go into detail on melted grated hard cheeses vs ungrated. Cause melted a layer of grated parm on a pan is amazing.

[@firstcynic92]

"...when you try to melt hard or aged cheese you often end up with a chewy mass of proteins sitting in a mess of oil." You say that as if its a bad thing.

[@rivi7197]

Yep, That's the perfect consistency to dip some baguette or ciabatta in, on a cold winter evening for starter to dinner. Plus herbs and spices. In fact, I'd often add some olive oil to get more of that oilyness. I found the part of the video with that in the pan looked much more appetizing than the yellow-orange goo.

[@firstcynic92]

@@rivi7197 Or you can let the rest caramelize and solidify, and crunch into it when cooled.

[@rivi7197]

@@firstcynic92 Provoleta al la chilena: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z6GZpJ2EqcR6m6c

[@freeman10000]

It sounds (and tastes) awesome.

[@eliotoole4534]

Yeah I love extra sharp cheddar quesadillas! Edit: And the caramelized cheese bits are awesome!

[@mirrikybird]

What I love doing for my toasted cheesy sandwiches is to mix mozzarella for meltyness with finely grated parmesan for flavour to get the best of both worlds.

[@dabundis]

American may be the gooiest melter, but I prefer a grilled cheese sandwich that's more stretchy than gooey

[@万恶共匪毒害中华]

What is American cheese exactly? Is it all sliced cheese OR all cheese manufactured in USA?

[@BaeBunni]

@@万恶共匪毒害中华 it's called american cheese because it was invented in america. James Kraft was a canadian but immigrated to the USA. In the video it's mentioned it was to get cheese to last longer. The reason was James Kraft was a door to door cheese salesman. Obviously going door to door for 12 hours with a lot of it during the hottest times during the day would make the cheese go bad quickly. So he invented to cheese so it could be hauled around in the sun without worry. It also gets called american cheese in other places because it's an army ration since ww1 and plenty of americans love trading ration food for fresh stuff which is why a lot of countries love American Cheese and Spam since they kept for a long time and were traded to them by the americans soldiers.

[@KaitouKaiju]

​@@万恶共匪毒害中华 There are two cheeses commonly called American cheese There's the cheese product like that you find on a McDonald's burger, then there's American cheddar which is...cheddar

[@ConstantlyDamaged]

@@BaeBunni Not sure about other countries, but you can't actually get American cheese here in Australia. For a good melting cheese, I stick to Colby.

[@HeroOfCows]

Is it maybe just not labeled as such? I see Kraft singles on Woolworth's online store​@@ConstantlyDamaged

[@basilefff]

Was thinking about this the other day, thanks for answering all my cooking questions!

[@bloodspatteredguitar]

Um, breaking down into a gooey mass in a pool of oil is perfect for cheese on toast and other meals. The oil goes into the toast and the gooey mass is lovely. I therefore refuse the appellation "bad melter".

[@fabiozaccarini6762]

You can just mix the juice of one lemon with one teaspoon of baking soda (sodium carbonate) to make sodium citrate!

[@ManlyKirby]

when i was young i always tought cheese was bad because i only ate those cheeses that come in slices, but when i ate those cheeses that come in cubes along with some ham i was shocked at how good cheese was

[@smizmar8]

Lol, the animations in this video were so perfect.

[@deetlebee]

I love my Sodium Citrate. Not only mac n cheese and nacho cheese, but "Bread Soup" are easy peasy with it. Just make a very loose version of the cheese sauce with broth, then toss in all of your old-but-not-moldy bread. Classic 1700s recipe made easier thanks to modern science!

[@dkaloger5720]

Feta cheese melts remarkably well(try microwaving it or adding chunks to a hot tomato based sauce ). It’s not exactly melting but more of a softening and change in flavor and unlike cold feta It pairs well with sweet flavors . Feta is a very fatty and moisture rich cheese and minimally aged so considering the chemistry in the video it makes sense .

[@CharliMorganMusic]

Sodium citrate is so useful, idk why everyone doesn't have it in their kitchen.

[@eragon78]

because "chemicals" are scary, and so many people buy into the natural bias nonsense.

[@altair3545]

*grate* ful for is so smooth it almost didn't register as a pun

[@BobSmith-tm2kj]

My only issue with american cheese is more with kraft. WAY too much plastic waste (if you buy it in other brands or from the deli counter its more often packaged with paper separating it which is a lot better for the environment.)

[@BlumpkinSpiceLatte]

I am consistantly amazed at how many people only think of American cheese as the Kraft garbage, as if they can't go to the deli counter and get american that tastes 10x better and doesn't waste all that plastic. Also the whole thing with American cheese not being "real" cheese is just like how basically any sandwich bread is "enriched" bread (per FDA standards) because it has more than the 4 ingredients of four, salt, yeast, and water. Even adding eggs to bread means it's not "bread", it's "enriched bread". Does that make sandwich bread from the store any more real bread than american cheese is cheese? Utter nonsense 🤦🏻‍♂️ Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

[@the.duck.is.ronin.]

As a non-American who doesn't have Kraft in their country, I never got the hate for American cheese for this reason

[@aolson1111]

If you get Kraft Deli Deluxe, it doesn't have the plastic and it tastes way better.

[@Furluge]

A) Kraft sells American cheese slices that are not individually wrapped in cheese. B) All the plastic waste in the world could fit in a football field in Wyoming. You are freaking out about a non-issue. Please find a less silly religion.

[@cloudkitt]

​@@BlumpkinSpiceLatteand not only is it way better and less wasteful from the deli counter, it's usually cheaper than kraft singles too!

[@NotJustJimmy]

Thanks! Well explained.

[@TIMBER_WIMBER]

C H E E S E 🧀

[@EEKaWILL]

Putting mustard powder in with cheese helps it melt better too

[@JonathanKayne]

Another technique I have heard of (I think Babish showed it) is that you can add a small amount of American cheese to another cheese to get some of those emulsifying salts into your cheese mixture.

[@qbreezy2417]

But then you ruin the real cheese.

[@JonathanKayne]

@@qbreezy2417 I said small amount.

[@jotch_7627]

i dont recall a babish video about that, but there is an adam ragusea one

[@JonathanKayne]

@@jotch_7627 perhaps. It was a video about making Mac and cheese different ways

[@Niesmiesznyy]

​@@qbreezy2417the real cheese

[@charcolew]

France has hundreds, maybe even thousands, of different cheeses to suit all tastes. In the USA, land of the free, land of opportunity, there are only two options for cheese lovers: import the real thing or emigrate. And don't get me started on chocolate either!

[@ankokuraven]

I think the important distinction people miss is it is not fake cheese its MADE of cheese. It is real cheese It's just real cheese and a little bit more

[@BunjiKugashira42]

It is often made of as little real cheese as possible while adding as much oil and water as possible. Because oil and water are cheaper than cheese. The iconic colour comes froom food dies. The "little bit more" often makes up half of the ingredients by weight.

[@polarknight5376]

​@@BunjiKugashira42that's Kraft singles, Velveeta, and generic brands trying to copy them, and are legally not American cheese.

[@alexphelps7042]

Depending on how close you live to cows milk might be cheaper than oil. In America dairy production is very heavily subsidized, they actually have price fixing laws about milk so the market never collapses from oversupply. Milk protein products can sometimes be found for the same or lower price as flour, because their processed not technically milk anymore they don’t fall under the price fixing laws. It’s funny the lengths the govt will go for people who aren’t average, like socialism but only for industrialists.

[@Biouke]

@@alexphelps7042 "Privatise the profits, socialise the losses". Corpos have hijacked the State.

[@Dooguk]

@@polarknight5376 American cheese is legally not cheese to a lot of countries outside of the USA.

[@techbasic1115]

came for the science, stayed for the really cute anthropomorphic graphics. They're so cute! Thank you!

[@OrpheoCT]

5:22 “For all intents and purposes” is a little excessive. I can’t imagine American cheese having its place in a cheese board, on a good piece of bread or tasting any good with wine. So NOT all intents and purposes.

[@cloudkitt]

Would Colby?

[@janitorizamped]

Not all cheeses work for the situations you've listed, so American cheese not being good for those situations doesn't exclude it from being a cheese "for all intents and purposes".

[@Biouke]

@@janitorizamped Re-read yourself, your logic is all wrong here ;)

[@janitorizamped]

@@Biouke I just re read it, my logic is sound. Care to try to articulate what's wrong with what I said?

[@Biouke]

​@@janitorizamped It's like you're saying : Not all tools work for unclogging a toilet, so a hammer not being good for unclogging a toilet doesn't exclude it from being a tool "for all intents and purposes". Your reasoning is "A can't do X. B, D and G can't do X either. Therefore A can do anything including X". If "not all cheeses" are in the same case as Am cheese not working in some situations, the logic conclusion is that *some* cheeses (Am cheese included) are *not* for *all* intents and purposes.

[@phaedrussocrates7636]

Only important thing from you to say is WHAT KIND of additional fat is added. And you gloriously succeeded in hiding it. Well done

[@plewelly]

American cheese is not cheese in the same sense that meatloaf is not meat. Saying that is technically true but not particularly informative or helpful.

[@kelly4187]

And hardly tastes like cheese either, just like meatloaf.

[@eragon78]

@@kelly4187 it absolutely taste like cheese. Its pretty similar in flavor to cheddar. And meatloaf taste like meat too...because its mostly meat. Just taste like ground beef. I mean its fine if you dont like the taste, but it does taste like cheese still.

[@KokkiePiet]

Murica: sjeesz needs to melt Jurp: Cheese needs to taste really great

[@dinar4331]

The whole american cheese isn't cheese thing always grates me. It's like someone saying meatloaf isn't ground meat, which is true but nobody would say it's illegitimate because ground beef + some other ingredients isn't "fake" meat. American cheese is real cheese with some milk and melting salts!

[@DasGanon]

To argue this one a bit, it's also the basis of why Taco Bell can't call it's meat, meat since they're replacing half of it with grain because it's cheaper. The distinction is important but you've gotta be aware of the context. (Like how Ice cream must be made out of dairy which is why many calls themselves "frozen dessert")

[@fakjbf3129]

Same here, just mixing Colby and Cheddar plus sodium citrate is a pasteurized process American cheese. Replace up to 49% by weight with other dairy products like cream, buttermilk or whey and that’s pasteurized process American cheese food, and I still think that counts as cheese because it’s still almost purely dairy. It’s only when you get to stuff like Kraft singles that use concentrated milk protein powder where there’s a decent argument that it’s no longer cheese.

[@five-toedslothbear4051]

When you get into the better American cheeses, you get something more like cheese. Kraft Deli Deluxe White American is a "Pasteurized process American cheese with added calcium" but the Singles are "Pasteurized prepared cheese product". I would call the Deli Deluxe actual cheese, and prefer it. I can't find any examples on the internet, but there are singles you can get that are terribly cheap and I think I've seen the leading ingredient be corn oil. Maybe some milk components thrown in. Run. Fast.

[@buykuibra2518]

It's often another way to annoy Americans.

[@herbertkeithmiller]

Greats me 🎉

[@imhangryyall]

Adding a couple of slices of American cheese to any cheese mixture has enough emulsifiers to make a sauce out of any cheese mixture.

[@FireFox64000000]

So, what you're saying is that American cheese is not a cheese in the same fashion that a tomato is not a vegetable.

[@bloodleader5]

It's literally a fruit.

[@FireFox64000000]

@@bloodleader5 Put it in a fruit salad and serve it to your friends then. While you're at it, add cucumber and pumpkin.

[@bloodleader5]

@@FireFox64000000 You also don't put cranberries, pomegranates, oranges, or bananas in a fruit salad, does that make them suddenly stop being fruits? Many fruit salads contain nuts, does that mean the nuts turn into fruits? The reason you don't put pumpkin in a salad is because it's too soft and mushy so nobody really ever eats it whole. Everything in fruit salad is something that works when it's bite sized, that's the only real distinction. Your problem is you don't believe that words have concrete definitions.

[@FireFox64000000]

@@bloodleader5 Yes, I do believe in words having concrete definitions. It is not my fault that you do not understand the difference between a culinary vegetable and a scientific vegetable.

[@bloodleader5]

@@FireFox64000000 Liking your own comment is sad.

[@MathewSan_]

Great video 👍

[@phunanon]

Stuff like this is why I'm alright calling plant-based cheese "cheese", because if it melts like cheese, and tastes like cheese, as is composed of those things mentioned (protein, moisture, fats, calcium, etc), then it's cheese in my books!

[@bloodleader5]

So the accuracy and precision of language don't matter at all to you. I'm glad you define things based on your feelings instead of what's true, that sounds like a great way to make things very clear and understandable.

[@MemphiStig]

Reminds me of the old slogan the cheese-makers used in their ads: "Never underestimate the power of pasteurized process cheese food" Or something like that. I still like it okay, but by far I prefer deli style American to singles. Or any sliced proper cheese, even if it doesn't melt. But I'll buy a liquid sauce now and then, because I suck at making my own.

[@manualdidact]

"Better" is pretty subjective. I really prefer a grilled cheese with cheddar -- I think the oil separating a bit and soaking into the bread is a plus. Melted cheddar might not look appetizing sitting in a pan, but that's not where I want to be eating it from anyway.

[@corringhamdepot4434]

Kraft processed cheese slices and processed cheese triangles were marketed in the UK as a children's food. The only time most adults ate them was in cheeseburgers. I also remember blocks of "processed cheddar" that was a cheaper, milder alternative to normal cheddar. Which seems to have morphed from block form, to a spreadable cheese these days.

[@lontongstroong]

Murica Cheese ain't cheese, it's a sauce!!!

[@peabody3000]

after you melt it maybe

[@lontongstroong]

@@peabody3000 It's always meant to be melted anyway.

[@eragon78]

@@lontongstroong not always, cold deli sandwhiches you usually dont melt it on.

[@notniko6914]

American "cheese" melts better than real cheese? Funniest thing I've heard today

[@BeretGuy3]

American Cheese gets unfairly hated on. Interesting to see a video actually giving it a fair assessment.

[@Miguel_Noether]

Because it's not cheese

[@S1neWav_]

​@@Miguel_Noetherit's literally made from cheese. who cares if it's not "authentic" or whatever

[@einkar4219]

​@@S1neWav_ it contains 51% cheese most likely it would be even lower if not for regulations

[@S1neWav_]

@@einkar4219 then hate on large companies for adding a ridiculous amount of preservatives

[@KollmannJan]

​@@S1neWav_or just ban calling things that are not cheese a cheese. It is a fake advertisement, you can't limit producers to not produce something but you can label it properly.

[@Fredjikrang]

Cool video! I’m a little sad you didn’t talk about the young cheeses that don’t melt at all, like paneer, but it’s not a big deal!

[@dream_weaver6207]

if American cheese was developed to be shelf stable, why are the slices individually packed? As a European, the concept of individually packing cheese slices seems stupid and wasteful to me. Also, imagine wanting to use large quantities of cheese and you have to unpack every single slice. Also your cheese is getting maximum microplastics exposure

[@birdsdrib]

While it's definitely over packaged I think the reason is all the cheese would melt together otherwise. Now why it needs to be fully wrapped in plastic instead of just interspersed with butcher paper I cannot tell you. Probably just pennies cheaper and companies don't care about anything else.

[@nicojar]

It's not always individually packed slices, you can buy a block or a spray or a spread... In Europe, check Norwegian "brunost". Same idea. ;) Packed slices are for burgers.

[@dream_weaver6207]

@@nicojar Sure, you can buy cheese in blocks (i consider sprays and spread as something very different), but I've never seen a pack of pre sliced cheese in any American media. On the oter hand, I've never seen individually packed cheese slices in any European super market. I haven't spend much time in Norway tho, so brunost could be something that I missed

[@cassieoz1702]

​@dream_weaver6207 when I was a kid, the slices were a little firmer and not individually wrapped. It's now much softer and sticks to itself, hence the extra plastic

[@floydmaseda]

If they're individually packed, they're more shelf stable. You can open one slice without exposing all the others to the elements, thus allowing the other slices to stay fresh longer.

[@bobuilder4444]

Adam Ragusea made his own sodium citrate with baking soda and lemon juice.

[@zumabbar]

IN A CAVE!

[@WidescreenJohn]

One other thing that people need to consider as well with respect to texture and flavor is comparing American cheese slices versus having it cut straight off the loaf at the deli. There is a *very* distinct difference between the two. The cheese slices that you would get from Kraft or whomever tends to be very plastic-y in both taste and texture. But getting American cheese directly off the loaf at the deli tends to be more flavorful and smoother. We actually buy entire 5-pound bricks and shred it for pizza instead of mozarella.

[@evenbet9603]

Why?

[@eragon78]

Kraft adds way more oil to their cheese than normal American cheese. Thats probably why it taste different. I dont think its so much hwo the cheese is cut, rather than the composition of the cheeses from the deli vs kraft are just different.

[@kingSTKS]

Also nice how you can cook them in their plastic packets without changing the taste

[@crashhanna]

So far as I know, it is only known as "American Cheese" in the United States. In Canada we call it "Processed Cheese".

[@tater7105]

Most people I know in the US call it plastic

[@0ZeldaFreak]

It really depends on what you make. For sauces or so, I use melting cheese (in Germany we call it that way) that is a paste. For bread or burgers, I stopped using them and used regular cheese. I like my cheese with more flavor and for applications where you can control the heat or time, its perfect. You won't get a very liquid cheese but its soft and warm, what makes some cheese taste better. But you don't need the flavor. Here we make a cheese leek soup. The soup base is water, melting cheese and crème fraîche, to basically water, fat and protein. There is also some vegetable broth as base. It only should taste like a cheese base but not specific to any cheese.

[@nicojar]

If you're curious about cheese that melts amazingly, and the dishes that go with them, check out the French Mont d'Or, and the dish "boîte chaude". Melting and browning a boxed authentic cheese with a bit of white wine and tons of flavor (for people afraid of very funky cheeses: this one is actually mild) in an oven for a while and dipping your charcuterie

[@DeRien8]

Sounds delicious, though as an American, naming a dish "hot box" makes my inner child giggle at the vague fart joke adjacent to a cheese dish

[@ramshacklealex7772]

​@@DeRien8 Hot box means something different here in Canada haha

[@deenaxic9134]

American Cheese doesn't melt better than other cheeses. American NOTCHEESE melts better than ACTUALCHEESE. Good for you.

[@fclefjefff4041]

Thanks for taking a moment to blurt that out

[@TestTubeBabySpy]

American cheese is disgusting. I tolerate it on burgers from McDonalds but that's it.

[@rsync9490]

I thought this way about American cheese for a long time. Now my taste buds have changed slightly and I have a myriad of different uses for this fake cheese.

[@TestTubeBabySpy]

@@rsync9490 Aw yea, like throwing at crying babies 🤔 I forgot abt that 😆

[@JC02official]

It's 1 am and I'm getting hungry looking at that grilled cheese

[@ChrisMelville]

Down-voted for the LOUD UNNECESSARY DISTRACTING music.

Loved it!

[@mariov5035]

If American cheese isn't cheese, is a meatloaf meat? Seems like a double standard.

[@polarknight5376]

Real American cheese can be labeled as cheese, but Kraft singles and Velveeta and the like don't use enough cheese to be called cheese, or even be called American cheese for that matter.

[@JimiGosu]

I don't particularly like American Cheese myself. But I do love cheese, and when it comes to cheese, you really need the right cheese to best suit your meal. For burgers, a thick slice of colby jack will melt into a blanket for your burger, sticking with it instead of leaking out onto the pan and away from your burger. Tastes amazing too!

[@MichaelHFWilkinson]

Even if it melts, its flavour is vile. Not a patch on proper farmhouse cheddar

[@Michael-bn1oi]

And yet it is what some of the best chefs in the world think is the best cheese for a burger. Very much a *you* and *your* tastes problem.

[@MichaelHFWilkinson]

@@Michael-bn1oi as it is not cheese, it logically cannot be the best cheese for a burger. Your logic is faulty

[@MichaelHFWilkinson]

@@Michael-bn1oi besides, these chefs may not have heard of Old Amsterdam, which works really well on a burger.

[@eragon78]

@@MichaelHFWilkinson Its cheese. The "its technically not a cheese" argument is extremely annoying. In every way that actually matters, its a real cheese. Just because it has like 2% added salts to help it melt doesnt change that. Its still well over 90% real cheeses. And it tastes fine. Hundreds of millions of people like the taste. Its fine if you dont, but stop acting like your taste buds are objective reality. Ive had dozens of different types of cheeses, from fancy expensive ones to cheap ones, and American is still one of the better ones in my opinion. Not my favorite, but its definitely not bad either. This elitism over cheeses is extremely annoying, and it just makes you seem really unlikeable.

[@tater7105]

​@@eragon78 It's not cheese. It's plastic

[@JkCaron1]

Fantastic video!

[@cyberhard]

The background music is too loud.

[@ChristopherPearson-u1u]

So, would this mean pepperjack, because it includes non-cheese elements (peppers), it’s not a cheese?

[@33Bardo]

But of course... ALL cheese is processed. No cheese is formed naturally.

[@cerosis]

I really like the animations this video!

[@noob19087]

No need to buy sodium citrate, just mix citric acid with baking soda to make some.

[@nanamikamiya6500]

Cheese is the most delicious emulsion in existence and I will not be eking questions at this time.

[@bscutajar]

0:30 so it's not a liquid but it becomes something that flows... in other words a liquid

[@nicholasvinen]

That'd be a fluid. Not all fluids are liquids.

[@bloodleader5]

​@@nicholasvinenIt's amorphous, it flows freely, it self-levels... it's a liquid.