I love cottage cheese, but I am extremely picky about the taste of it.

There are two brands that I buy. If neither are available, I go without. I would taste-test a new one though. How is it, taste-wise?

Can't think of anything at the moment, but cottage cheese I've bought for years had active cultures, and acidophilus, sour cream as well. I buy organic, and Trader Joe's is my fave.

I miss large curd cottage cheese - and I recall you could get 'creamed' cottage cheese, once upon a time.

Some can be quite tangy/sour, which I don't care for.

I always buy Nancy’s cottage cheese It’s delicious and has active cultures. It lasts forever without spoiling, too, kind of like yogurt.

@carolb_w_fl_coastal_9b - I only eat small curd, but I've seen large curd at Wal Mart, very recently.

@Olychick - I have tried Nancy's and do not like it. :)

Lola, i like the flavor.

Reminds me of the old joke...what's the difference between yogurt and Los Angeles?

Yogurt has an active, living culture!

Ok, now I’m curious. After looking at ingredients I googled and found:

• Myth #1: All yogurts are rich in probiotics. Nope. The live cultures that yogurt contains aren’t necessarily probiotic. Yes, a yogurt may contain starter cultures full of live bacteria, but if the yogurt is heat-treated or pasteurized, these cultures die in the process. Look for products that have added live probiotic bacteria after pasteurization.
• Myth #2: “Live bacteria” means the same as probiotic. Building on the yogurt lesson here, not all listed “live bacteria” or “live cultures” are probiotic. True probiotic products will include information about the bacterial species strain, such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. Also, the number of live microbes on the label may represent the number at manufacturing and may have diminished. It’s best to buy from a manufacturer that has a proven reputation and verification. Third-party certifiers such as USP or ConsumerLab test such brands. MeriCal, NatureMade and TruNature are USP-verified.

https://cincinnati-gi.com/probiotic-gut-check-3-myths-and-3-facts/#

Now, I looked at the ingredients lists of six major brands of cottage cheese, including Trader Joe’sJoe’s, and all were made from pasteurized cultured milk. The above quote leads me to believe there are no live probiotics remaining in these products. Only this brand, Good Culture, showed an addition of “Live And Active Cultures (Lactobacillus Paracasei).” Edit - Just noticed Carol said ”organic”, could not find that on TJ’s website so there may be a difference.

Am I being led astray here?

Thanks for the find, @eld6161! A conversation over on the Cooking Forum has had me thinking I need more “gut healthy” foods in my diet, and I’ve been finding it confusing to determine exactly how to find them. My supermarket carries this so it’ll be one good option.

Wow. Thanks for the research FOAS.

Thanks, FOAS, for the interesting background info. And to Eld, i’ll be looking for that at our local Publix. I’ve been underwhelmed lately with the flavor of any cottage cheese. Except the other day I was in Target and decided to pick up a couple of things there rather than make a stop at Publix. One was their brand of cottage cheese (Good & Gather), which it turns out is quite good.

Nancy’s contains live cultures/probiotics. I love the tangy taste https://nancysyogurt.com/products/organic-natural-cottage-cheese/

Weird, Nancy’s product finder lists a few local stores but none list that brand on their websites.

Add a cup of cultured buttermilk to a gallon of milk, shake, let sit for 48 hours on the counter, put in a pot and slowly heat until curds split from whey. Should just be warm, not hot. Immediately remove from heat and strain out the curds/cottage cheese. Let it drain for a bit. Voila, all natural, cultured cottage cheese the way it's been made for millenia. Add sour cream and salt to taste, enjoy. Keeps well in the fridge , and continues to mature/sour since it's loaded with the cultures.

Alternatively, if you don't need/want it to be cultured, just heat up a bunch of milk and add a cup of vinegar. Strain, drain etc. Instant cottage cheese.

We (DH & I) both love this "Good" brand of cottage cheese. It has a great flavor and texture. We always have it in the refrigerator since discovering it about a year ago. I've never seen Nancy's out here.

Nancy's is extra tangy, IMPE.

I’m out of town but bought some. Only whole milk was available so I’m not comparing apples to apples as I normally buy reduced fat, but man is this stuff delicious!

I also typically buy no salt added as I’m supposed to watch these things, so coming in at 7.5 times what I’m accustomed to, it’s almost approaching too salty for my taste. I was surprised to find that other national brands are even higher. Isn’t cottage cheese supposed to be healthy?

Maybe it’s time to try making my own, as J4C (🙂) suggests.

FOAS, 4% is almost like eating dessert!

I think maybe cottage cheese is healthier than other choices. Everything had something bad in it if you are watching something!

We do the best that we can.

Yeah I’ll get the lower fat at home. Wrote to them and suggesrsd they make a lower sodium option. I’m sure they’ll get right on it! 🙂

Carol, I agree. My husband eats heavily buttered bagels. He gives me a bite and just that alone is very satisfying.

To clarify, I avoid 'fat free' dairy products. They definitely don't taste as good to me, and are more processed, containing added ingredients. I buy mostly full fat dairy products. Trader Joe's sells organic lowfat and fat free cottage cheese. I only like/buy the lowfat, and would prefer full fat.

IMPO, their fat free organic is gross - watery and too sour.

I much prefer farmer cheese to cottage cheese, which I find way too salty. Whole Foods has a decent one (https://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/product/365-by-whole-foods-market-farmer-cheese-16-oz-b07zdtcwwd), but I really like the Russian kind that I get at a local Eastern European market. It's drier than cottage cheese, and just tastes better, IMO.

Bookwoman, I haven't had farmer cheese since I was a child!

I'm definitely going to look for it at Whole Foods. Thanks.

I'm on an Asiago Bagel with butter kick. They're VERY filling. But...not new to me...I used to buy them at Brugers Bagels when I worked downtown...like 30 years ago....I just rediscovered them.

I love fancy bagels! But right now I am trying to get back on track. So it is cottage cheese and apple for me😩

Got a response already!

We need to use sodium, as it acts as a natural preservative in our clean label products. We strive to make a healthier cottage cheese that is lower in sodium relative to the competition and only use sea salt, which is a whole salt with health benefits vs highly processed table salt.

Having said that, we are exploring a lower sodium option to help everyone enjoy Good Culture, so stay tuned!

When comparing sodium between brands, I found this. https://www.eatthis.com/best-cottage-cheese-brands/ Wegman‘s (which we don’t have here) and Nancy’s have the lowest sodium count.

That’s where I bought mine, in NJ. There’s a Wegmans opening up 17 miles away so I’m hopeful that eventually I'll have one close. Nice store.

Enjoyed reading this thread. The Farmer cheese came up recently - I do remember it and my parents would get it from the local supermarket in the appetizing section. It would be wrapped in the white paper. I never cared for it much but cottage cheese has always been a staple.

I also remember sometimes we would add cut up tomatos and peppers into it sort of like veggie cream cheese but cottage cheese. Ring a bell with anyone else?

Salonva, i’m thinking my mom used it for stuffing blintz’s.,

I first learned about farmer’s cheese as a cheese option for ATK’s Mexican Street Corn. I remember liking it.

I've never heard of Farmer's cheese and now I want to try it.

Just don't buy the Friendship brand at the supermarket, it's tasteless and too wet.

As I remember it, Farner Cheese was rather dry, and somehwat tart.

I discovered Chocolate Habanero chili powder and ordered some from Amazon. However, it only tastes hot to me without any of the complex flavors that I get from fresh chocolate Habanero chilies - I might as well have bought regular Habanero chili powder, and I will try that after I run out of the chocolate Habanero chili powder, which is much more expensive.

I find that Aleppo chili flakes have a better flavor than the chocolate Habanero chili powder, but also a lot less heat, and so I go through it a lot faster.

Once I move away from Los Angeles (which, BTW, has no shortage of active, living culture), I will no longer be able to grow chocolate Habanero chilies.

Lars, I don’t trust Amazon for food products or beauty products. If possible, I would buy the product from the company itself and see if there is a difference.

I ordered a different Chocolate Habanero chili powder from Etsy, and I will see if it is any different. Even if it is not, I will still be able to use it. If it is not what I expect it to be, I will go back to using Aleppo chili flakes, which I buy at a Middle Eastern market.

This is the BEST cottage cheese I've ever tasted. It definitely exceeds its name.

Either others like it, too, or they have poor distribution. Later in the day I went back to the same Wegmans where I bought my tub, and they were all sold out. Looked at stores locally, empty hole where they should be. I just finished the first tub and would like to try the lighter one so I’ll keep looking.

I always buy two at a time.

I just tried another store. They had four individual cups of lowfat so I grabbed them. Also noticed one pint of Nancy’s lowfat, so I grabbed that, too. A blind taste test will be forthcoming; will report my observations!

Thanks! That will be fun

i’ve never heard of Nancy’s.

Ok the results are in. Namcy’s vs Good Culture, both reduced fat. Blind test, fed by my wife. One had a nice tang. The other’s tang was borderline sour, and to my taste not in a good way. Almost as if it had gone bad. I’ll stick with Good Culture!

Here in Florida we are inudated with Publix. First I shop at my preferred, then go to the second one to fill in.I like Coffee Mate’s natural creamer, sweet cream. I stock up with as many as I can and often have to go the the pther Publix.