SaurabhTaleggio is Italian semi-soft cheese with a thin crust and mild, fruity, tangy flavor, and creamy texture. It is one of the oldest cave ripened cow milk cheeses with records of its production back In 1200 years.
It is not very popular in the US. However, you can find it in many different recipes because of its melting properties. You can use it for fondue, pasta, and risotto dishes, or serve it on a cheese platter. It is salty, so it goes well with juicy grapes and other fresh fruits.
Tallegio cheese is not readily available and is more expensive than other cheeses like Cheddar or Camembert. So, if your recipe calls for Taleggio cheese and you don’t have a clue what that may be, we have some good suggestions on what you can use as a substitute for Taleggio cheese.
Let’s learn more about each substitute below!
Best Taleggio Cheese Substitutes
These substitutes don’t have the same characteristics as Taleggio cheese. However, they have a few similarities that will help you obtain similar results as if you were using Taleggio cheese.
1. Gruyere
Gruyere has a sweet, nutty, slightly salty flavor that varies with aging. It is usually used in savory dishes like soups, salads, pasta, sandwiches, and soufflés.
Gruyere will not give the same flavor to your dish as Taleggio cheese but it will provide a new flavor and creamy texture to your recipes because it has a good melting ability.
2. Bel Paese
Bel paese is Italian semi-soft cheese made of cow’s milk.
It makes a good substitute for Taleggio cheese because it has a mild, creamy, milky flavor and pale yellow color. It also tastes similar to Mozzarella, so you can use it as a substitute for Mozzarella as well.
Bel paese melts easily on pizzas, soups, casseroles, and sandwiches. However, people also use it as a dessert cheese and serve it with fruity wines.
3. Fontina
Fontina is another Italian cheese with a unique mild, nutty, and savory flavor. You can also find it in other countries like Sweden, the USA, Denmark, Argentina, and Canada.
Young Fontina cheese melts easily in cheese sauces, cheese dips, pizza, fondue, sandwiches, and casseroles. Matured Fontina cheese, on the other hand, is harder with a sharper flavor and works well in salads, soups, vegetables, risotto, pasta, and rice dishes.
4. Brie
Brie is a French soft cheese made from cow’s milk, but it can be also made from goat’s milk.
It has a rich, fruity, earthy flavor, soft, creamy texture, and edible soft rind. Brie is served on a cheese board with different nuts, fruits, and crackers. However, you can also use it in sauces, casseroles, pizza, and sandwiches.
It is one of the best substitutes for Taleggio cheese because it has a similar flavor and texture.
5. Limburger
Limburger is a brick-shaped creamy cheese with a distinct smell and mild, earthy flavor. If you don’t mind its smell you can use it as a substitute for Taleggio cheese in your dishes.
People usually serve this cheese on cheeseboards, spread it on sandwiches, and add it to gratins and macaroni and cheese. The traditional method of serving is spreading the cheese on slices of rye bread, with onions and mustard.
6. Havarti
Havarti is a semi-soft cheese made of cow’s milk, with a buttery, sweet, and slightly acidic flavor that transforms into a salty and hazelnut flavor with age. You can find it as original Havarti and soft variety.
You can also find flavored types of Havarti cheese with added herbs and spices like garlic, dill, and caraway seeds. Havarti works great on pizzas, casseroles, salads, and sandwiches or served on a cheese board with fruits, crackers, and aged Cheddar.
If you like a mild, smooth cheese with a buttery flavor, Havarti is the perfect substitute for Taleggio in your meals.
7. Robiola
Robiola is a type of soft cheese made from cows, sheep, and goat’s milk or a combination of them. The young Robiola has a mild, soft, rich, and creamy flavor that becomes earthy, nutty, more concentrated, and intense with age.
Robiola cheese works well in pasta sauces, salads, cheesecakes, and spread on crackers or bread. You can use it as a substitute for Taleggio cheese if you want to add a creamy, light, and beautiful flavor to your dishes.
8. Urgelia cheese
This is a semi-soft Spanish cheese made from cow’s milk. It has a creamy, soft texture and sweet, nutty, and slightly salty flavor.
Urgelia cheese melts easily in different dishes like pasta, pizza, sandwiches, and salads. However, you can also serve it on cheese boards with fruits and spicy chorizo.
You can use Urgelia cheese as a substitute for Taleggio cheese, but have in mind that it has a different saltier flavor than Taleggio cheese.
9. Pont-l’Évêque
Pont-l’Évêque is a type of soft French cheese made of cow’s milk. It is actually one of the oldest, most popular French cheeses together with Roquefort, Brie, and Camembert.
This cheese has a soft and creamy texture and a sweet, rich, and slightly tangy flavor with hints of hazelnuts. It is one of the cheeses that develop a pungent smell as it ages.
It is common on cheese boards along with fruits. Further, it has a good melting ability, so it is great for making fondue, sandwiches, and pizzas as well.
10. Vegan Substitute For Taleggio Cheese, Tofu
One of the best vegan substitutes for Taleggio cheese is tofu. Tofu is a soy product that has a soft creamy texture but doesn’t have any specific flavor.
You can pick between regular and silken tofu. However, note that silken tofy has a softer texture than regular tofu, so it is a better substitute for Taleggio cheese. You can add it to different sauces, salad dressings, desserts, pizza, and pasta dishes.
What Is Taleggio Cheese Taste Like?
Taleggio cheese has a mild, fruity, tangy flavor, and creamy texture. This blend of flavor and texture makes Taleggio cheese one of the most used Italian cheeses.
It melts easily giving a creamy texture and mild flavor to many recipes. Generally, Taleggio has the best features one good cheese must have which are formed during its ripening process.
What Is Taleggio Cheese Used For?
Taleggio cheese has great melting properties. Therefore, you can use it in many different recipes like fondue, pasta, and risotto dishes, or serve it on a cheese platter with walnuts, figs, and other fruits. Because its salty flavor is a perfect match with juicy grapes and other fresh fruits.
Is Fontina Similar To Taleggio?
Fontina cheese has a similar flavor and creamy texture to Taleggio cheese. It melts easily and is used in fondues and other recipes like cheese sauces, cheese dips, sandwiches, pizza, and casseroles.
The original Italian Fontina has a pungent flavor similar to Taleggio, while the other types have a milder flavor. However, they still make a good replacement for Taleggio in many recipes because of their excellent melting abilities.
What Type Of Cheese Is Taleggio?
Taleggio cheese is Italian semi-soft cheese with a thin crust with mild, fruity, tangy flavor, and creamy texture. Furthermore, it is one of the oldest cave ripened cow’s milk cheeses with a record of production back to the 10th century.
Is Taleggio Cheese Expensive?
Taleggio cheese is expensive, however, other types of washed-rind cheeses are more expensive than Taleggio cheese. You can buy one wheel of Taleggio cheese for up to 130$, while a 1lb cut portion costs about 28$. It is expensive but it is worth it!
Taleggio Cheese Where To Buy?
Taleggio PDO cheese is produced in three Northern Italian regions including Treviso in Veneto, Como in Lombardy, Milan, Bergamo, Cremona, Pavia, and Brescia, and Novara in Piedmont. This Italian traditional cheese is made of raw cow’s milk, and it is ripened in caves.
However, the FDA in the US doesn’t approve Taleggio cheese made of raw cow’s milk and this type of cheese can’t be imported into the US. Therefore, you can only find this type of cheese made of pasteurized milk in the US.
Summary
Brie, Gruyere, Bel Paese, Fontina, Limburger, and the rest of the cheeses mentioned above make great substitutes for Taleggio cheese.
They have unique flavors and textures as well as excellent melting properties. These things make them good alternatives for Taleggio.
What is your favorite substitute for Taleggio cheese? Do you have any new suggestions on what we can use as a substitute for Taleggio cheese?
Share your opinion with us in the comment section down below!
