Hard-Pressed & Crumbly Cheese Production

One family, three routes to texture

Cheddar, the British territorials and the American stirred-curd cheeses are all rennet-coagulated, dry-salted or brine-salted hard and semi-hard cheeses with a moisture content broadly in the 35–42% range. They share the same opening sequence — standardised milk, starter culture, rennet coagulation, cutting the coagulum, cooking and stirring the curd, and draining the whey. What separates them is how the curd is handled after the whey is drawn off, and the acidity and moisture of the curd at that point. Fox and McSweeney note that the calcium-to-casein ratio has a major effect on the textural properties of cheese, and that it is governed by the pH at which the curd is drained and worked.

Three routes account for the cheeses on this page:

• Cheddared close-textured cheeses — Cheddar and block cheese. The curd is textured (“cheddared”): the drained curd is allowed to mat into slabs which are cut, stacked and turned so they knit into a fibrous, close-grained mass before being milled, dry-salted and pressed firmly. This gives the characteristic dense, sliceable Cheddar body.
• Stirred- and washed-curd cheeses — Monterey Jack and Colby. The curd is kept loose and stirred (and, for Colby, washed with cold water) so it never mats or textures. It is salted, lightly pressed and sold young, giving an open, springy, semi-soft body.
• Milled-curd crumbly territorials — Cheshire, Lancashire, Wensleydale and Caerphilly. The curd is acidified relatively quickly (or, for Lancashire, over more than one day), drained slowly, milled and only lightly pressed, producing a short, open, crumbly paste eaten younger and fresher than Cheddar.

The Cheddar process, step by step

The conventional manufacture of Cheddar is described by Fox and McSweeney as a ten-stage sequence (the moisture-removal stages are common to most hard cheeses; cheddaring is the distinctive one):

1. Milk pre-treatment. Standardisation of the fat-to-casein ratio and, in most commercial plants, HTST pasteurisation (typically 72°C for 15 seconds).
2. Coagulation. Starter culture acidifies the milk; rennet is added at around 30°C to form a coagulum (gel).
3. Cutting. The coagulum is cut into small cubes to begin whey expulsion.
4. Cooking (scalding) and stirring. The cubes are heated to around 40°C with stirring while acid develops, firming the curd and expelling whey.
5. Whey removal (drainage). The whey is drawn off, leaving a bed of curd.
6. Cheddaring. The curd is allowed to mat into slabs which are repeatedly cut, turned and stacked. Texturing begins at pH around 5.8 or below and continues until the curd develops a fibrous, “chicken-breast” structure. The traditional end-point check is the hot-iron test (drawing a thread from heated curd) at an acidity of about 0.45–0.50%.
7. Milling. When the curd reaches the target acidity (around pH 5.4), the slabs are milled into finger-sized chips — roughly 1–2.5 cm wide and 5–7 cm long — which increases surface area for salt uptake.
8. Salting and mellowing. Dry salt is mixed through the milled curd at around 3% of curd weight; after “mellowing” (salt absorption) and drainage losses, the finished cheese contains roughly 1.5–1.8% salt. Salting also checks starter activity, halting acid development.
9. Moulding and pressing. The salted curd is packed into moulds or block-formers and pressed, traditionally for 12–16 hours, to consolidate it and expel the last whey.
10. Packaging, cooling and ripening. The blocks are vacuum-packed and matured from a few weeks (mild) to 12 months or more (extra-mature).

Finished Cheddar typically has a moisture content of about 36–39% and a final pH of 5.2–5.4 (Fox and McSweeney; ScienceDirect). Hard cheeses as a class sit in the 35–40% moisture band.

What makes a cheese crumbly?

Texture in this family is set largely by how acidic the curd is when moisture is being removed from it, and by how much calcium remains bound in the casein network. As the curd acidifies, colloidal calcium phosphate dissolves out of the casein matrix and passes into the whey; the lower the pH at draining, the more calcium is lost. Less calcium means fewer cross-links holding the protein network together — so the paste is shorter and more fragile, and it breaks rather than slices.

The British “crumblies” reach a relatively high acidity (low pH) while still holding moisture, and the milled curd is only lightly pressed, so the body fractures into the characteristic crumbly paste. Cheddar, by contrast, is textured (cheddared) and pressed harder, giving a firmer, denser, more sliceable body. Bronwen Percival, Technical Director at Neal's Yard Dairy, summarises the principle directly: the texture of cheese has everything to do with how acid the curd is when the moisture is being removed from it.

The British territorial “crumblies”

The four classic crumbly territorials originate in the North of England and Wales. They are made on a broadly similar principle — high starter activity or extended acidification, slow whey drainage, milled curd and light pressing — with the differences in handling giving each its character. They are generally eaten younger and fresher than Cheddar.

A note on Lancashire. Traditional farmhouse Lancashire is distinctive precisely because it uses very little starter and builds its acidity by combining curd from more than one day's milking — a method that pre-dates and differs from the more acidic Cheshire and Wensleydale recipes. Its crumble also owes much to repeatedly breaking up the curd on the draining table.

Stirred-curd and washed-curd cheeses (Monterey Jack and Colby)

Monterey Jack and Colby are American semi-hard cheeses that begin like Cheddar but omit the cheddaring (texturing) step. Instead the curd is kept loose and stirred, and for Colby it is also washed.

• Monterey Jack — stirred-curd. The curd is stirred from start to finish so it never mats, then salted and pressed at lower pressure than Cheddar, giving a milder, springy, higher-moisture body. Typically aged 3–6 weeks (Canadian Dairy Commission).
• Colby — washed-curd. After cooking, part of the whey is drained and replaced with cold water (to a final mix around 26°C). The cold water leaches lactose from the curd, limiting subsequent acid development so the cheese reaches a higher final pH (around 5.0–5.3 versus Cheddar's 5.0–5.1), with a milder flavour and higher moisture (about 40% versus Cheddar's ~37%). The curd is then drained without matting, salted, and pressed into blocks.

The US Department of Agriculture groups Colby, Monterey Jack and similar washed- and stirred-curd cheeses as “other American varieties”; in 2020 the USA produced about 1.5 billion lb (0.68 million tonnes) of these at 144 plants.

Composition and process at a glance

The table below summarises referenced figures for the main types. Where a figure is type-specific and well established it is given; territorial figures are described qualitatively where a single authoritative value is not available, in keeping with the variation between makers.

Plant and equipment for hard-pressed cheese

At commercial scale the labour-intensive traditional steps — cheddaring, milling, salting and block-forming — are mechanised and increasingly continuous. The core equipment train for a Cheddar or block-cheese line includes:

• Cheese vats / coagulators for renneting, cutting and cooking the curd, with whey drainage screens or gates.
• Cheddaring machines and finishing tables. Modern enclosed cheddaring machines (for example the Tetra Pak Cheddaring 5) drain, acidify, texture, mill, salt and mellow the curd in one continuous, hygienic unit. Open Curd Tables (OCTs) perform curd conditioning, whey drainage, salting and mellowing for both milled-Cheddar and stirred-curd cheeses.
• Curd mills to cut the cheddared slabs into chips for even salt uptake.
• Salt dispensers and salting/mellowing conveyors for consistent dry-salt addition.
• Block-former towers. Curd-and-whey is fed into a tall column under vacuum; the whey drains as the curd compacts under its own weight into a continuous pillar, which a guillotine cuts into standard blocks. Block-formers (for example the Tetra Pak Blockformer system 6) are used for Cheddar, Colby, Monterey Jack and other varieties, producing standard blocks (commonly 18 kg / 40 lb or ~290 kg / 640 lb) or drum-filled formats.
• Presses (hydraulic, pneumatic or mechanical) for moulded styles, with pressing pressure and time controlled to hit the target moisture — lower pressure for Jack and Colby than for Cheddar.
• Vacuum packing, maturation stores and grading. Controlled temperature and humidity over the maturation period develop the body and flavour.

Protected names: which can you legally use?

The generic names “Cheddar”, “Cheshire”, “Wensleydale”, “Caerphilly”, “Monterey Jack” and “Colby” are not protected — they describe styles and can be made anywhere. Several specific regional versions, however, hold UK and EU geographical-indication status, which restricts the name to defined areas and methods:

This is a summary for orientation, not legal advice; producers should confirm current status and specifications via the UK GI schemes register before using a protected name.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is cheddaring?

Cheddaring is the texturing step unique to Cheddar and a few related cheeses. After the whey is drained, the curd is allowed to mat into slabs which are repeatedly cut, turned and stacked. This expels more whey and, as acidity rises (from about pH 5.8 downwards), aligns the protein into a fibrous, close-grained structure. The result is the dense, sliceable body of Cheddar — quite different from the loose, stirred curd of Monterey Jack or the milled crumbly territorials.

Why is Cheddar firm and sliceable but Cheshire crumbly?

Both come down to the acidity and calcium of the curd. The British crumblies acidify relatively quickly while still holding moisture, and the milled curd is only lightly pressed, so more calcium leaves the protein network and the paste breaks rather than slices. Cheddar is textured (cheddared) and pressed firmly, retaining a denser, more cohesive body.

What is the difference between Monterey Jack and Colby?

Both are stirred-curd cheeses made without cheddaring. Monterey Jack is simply stirred, salted and lightly pressed. Colby goes a step further: part of the whey is replaced with cold water, which washes lactose out of the curd, limits acid development, and gives a milder, sweeter, moister cheese (around 40% moisture, against Cheddar's ~37%).

What moisture and pH should Cheddar reach?

Finished Cheddar typically has a moisture content of about 36–39% and a final pH of 5.2–5.4, with roughly 1.5–1.8% salt. Hard cheeses as a group sit in the 35–40% moisture range. Exact targets depend on the grade and the plant's specification.

Can hard and crumbly cheese production be made continuous?

Yes. Enclosed cheddaring machines mechanise draining, acidifying, texturing, milling, salting and mellowing in one unit, and block-former towers form and cut blocks continuously under vacuum. This is how large commodity Cheddar and block cheese is produced; territorial and farmhouse cheeses are often made on a smaller, more manual scale to retain their character.

Is “Cheddar” a protected name?

No. “Cheddar” is a generic style made worldwide and is not protected. Only specific regional versions such as West Country Farmhouse Cheddar (PDO) and Orkney Scottish Island Cheddar (PGI) carry protected status, restricting the name to defined areas and methods.

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