Feta cheese is one of the best things to rely on if you are on a diet but can’t give up on cheese. It is one of the only cheeses that are low in calories and fat. If you have 28 grams of feta cheese, you only gain 75 calories.
Surprising, right?
Feta cheese is also an excellent source of nutrients like calcium and proteins too. So not only is it low in fat and the perfect food while you are on a diet, but it is also very healthy.
Knowing this helpful information, I replaced all of the other cheese in my refrigerator with feta. That’s when I ran into the problem of preparing my food with feta cheese, which led to a question that I’m certain you’re interested in:
Can You Melt Feta Cheese In The Microwave?
Yes, you can melt feta cheese with a microwave. It has high moisture content and hence melts easily. You will get even better results if you shred your cheese into tiny crumbly pieces. However, do not melt your cheese in its original plastic packaging.
The plastic wrap that the feta cheese comes in is not made for multiple uses and it cannot survive at high temperatures. Its sole purpose is to keep the cheese uncontaminated.
If you nuke the cheese in the microwave with the plastic on, you can potentially risk the cheese getting contaminated by the toxins released from the melting plastic.
You don’t need to hesitate before heating the cheese in the microwave. If you follow a few key instructions of this process, you will end with delicious and warm melted feta cheese that you can use as a topping, dip, or add to your recipe.
What Will You Need?
- A microwave-safe bowl or dish
- A microwave
- Gloves or a heat resistant cloth
- Corn starch
- Milk
- A spoon
- A cheese shredder
How To Melt Feta Cheese in the microwave?
Place the feta cheese in a microwave-safe dish and remove the plastic packaging from around it. You can discard the packaging or reuse it for some purpose other than storing the melted cheese.
Add a pinch of cornstarch and a splash of milk to the cheese. Heat it in the microwave for thirty seconds on medium heat until it completely softens and melts to the desired texture.
Start the melting at thirty seconds and keep mixing the cheese to ensure that it gets evenly heated. Increase the time if your cheese hasn’t melted. Once the cheese melts completely, use a pair of gloves or a heat-resistant cloth to remove the dish from the microwave.
Tips for Microwaving Feta Cheese
- If the cornstarch starts to thicken up too much, add a little splash of water and mix until the consistency is back to normal.
- Before heating, make sure that the feta cheese is at room temperature. This will help the cheese get a headstart in the melting process and will then take less time in the microwave. However, make sure that you don’t keep the cheese at room temperature for more than two hours.
- Shred the cheese into smaller curds. This will help heat to travel through the cheese faster as a larger surface area will be available.
- Make sure that your microwave is at medium heat.
- Keep stirring the cheese so that it has a smooth texture and it gets evenly heated.
- If your feta cheese is not melting the way you want it to, try adding some lemon or white wine. They help bind the calcium. You can add some water too which helps the cheese to liquify quickly and better.
Is It Safe To Melt Feta Cheese In The Microwave?
Melting feta cheese in the microwave is as safe as it can get. You don’t need to worry about your health or the state of the cheese. Many people would even consider melting feta cheese in the microwave to be safer than melting it on the stovetop, as you do not need to have any direct contact with fire.
If you remove the plastic wrap from the cheese, wear gloves or use a heat-resistant cloth while taking the cheese out of the microwave, and use a microwave-safe dish, you will be perfectly safe.
Does Feta Cheese Melt?
You might have heard this several times that feta cheese does not melt. This statement can be quite confusing but it is somewhat true.
When heated, feta cheese doesn’t melt. It is unlike all the other cheeses in this aspect. Other cheeses like mozzarella and cheddar get stretchy and melty when exposed to heat.
Instead, feta cheese turns into a soft and gooey texture. When feta cheese melts, it doesn’t liquify. The only change it experiences is a change in texture that turns soft and creamy.
Why Does Feta Cheese Not Melt?
The main reason for this is the specific way the feta cheese is made. The high acid content present in the cheese keeps the cheese from melting and instead softens the cheese up while maintaining its shape.
The reason why the high acid content keeps the cheese from liquifying is that when acid-based cheese is melted, the protein bonds in the cheese tighten and water is expelled out through evaporation.
How Long Does It Take To Melt Feta Cheese?
The microwave is a machine known best for its time-saving qualities. It is available in every household and saves people numerous precious hours in the kitchen. Just like with most other foods, melting feta cheese in the microwave does not take long.
The amount of time that the feta cheese takes to melt depends on the quantity of cheese you are melting. The more the quantity of the cheese, the longer it will take to melt.
However, here is a reminder for everyone that feta is not like some of the other cheeses. It isn’t all ooey-gooey and so you need to understand the exact texture the feta cheese will get when it’s melted to know when to stop the microwaving process.
When melting feta cheese, put your microwave on medium to medium-high power and nuke it in the microwave for thirty seconds. You can keep melting it until it starts to melt and disintegrate. If you want the cheese to melt faster and desire a more runny, sauce-like consistency, add a splash or two of milk to the cheese, and voila!
Conclusion
Melting feta cheese in the microwave is an easy process that can be done by anyone. Even the most inexperienced and tragic chefs can make a simple salad and putting melted feta on it as a dressing makes the plain salad very special. You can melt feta cheese in your office, home, or even school as it doesn’t require any elaborate skills or fancy utensils.
Knowing this process had made my mornings, evenings, and even my life better. Now I do not need to stress over my meals and can make a delicious salad or a healthy sandwich quickly, sometimes even at my university!
This hack is making my lifestyle healthy and has even made me wait for my next meal because I love melted feta cheese. Have fun with the meals you make using this process and impress all your peers with your cooking skills!