Cheese curds are the small pieces of curdled milk leftover during cheese making. They are also known as chewy cheese or squeaky cheese because they ‘squeak’ when you bite them. They’re harvested before they entirely become a solid block of cheddar.
They have a cheddar-like flavour and are sourced mainly from Wisconsin – a worldwide famous location for cheese curds. Cheese curds are really healthy, and they contain proteins, fat, calcium and a lot of other nutrients. They are also the perfect addition to a keto diet.
Before discussing if cheese curds are gluten-free, let’s get to know gluten. Gluten is a particular type of protein that is found primarily in wheat, barley, and rye. Going on a gluten-free diet means avoiding these grains.
A gluten-free diet is important for people with celiac disease, a condition which causes intestinal damage when gluten is eaten.
So now that you know what gluten is, you might have guessed if cheese curds are gluten-free or not. You are correct, there is no gluten in cheese curds, or I should specify in raw cheese curds.
Mostly cheese curds are served deep-fried or in Poutine, and these dishes do have gluten in them. You cannot eat these dishes on a gluten-free diet. The batter used to fry cheese curds has gluten in it, and the brown sauce of Poutine has gluten.
Here are some gluten-free cheese curds recipes that you can add into your gluten-free diet:
Cheese Curds and Cherry Tomatoes Salad
Cheese curds taste amazing with cherry tomatoes; the mild taste of cheese curds perfectly balances the sweetness of cherry tomatoes.
However, when making this salad, you have to avoid dressing that contains gluten so, while purchasing salad dressing check if it is gluten-free.
Gluten-Free Fried Cheese Curds
Commonly, cheese curds are fried in flour batter but to avoid gluten in the recipe, and you have to replace flour.
Use milk, eggs, gluten-free flour, baking powder, basil, salt, and garlic powder to make a batter, dip the cheese curds in it and deep fry them. Easy, delicious and gluten-free.
Before you start eating them, let me tell you an essential thing about cheese curds – they don’t squeak if they are not fresh. So, you have to make sure you purchase fresh cheese curds to get the most out of them.
In Australia, you can buy fresh cheese curds from Pure Dairy. I have been a loyal customer for years and trust me, and they will never disappoint you. The best part about Pure Dairy cheese curds is that they are sourced from Wisconsin.
Also, they are individually quick frozen, which means faster freezing time, by using this technique, the squeak, texture and all the nutrients are preserved without nasty additives. To order fresh cheese curds in Australia, contact Pure Dairy, and they will get back to you with the details of distributors near you.