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[gijoe985]

Does anyone have any suggestions for good cheeses. I live in a town that has an Albertons, Safeway, Fred Meyer (Kroger), and a Super 1 (local). They all pretty much carry your basic cheese. They have some nicer ones. Precious brand in particular. I tried using the fresh Precious that came in a 12oz block. It was good, but too wet. It kinda made a pool in the middle of the pizza.

I'm curious if anyone has any suggestions on what to do for a more authentic NY pie. There is a cash & carry about 45 minutes away, as well as some other larger stores. I just don't know where people go to get the higher quality cheese. I've also gathered from Jeff Varasano's site that if you use a fresh mozz it can get too moist like mine was. So I don't really know where to go next.

Can you guys maybe just suggest the brands that you use and like?

[UnConundrum]

I easily travel 45 minutes to get cheese.  Consequently, I'll buy a case of Grande and freeze the extra.  If you can do that, and split the time between the number of pizzas you can make from the cheese you buy, it really isn't much per pizza.  Go for quality not convenience

[madjack]

I'm in the same situation here, not a lot to choose from. I found there is a store here that has cheese from a company called Schullsburg, and it's fast become my fave. You might be able to contact them to see if they supply a store near you. www.shullsburgcreamery.com

[gijoe985]

Ok, Grande and Schullsburg... Any other good names? I've never really looked for good mozzarella, so knowing a few names will be a good start.

Also, are these more of a fresh (softer) cheese or is it the low moisture?

[madjack]

I get the Schullsburg mozzarella and provolone cheeses, and they are both low-moisture types. I usually like to mix 75/25 for a pizza (75% being the mozzarella). I should have noted with the Schullsburg, I was not talking about the pre-shredded or prepackaged cheese, but the stuff from behind the deli counter. It's usually about $4-$5 a pound... I don't know how this compares to what a lot of other guys here are using, I am sure a lot of posters here would turn their noses up at something like Shullsburg cheese, but like I posted earlier, I don't have much choice here either (Eastern Iowa) and my alternative is Kraft or store brand (Hyvee or Great Value) cheese.

[Jackitup]

Here's a list of the Sam's Clubs in SC. I get their 5 lb blocks of Stella mozz for 8.95/lb. I like it. It's no Grande but very good for the price. It looked like you're from SC by your scstatewrestler addy.
Jon


http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/storeSelect.do?org.apache.struts.taglib.html.TOKEN=68c80409ecacd2645817c11f3fd39e72&returnTo=&catg=536&page=1&storeSearchDistance=25&storeSearchZipcode=&storeSearchType=state&storeSearchState=SC&search.x=82&search.y=11

[Parttimepizzaiolo]

One of those stores you mentioned should carry Boar's Head products.  Their low-moisture mozz is excellent and doesn't become oily under the high heat.  It's a bit pricey, but you get what you pay for I guess.

John

[gijoe985]

I'll admit that right now I have been just buying Fred Meyer (Kroger) brand and nobody seems to care. In fact I get compliments on the cheese. This is probably more due to the fact that I sprinkle Parmesan and Romano on the sauce layer, just after some salt too...

It'd be nice to do a side-by-side with an expensive cheese...

[Trogdor33]

I use GFS basically because it's a cheap whole milk mozz ($2/lb). Their provolone, which I haven't tried is only $2.50/lb which is also very reasonable. I think your best bet would be to find some place that sells primarily to restaurants since they typically have fairly high quality products at significantly lower prices than grocery stores. If I am remembering correctly, I think somebody on here said that they have found grande cheese at a cash & carry. I drive an hour for a 50lb bag of KASL, so driving an hour for a case of cheese wouldn't be a huge deal for me if I had to.