An Israeli company called claims to have created a milk protein in a lab that could revolutionize dairy-free cheeses.
DairyX has found a way to synthesize casein proteins, according to its CEO, Arik Ryvkin. Caseins help give cheese that wonderful, creamy, stretchy texture when melted.
鈥淲e take the casein gene from a cow and we put it into a yeast,鈥� Ryvkin said. 鈥淭his yeast creates a protein which is identical to the protein produced by cows, but no cow was involved in the process.鈥�
The technology is part of a long-running effort to make veggie cheeses more appealing.
Dan Souza, chief content officer for , said there is a growing demand for better cow-free cheeses.
鈥淲hen you ask people if they would ever want to be vegan, the thing that holds up a lot of people is actually cheese," Souza said. "They鈥檙e happy giving up meat but can鈥檛 give up cheese.鈥�
The problem with vegan cheese isn鈥檛 so much taste as it is texture, Souza said.
鈥淪tretching and melting is such an important part of cheese. [When it comes to] non dairy cheeses, this is an area where everyone struggles.鈥�
Souza said the casein protein helps cheese melt in a way 鈥�...that is really, really wonderful and pleasurable.鈥� Think pizza or a grilled cheese sandwich, for example.
But Ryvkin said it鈥檚 going to be a couple years before the first blocks of cheese with lab-grown proteins make it to your kitchen.
In the meantime, Souza recommends trying vegan options, which he said have have come a long way.
The best veggie cheeses are made with cashews, Souza said. They鈥檙e rich and creamy and he added, 鈥淲e鈥檝e tested some bries that are really good copies of a solid supermarket brie.鈥� America鈥檚 Test kitchen has .
If you want something that melts well, Souza said there are several that are quite good.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e really figured out how to get the stretch [but not quite] like you would get with real cheese, but definitely better,鈥� he said.
One way to get the texture even closer is to combine an imitation cheese with other ingredients. The Test kitchen has a recipe for a that uses potatoes to create a more cheesy consistency.
For now, you have to choose between cow-free cheeses that melt right or taste right. But either way your options are pretty鈥�.. gouda.
Olivia Hampton edited the audio version of this story.
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