Recommendations for decent vegetarian (NOT VEGAN) cheese

[PyongyangKipperbang]

Vegan cheese is not cheese!

DS1 (34) reacts badly to cheese. He is fine with all other dairy products so we know its not a lactose issue. We are working through various things to see if we can work out what the issue is as seeing a GP at the moment is almost impossible and from what I understand he would be told to restrict his diet to see what the issue is. We have isolated cheddar as the issue, he doesnt like any other cheese, so we are going to try veggie cheese, with non animal rennet to see if that is the problem.

Trouble is all the cheeses we can find that dont cost are fortune and are available in supermarkets are those vegan "cheeses" and thats not what we want.

Any suggestions?! Perhaps I am using the wrong search terms?

You’re definitely using the wrong search terms!

Most cheddar is vegetarian.

https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/sainsburys-full-flavour-cheddar--basics-625g

Cheese is naturally made from milk. I am not sure what you are talking about. If you want a non-animal cheese, you want a vegan cheese....

Some cheese is made using natural rennet, made from the lining of a calf’s stomach. Vegetarian cheese contains milk, but does not use calf’s stomach lining.

Hes 34? Why are you getting involved?

Cheddar is veggie isn't it? My veggie friends will all be upset if not!

OP is correct, cheese needs to made with vegetarian rennet to be vegetarian friendly. It should say suitable for vegetarians on it.

Supermarket cheddar has been vegetarian for decades now. It is more common for artisan cheeses to have rennet in it and obviously anything marked as parmesan is non veggie, pecorino is a good veggie alternative.

Yes, but most cheddar (which is what OP said he likes) is vegetarian and has been for a long long time.

My partner is vegetarian and won’t eat cheese made with animal rennet. Most supermarket cheddars are vegetarian.

It's rare for a cheese to actually be unsuitable for vegetarians! Unless it's proper Parmesan or some fancy business you just need to walk down the cheese aisle of Tesco and check the packaging. Cheddar is 100% always fine.

https://www.thecourtyarddairy.co.uk/blog/cheese-musings-and-tips/rennet-what-is-vegetation-cheese-and-vegetarian-rennet/?srsltid=AfmBOooRXgzEhbi6rPeUck51BCxaTyEemT0PXQBXuqhK2zE4WLKoi8Qs

I have problems with a lot of cheese. Sheep's or goats are fine. With other cheese I can tolerate emmenthal, and jarlsberg or its cheaper version leerdamer.

It seems to a problem digesting the fat rather than anything else.

He just needs to walk down the cheese aisle at the supermarket and look at the packets. But cheddar from a supermarket is always veggie so you may be pointing the finger at the wrong thing. DD has a school friend who struggles with uncooked dairy so a cheese sandwich would be a no but she could have a pizza- any chance it’s something like that?

Not “100% always fine”. Most bog standard supermarket cheddar yes but a lot of aged, artisan cheddars etc are not (eg the famous Montgomery cheddar).

also not “rare” - as well as all Parmesan, usually taleggio and most French cheeses aren’t vegetarian for example. Even some ricotta and mozzarella isn’t despite the fact rennet is usually an issue in hard cheeses

That's what I meant by 'fancy business' TBF
walk down the cheese aisle in Tesco and pick up a packet of mature cheddar and it will be suitable for vegetarians. If they want to go off piste with aged taleggio or whatever then it's more complicated, but for their purposes, why would they?

I thought that! I suspect he is either 3 or 4 and it’s a typo! If not OP has my sympathy!

I only added his age to show that this isnt a childhood reaction.

I am not sure why you care so much about why I am helping him.

If your adult child came to you asking for help with something that you could easily help with, I assume you would say "No, you are 34, sort it out for yourself" then?

As it is, I am helping for reasons that are none of your business but very valid.

thanks all for the information.

To be honest, I didnt realise that most supermarket cheeses were non animal rennet so at least we can discount that as the reason. If it is fat content then there isnt a hell of a lot we can do other than cut it out, which is what he has done, but he misses it!

Could it be a reaction to histamine - how is he with mozzarella, cream cheese etc?

Most supermarket cheese is vegetarian. Parmesan never will be but you can get vegetarian hard cheese alternative.

I do t care that much actually. You have posted on a public forum and I am just querying why you are involved in an adults dietary requirements. And yes if my adult children had this issue I wouldn’t get involved .

Yes, didn’t you know you should cut them completely adrift at 18, op?
🙄

Big difference between 18 and 34 though?🙄

This.
For veggie Parmesan it’s usually labelled under “Italian hard cheese” or something similar.

but apart from that I haven’t found another cheese that is non-veggie yet. Although I admit I stick to a couple of varieties…