Why Shred Your Own Cheese?
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“Why would I waste time shredding my own cheese when I can just buy a bag of pre-shredded cheese?”
Three Answers:
1) It Saves Money
2) You Can Avoid Consuming Unnecessary Additives
3) Shredded Cheese Tastes Better
Reason One to Shred Your Own Cheese: It Saves Money!
For most people, the motivating factor to shred one’s own cheese will likely be to save money. But does shredding your own cheese really save money?
YES!
At my grocery store, a bag of 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese costs close to $5.00. So that’s $2.50 a cup.
In contrast, when buying a 24oz block of cheese for about $8.00 and shredding it yourself (which makes about 8 cups), it turns out to be about $1.00 a cup. This makes my heart happy.
For my visual learners:
“But Polly, I don’t really need 8 cups of shredded cheese! What should I do with the cheese I don’t use? I don’t want it to go waste!”
Goodness, neither do I! Wasted food is painful to my heart. With that extra cheese that you may not use in the next two weeks, simply divide it up in 2 cup portions (or whatever portion your little heart desires) and freeze it! Yes, shredded cheese freezes very well. 
Reason Two to Shred Your Own Cheese: Avoid Consuming Additives
Do I think eating store bought shredded cheese will kill you? No. Is your kid going to sprout green hair and grow a third arm from the additives in store bought shredded cheese? Probably not. (I’d have quite the blog post to write if they did!) BUT for lots of reasons, around Thriving Home, we strive to keep our food REAL and as close to its original form as possible.
The truth is, in store bought shredded cheese there are a few more additives. Lets compare:
One to pay attention to is the cellulose. 
You know that light powder you can see on shredded cheese? That my friends is, cellulose. It keeps the cheese shreds from sticking together (Yeah!) It is also indigestible and made from wood or cotton (Not Yeah.) Like I said, it’s not going to kill you but, I’m not a beaver…or a termite… just sayin.
Reason Three to Shred Your Own Cheese: It Just Tastes Better!
Please, do a taste test and prove me wrong. You won’t. Freshly shredded cheese tastes richer, creamer, fresher (from lack of cellulose), meltier (is that even a word?) and is just better. Recipes using freshly grated cheese have a clear edge over those that don’t.
Best Way to Shred and Store Cheese
I’ll be honest, I’m not a huge fan of manually shredding large amounts of cheese. I mean, who is? It gives you hand cramps, tired arms and shredded skin if you start getting sloppy. You won’t last long shredding your own cheese that way. This is why it is critical that you know how to shred cheese with a food processor. Most food processors will come with a handy-dandy attachment that will shred a block of cheese in seconds! Seriously! It should look something like this:
To prove my point, I’ve created a little video on how to do it. Tune in, tune up and prepare yourself for a fascinating tutorial hosted by an amateur host sporting her 12 year old sorority fleece accompanied by frizzy workout hair.
P.S., when I asked my husband to film this, his response was, “So you want me to film you cutting the cheese?” Yes, dear love. I do.
And he did.
Somebody had to make the joke.
So there you have it. Me in all my college fleecey glory sharing one of my best kitchen tricks.
But… the best is yet to come. Tomorrow I plan to share the bloopers reel of filming this video. Yes, the video above is only a minute long but trust me, I am prone to blooping my heart out when filming things like this.
Lastly, I leave you with some lovely recipes to try out your freshly shredded cheese on.
Mac and Cheese with Sneaky Sweet Potato
P.S. It would would make me oh-so-happy if you would take the time to pin this post if you found this helpful. OH-so-very-happy. Just use the little Pin It button at the bottom of this post to make it easy for you!
Happy Shredding!
HI! I think the only reason why I purchase already shredded cheese because it does not clump up. How can you avoid that with fresh cheese block?
If I’m stocking up on it, I try to spread it out in a single layer. Because it doesn’t have the additives, there will indeed be some clinginess but it can be worked around pretty easily if you don’t store it as a big pile. Hope that helps.
Hello! Thank you so much for the cheese info. I want to start shredding my own regularly, but the last Cheddar cheeses we used to shred and make quesadillas was Soo greasy when cooked… any recommendations o. The best brands to use.. healthier.. Thanks in advance!
I’m not sure what the best brand would be, but you could always look for a reduced fat version if you’re wanting less grease. Not sure if it will melt as well, though.
I agree with points 2 & 3, fresh shredded tastes better, and doesn’t have the additives to prevent clumping.
However, at least in my neck of the woods, a 2 lb bag of pre-shredded runs $2.44, while a 1 lb block is $2.00. (However, when this was posted 3 years ago, maybe that wasn’t the case) 🙂
Probably depends on where you shop too!
I totally agree that shredding your own cheese is best. I have done that for years and years. However, find it crazy that you would grate the entire block – just grate what you need and put the block back into the refrigerator wrapped securely. NOTE Never touch the cheese block with your hands – it will cause mold to grow. Use some plastic wrap to hold the cheese while grating – I use the old fashioned cheese grater.
Thanks for the tip! I didn’t know that.
Well, I have a different school of thought on this. I like to shred all of my cheese at once to save time and dishes. We almost always use it up! I use a cheese grater for small amounts but if I’m wanting a few cups of shredded cheese, the food processor is my best friend!
Thanks for sharing such an informative post. I’m a cheese lover, I can’t wait to try your recipes. Worth reading!
Yes, yes, yes, a thousand times yes. We keep replacing the stuff that Mother Nature put into food with ….. you guessed it! Starch. Simple carbohydrates. You pay more, for less. Convenience foods remove good stuff like fibre and nutrients, and replace it with edible cheapness that cheats us out of quality time making meals with our loved ones.
I remember being “allowed” to shred the cheddar and swiss for my Mom’s Christmas quiche, and thinking it was such a privilege. (Mom was so smart!) Let’s get away from our screens and enjoy our family while we all do meaningful and tasteful work in the kitchen!
Thumbs up to this comment!
The link for Mac N Cheese with Sneaky Sweet Potato recipe links to the recipe above it…can you please email it to me? Thanks!
I love this! I think shredding your own cheese tastes so much better! The other points are always a good bonus as well!