For the few years when I was vegetarian before I went vegan, I ate a lot of cheese. I really liked it. I thought it would be super hard to give up, and it was at first. By now it just tastes vaguely rotten, but for a while it was enticing.
There actually are a few vegan cheese products that I like. I use tofutti american cheese style slices to make grilled cheese sandwiches, and I use “follow your heart” brand mozzarella for pizzas and the like. Neither of these comes close to the real thing–anyone who thinks they do is fooling themselves. But they serve their purpose for a few recipes rather nicely.
So, I had some hope that I would get some joy out of the 8 oz of “Sheese” I bought for $9.25 at a vegan grocery store in town. I got the “strong cheddar” style. The texture looks normal enough–maybe a bit waxy looking. It also sliced up nicely–good texture. Unfortunately it tasted, well, appalling. Some vegan products are pretty good but have a strange aftertaste. This one tasted awful at the beginning, middle, and end of the bite. The flavor was something like funky nutritional yeast with some sugar added.
Maybe I’m exaggerating a little. I revisited it a few times, trying to like it, but each time it sort of make me make an involuntary grimace. As to how it matches up to the real thing? C, who enjoys real cheese on occasion (and the afore mentioned vegan varieties I regularly cook with), had to spit it out and wash out her mouth.
The company does make many other variaties–and maybe some of them might taste good. But for ten bucks a pop, I’m not likely to.
Anyone have any experience with the other flavors?
Sad to hear that cheez was nasty. Although I don’t have much of an interest in faux cheeses for my own consumption, I still had high hopes that there was finally an AMAZING vegan cheese invented. Nope!
Nice blog!
I don’t know about Sheese, but Redwood’s Cheezly is good – at least, the Mozarella style is good on pizza and it melts. I don’t use much vegan cheese, but my OH loves Cheezly on pizza. It’s made in the UK I believe. We get it here in NZ, and I hear it’s in some big cities in the US. http://www.redwoodfoods.es/cheezly.php
Thanks!
I was able to sample Cheezly at Vegfest here in Seattle, and it’s pretty good. Not too much better than “Follow Your Heart” brand mozarella and about twice as expensive, though!
Thanks for the tip!
I love certain Scheese flavours – namely, Blue and Smoked Cheddar. But Scheese is best in baguette sandwiches, or on very hot foods like baked potatoes. It’s not to everyone’s taste on its own.
The spreadable Scheese makes a wondrously good Mac’N'Scheese.
Have you ever tried Teese? It melts on pizza!