A mild, supple, buttery table cheese sliced onto open sandwiches. It was developed in the mid-1800s by Hanne Nielsen at her Havarthigaard farm near Copenhagen, who toured European dairies before making a cheese of her own.
The washed-curd step depends on controlling acidity and temperature to a narrow range, and the cheese is ripened for months in a dairy’s controlled store.
What goes into it
- cow’s milk
- rennet
- a mesophilic starter culture
- salt
How it is made
The milk is set with rennet and the curd cut, then part of the whey is drawn off and replaced with warm water — a washing step that lowers acidity and gives the cheese its mild, sweet character and its many small irregular eyes. The curd is pressed, brined and ripened for a month or more.
How long it takes: three months for the standard, longer for the aged styles
How it is eaten
Sliced on rugbrød with cucumber, in a sandwich, or melted.
History
Developed in the mid-1800s by Hanne Nielsen at her Havarthigaard farm near Copenhagen, who toured European dairies before making her own cheese.
Frequently asked questions
What is Havarti?
Havarti is a cheese & dairy from Denmark: mild, supple, buttery table cheese sliced onto open sandwiches. Developed in the mid-1800s by Hanne Nielsen at her Havarthigaard farm near Copenhagen, who toured European dairies before making her own cheese.
How is Havarti made?
The milk is set with rennet and the curd cut, then part of the whey is drawn off and replaced with warm water — a washing step that lowers acidity and gives the cheese its mild, sweet character and its many small irregular eyes. The curd is pressed, brined and ripened for a month or more. It takes three months for the standard, longer for the aged styles.
Can I make Havarti at home?
No, and the atlas gives no method for it. The washed-curd step depends on controlling acidity and temperature to a narrow range, and the cheese is ripened for months in a dairy’s controlled store.
What goes into Havarti?
Cow’s milk, rennet, a mesophilic starter culture, salt.
How is Havarti eaten?
Sliced on rugbrød with cucumber, in a sandwich, or melted.
