How To Properly Open A Cheese Truckle

With Christmas over, you may find yourself with cheese truckles in the fridge from cheese hampers that were gifted to you, and you may be wondering how to properly open a cheese truckle.

As the truckle specialists, we're only too happy to help increase your cheese expertise. We'll explain the right way to open cheese truckles, and what to do after they're open (other than eat them of course!)

How to open a truckle of cheese

Cheese truckles are encased in wax to protect the cheese from moisture and any harmful elements while it ages. Think of the wax like a very secure container, keeping the precious cheese inside at its absolute best until you're ready to eat it. What's even better, the taste, flavour and even the texture all improve while your cheese is within the wax, once the truckle is stored correctly.

However, there's just one problem: There doesn't appear to be an opening or a lid to your truckle! This is where you come in. You don't need any specialist equipment – a sharp knife will do.

Our truckles come in a range of different coloured wax coverings, which add a pop of colour to a cheeseboard or party tables. Wax coverings also give a traditional, artisan look to your cheese. So we'll provide options for removing the wax altogether, as well as keeping the wax on for serving slices and wedges.

Simply follow these straightforward instructions below to open your truckle the correct way.

Preparing to open a cheese truckle

The first thing to do is get your truckle ready for opening or slicing. You'll need a sharp knife, or you can use cheese wire if you've got one. You don’t really need a cheese knife, so don’t worry if you haven’t got one. Any sharp knife will work fine for this.

Bring your truckle to room temperature

Take the cheese truckle from the refrigerator and allow it to reach room temperature. This means the wax will soften slightly, which makes it much easier to separate it from the cheese. Your cheese will also taste better if it isn't served straight from the fridge.

Remove outer coverings

Unwrap your truckle if it has a paper or plastic covering. Remove any sticky labels from the outside of the wax, as these can get in the way of making clean slices. Now, get your sharp knife or cheese wire, and follow one of the methods below for cutting into your truckle.

How to cut a cheese truckle

To cut a cheese truckle, you can take off all the wax from your truckle before serving. Or you can cut it into slices and wedges, leaving the wax on, and let guests remove the wax from their portions before eating.

How to remove all the wax from your truckle

1. Using your sharp knife, carefully cut along the outer circumference of the wax, just along the top edge, but don't cut into the cheese. This creates an upper 'lid' which you can now lift off.
2. Then turn the cheese over and cut the wax along the middle of the truckle, again without cutting the cheese. Gently pull the rest of the wax away from the cheese, then slice your cheese or cut into cubes. Enjoy!

Cutting your truckle into slices

Because our wax-covered truckles come in such delightful colours, you may want to keep the wax covering in place for serving. At Christmas, for example, we offer signature seasonal flavours that come in red and green wax coverings, which give a festive feel to cheese platters. Here's how to keep the wax on your cheese truckle when cutting it into slices:

1. Score lines along your wax at the top of your truckle to indicate even 1cm slices, using either a sharp knife or a cheese wire.
2. Cut all the way through the wax and the cheese.
3. Arrange the slices, with wax on or off, on a platter. The wax can simply be removed before eating. (Wax on cheese isn’t edible.)

Cutting your truckle into wedges

1. If you prefer wedges to slices for serving cheese, the same principles above apply. Score the top of your truckle so that it's divided into four quarters, using either your sharp knife or cheese wire.
2. Now cut the wax as well as the cheese, and cut each quarter in half again.
3. As with the slices, you and your guests can remove the wax before eating.

How to eat a cheese truckle

Cheese truckles come in a variety of delightful flavours, from extra mature Cheddar like our bestselling Black Bob to traditional creamy Cheshire as well as a range of taste-tempting infusions.

Once you’ve opened your cheese truckle, it’s best to enjoy it right away. This doesn’t mean that it won’t keep for weeks in the fridge, but freshly opened cheese ideally should be enjoyed rather than stored for too long.

Serve cheese at room temperature to enjoy the flavours at their fullest, either on cheese biscuits, crackers or with bread. Accompaniments like chutney, jams and pickles make for exciting taste experiences if you love cheese.

You don’t need to keep your truckle stored in its wax covering after you’ve opened it, but it won’t hurt. Wax coverings for cheese usually can’t be recycled, so once your cheese is finished it’s best to discard it.

How do you open a cheese truckle: Summary

Wax coverings protect cheese from moisture and keep it free from mould while it ages. Unlike rind, wax coverings on cheese can’t be eaten or recycled.

You can keep the wax on your cheese for serving, and remove it before eating. Or you can take all the wax off your truckle before serving and eating, following our instructions above.

Our tasty cheese truckles are ideal for gifts and celebrations and can be enjoyed all year round. They usually last for months when stored correctly in the fridge too.

Now that you know how to open a cheese truckle properly, we hope you’ll enjoy sampling our full range of truckles and cheeses. You can join our Cheese Club for free, for 10% off orders, reward points and regular news and updates via our newsletter.

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