The Absolute Best Type Of Cheese To Pair With Pickles

From classic kosher dill spears to pepperoncini, pickles are a staple ingredient we pile onto our cheeseburgers, serve alongside a grilled cheese sandwich, and toss into a feta-laden Greek salad. If they pair well with cheese in each of these iconic dishes, you know pickles will make the perfect accoutrement to help build your next cheese board. We interviewed Matthew Rose, partner of Fairfield and Greenwich Cheese Company, for his opinion on the absolute best type of cheese to pair with pickles.

He says, "For me, all cheeses make for good pairings with things that are pickled! But, if I had to name one specific style, I would have to say the washed-rind family of cheeses. Washed-rind cheeses tend to range from soft, gooey and runny, to semi-firm and tend to boast sweet and savory flavors such as brioche, custard, and ham making them an ideal candidate for crunchy and tangy pickles."

Also known as stinky cheeses, washed-rind cheeses have rinds that are colored a shade of orange, pink, or red, which may emit a pungent odor, but their complex and rich flavors will help you overlook their smell. The source of the coloring, smell, and flavor of these cheeses is due to the bacteria introduced when the cheeses are washed in brine. The smell of feet or barnyard animals transforms into umami-rich, salty, yeasty tasting notes, which pickles enhance with a sour complement.

Washed-rind cheeses encompass a range of textures and flavors. Matthew Rose told us some of his current favorites, saying, "Some popular washed rind cheeses that I like right now are Oma from Von Trapp Farmstead in Vermont, Grayson from Meadowcreek Dairy in Virginia, or you could do something more traditional like an Italian Taleggio or a true Alsatian Munster."

Oma is a soft cheese, with a buttery, creamy consistency and a meaty, pungent taste while Grayson's melt-in-your-mouth texture is likened to fudge and imparts a beefy, umami-rich flavor with nutty and earthy notes. Taleggio is often compared to brie and camembert for its gooey consistency and mild but rich taste. Not to be confused with Muenster, Munster is a French semi-soft cheese with one of the strongest odors and super pungent tasting notes of beef, onions, and peanuts. Other types of washed rind cheeses include Limburger, Reblochon, and Epoisse de Bourgogne. Gruyere is perhaps the most famous washed-rind cheese that's a favorite for cheese plates, these potatoes au gratin, and macaroni and cheese.

There may be even more types of pickles than there are types of washed-rind cheeses, and they'll all taste delicious on a cheese board. You can offer various pickles for a diversity of flavors and textures. Pickled products are all tangy but they can also be sweet like gherkins or peppadews, aromatic like dill pickles or pickled red onions, and spicy like pickled jalapeños or these Amish Wedding hot pickled okra.