11 Cottage Cheese Brands With The Highest Quality Ingredients

Cottage cheese is a low-fat, high-protein dairy product that has seen a recent surge in consumption thanks to its nutritional profile, satiety level, and versatility. It's traditionally found in the cheese section of the grocery store where tubs of it line the shelves. When it comes to choosing quality cottage cheese, there are a few things to consider as you're standing in the dairy aisle trying to determine the good from the bad.

It all begins with the cows and the land. Cows that graze on healthy land produce quality milk, which creates quality cottage cheese. The simple cheese making process starts with letting milk curdle. Typically, an acid like vinegar or live cultures are added to milk in order to promote fermenting. Curds form — lumps of milk solids — and separate from the whey, which is the leftover milk. Curds are drained, cut into small or large pieces, rinsed, and lightly salted. It's the curds that give cottage cheese its distinct look. Cream is then added to the curds to keep them moist — a method called dressing. The end result is a slightly sweet, tangy taste, reminiscent of a mild yogurt.

We looked into various cottage cheese brands to find those that feature high quality ingredients. We chose brands with the fewest ingredients and those that source from farms that care. A good cultured dairy product should have curds that are somewhat dry to give them texture and bite, but not too firm that they're hard bits of cheese. The dressing should enhance the curds, not drown them or make them mushy.

Good quality begins with good ingredients. Good ingredients come from good sources. It's probably no surprise that Good Culture — appropriately named, is a good cottage cheese brand to pick. Partnering with Dairy Farmers of America, Good Culture has a commitment to enhance soil health by making more efficient use of its pastures. The company practices regenerative farming for the best possible treatment and outcome of the land. Good Culture is certified organic and aims for real simple ingredients in its dairy products. The happier and healthier the cow, the better the quality of milk.

Good Culture cottage cheese contains just milk, cream, sea salt, and live active cultures. This is one of the few brands that doesn't add gums, thickeners, or stabilizers. It's available in multiple sizes and in various milk fat percentages. It's the only brand to showcase a richer cottage cheese with 6% milk fat. You can also find it offered with fruit. We have previously found Good Culture to be a good value — it's thick and creamy but without the help of additives, binders, or thickeners. There isn't too much liquid and in one of Daily Meal's past taste tests, the texture more resembled ricotta cheese.

Kalona Supernatural sources from small family farms that practice regenerative farming. Most of the farms are located in Iowa and owned by Amish and Mennonite families that span generations. Farms feature grass-fed cows feeding on non-GMO crops and there is zero use of herbicides, pesticides, antibiotics, or growth hormones. Kalona's organic dairy products are as close to raw as possible since they're never ultra-pasteurized or sterilized. Instead of heating to 280 degrees Fahrenheit, Kalona Supernatural slowly heats its milk to 145 degrees Fahrenheit in order to use the lowest temperature that regulations allow. Unlike most brands on the market, the dairy is also non-homogenized and products have a natural cream top.

Kalona Supernatural cottage cheese was previously ranked as one of Daily Meal's favorite cottage cheese brands. With its simple ingredient list of organic milk, cream, sea salt, and live active cultures, Kalona cottage cheese delivers a thick, rich, and luxurious cheesy mouthful in either 2% or 4% milk fat. The natural cream top adds a decadent touch to the already-creamy cottage cheese. For Kalona it's not just the milk that matters for its cheese. The company sources hand-harvested Celtic sea salt from the coast of France. These high-quality ingredients combine together to create an exceptional bite of slightly tangy, lightly salty, intensely creamy cottage cheese.

Do you dollop? There's a good reason why folks do. Daisy consistently ranks as a popular product for customers and holds strong as a dairy brand because it relies on simple, tried-and-true ingredients. Daisy doesn't add stabilizers, preservatives, additives, or thickeners, and sources hormone growth-free milk from farmers across the country.

Cottage cheese lovers rank Daisy fairly high for its small curd cottage cheese. The cheese is made in small batches using just milk, cream, and salt — cultures are added to milk and when the milk thickens, it's cut into squares, which then becomes the curds. The curds are coated in a rich creamy cultured dressing that's also made with live active cultures. Though our taste testers deemed Daisy cottage cheese to be a bit liquidy, it was creamy, tart, salty, and tangy – everything you want in a solid cottage cheese. It's available in multiple size containers in either 2% or 4% milk fat. You'll also find Daisy cottage cheese with fruit in individual cups.

Breakstone's is a cottage cheese brand we'll always put in our shopping cart thanks to its smooth, creamy, cheesy texture. Breakstone's is another brand to use high quality ingredients but the company also adds tapioca starch as a way to thicken the cottage cheese. It's unlikely this was an original ingredient when farmers were first making the creamy curds. This dairy product is so named because in earlier days when farmers had excess milk, they would take it home, which at the time was called a cottage. Whether by accident or intent, cottage cheese was born. Though it's more likely early cottage cheese was just milk and salt, it's possible farmers put other ingredients into the mix to thicken it up.

For Breakstone's cottage cheese, tapioca starch is the only addition to an otherwise streamlined ingredient list: cultured milk, cream, and salt. The cottage cheese is available in multiple sizes, including individual cups. You get to choose from 2% or 4% milk fat, small or large curd, and plain or with fruit.

Family owned and run for three generations, Nancy's began with Springfield Creamery, specifically as Nancy's honey yogurt. Nancy Van Brasch Hamren was the bookkeeper for the creamery and she created the famous cultured yogurt that put Springfield Creamery on the map. It didn't hurt that The Grateful Dead and Huey Lewis helped promote the cultured cream in the 1960s and 1970s. Nancy's yogurt became so popular that products expanded to include other cultured probiotic foods like cottage cheese and kefir.

Nancy's keeps it simple producing its dairy foods with a few organic, non-GMO ingredients. The farmers never use growth hormones with their cows and the products do not contain thickeners or additives. Nancy's cottage cheese features milk, cream, and salt and is treated with four strains of live active cultures. Nancy's offers 2% and 4% milk fat cottage cheese in large containers that are reusable and BPA free. Renewable energy is important to the creamery — it's partly solar powered for energy efficiency.

Friendship Dairies sources the majority of its dairy from cows that are never given growth hormones, and they test all of their cows to ensure antibiotics are never used. Ingredients for its dairy products are kept to a minimum, with milk, cream, and salt taking center ring. Unlike most of the brands on this list, Friendship uses carbon dioxide as a preservative, which is "generally recognized as safe." It's a natural byproduct of production and small amounts are added back to the cottage cheese for preservation once it's been packaged. The process is similar to carbonating soda but cottage cheese has much less carbon dioxide than soda.

Friendship's cottage cheese features a 2% pot-style, large curd cheese that's strained a little longer, which makes it slightly thicker. It also offers 4% California-style, small curd, and 1% whipped cottage cheese, the latter of which is light and airy, making it good for spreading or dipping. The company offers cottage cheese lovers plain or low-fat cottage cheese with fruit.

Organic Valley is a farmer owned cooperative that's made up of more than 1,600 family farms. Many of these family farms span multiple generations and produce a wide variety of dairy cow breeds. Organic Valley prides itself on its regenerative farming techniques where cows are moved to a fresh paddock every day. Cows have access to sun, grass, soil, and rain, all of which results in luscious green pastures. Those pastures are made up of several different grasses, including white clover, alfalfa, red clover, bluegrass, white grass, rye grass, orchard grass, and more. Organic regenerative farming never uses any pesticides, antibiotics, growth hormones, or genetically modified organisms.

Organic Valley offers 2% and 4% milk fat for its small curd cottage cheese. Other than milk, cream, salt, and live active cultures, citric acid is added as a preservative and gums are used as thickeners. For all the hard work that goes into raising cows on regenerative farms in order to produce the best and cleanest milk source, it's surprising to see additional ingredients are in Organic Valley cottage cheese.

Horizon Organic is made up of more than 500 farms, some of which span multiple generations. Cows are raised on pastures where they have access to lush greens for at least 120 days out of the year. Farms don't use growth hormones, antibiotics, or pesticides and cows receive an organic diet. Horizon Organic farms use regenerative agriculture to encourage healthier soil — planned, rotational grazing so the cows naturally break up and fertilize the soil. The land is tested on a regular basis to ensure the soil features the necessary nutrients. Cover crops are planted to enhance biodiversity in the ecosystem, which brings bees and butterflies, as well as nesting areas for birds and bats.

Horizon Organic helps create a healthier, more resilient environment that includes native species. Farms reuse rainwater and take advantage of surface water like lakes and rivers. Taking good care of the land and cows that graze on it promotes the highest quality dairy. Horizon Organic offers 2% and 4% milk fat for its cottage cheese options. But it's slightly disappointing to find non-dairy ingredients added to Horizon Organic cottage cheese, such as tricalcium phosphate, citric acid, and gums for thickeners.

Cabot Creamery has been making cottage cheese since the 1930s. Comprised of a cooperative of family farmers originating in Vermont, Cabot Creamery now works alongside family farms from all over New England. Producing award-winning products, Cabot has shown farming excellence where half a dozen farms have earned the New England Green Pastures Award. By investing in the future of farmland, Cabot Creamery encourages and supports farming sustainability.

Taking care of the land and cows has consistently churned out high quality dairy products for Cabot Creamery, as showcased by its award-winning cottage cheese. Crafted with 4% milk fat, Cabot cottage cheese features milk, cream, and salt, but unlike any of the other brands on this list, it also contains whey. Surprisingly, a number of other ingredients are added to the creamy curds such as preservatives, additives, and thickeners. But there are many ways to elevate store-bought cottage cheese in case you want to experiment with this dairy product.

Prairie Farms is an award-winning dairy farmer cooperative with more than 600 family farms. Many of the families are multi-generation farmers going back to the 1800s that have a variety of cow breeds, including holstein and jersey. Special care is taken to provide cows with the proper diet, which is sometimes supplied by an animal nutritionist. Cows have access to pastures, shade, and shelter with fresh bedding. Farms within the cooperative are evaluated every few years to ensure they're operating up to standards.

Among Prairie Farms' range of dairy products is cottage cheese that's available in small or large curd. This brand offers 2% and 4% milk fat and a lactose-free version. Along with milk, cream, and salt, Prairie Farms cottage cheese also has preservatives that include carbon dioxide, multiple gums as thickeners, and additives. If you're not deterred by the additional ingredients, you could always try this famous cottage cheese flatbread.

Kemps began as a small creamery in Minnesota in the early 1900s. Now, Kemps is a family farmer owned cooperative with farms in Wisconsin and Minnesota, under the umbrella of Dairy Farmers of America. Like many of the family farmer cooperatives, this one has families that have been farming for generations. Beyond taking good care of their land and cows, these farms recycle and reuse resources as much as possible.

Among the dairy products provided by Kemps, cottage cheese is available for curd lovers to delight in. It's offered in multiple-size containers from individual to large. The cottage cheese comes in nonfat, 1%, 2%, and 4% milk fat in either small or large curd. You get to choose from plain, with fruit, or with chives. Kemps is another cottage cheese brand that features more than just milk, cream, and salt. The ingredients also include whey, gums, natural flavoring, preservatives, and additives.