Gamalost
Firm, moist, and coarse Norwegian cheese
title: "Gamalost" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["norwegian-cheeses", "dairy-products", "blue-cheeses", "cow's-milk-cheeses", "acid-set-cheeses"] description: "Firm, moist, and coarse Norwegian cheese" topic_path: "geography/norway" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamalost" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary Firm, moist, and coarse Norwegian cheese ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox Cheese"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Gamalost |
| image | [[File:Gamalost-NorwegianOldCheese.jpg |
| country | Norway |
| regiontown | Primarily Hardanger and Sogn |
| source | Skimmed cow's milk |
| pasteurized | Yes |
| texture | Firm |
| aging | Four to five weeks |
| certification | N/A |
| :: |
| name = Gamalost | image = [[File:Gamalost-NorwegianOldCheese.jpg|240px]] | othernames = | country = Norway | regiontown = Primarily Hardanger and Sogn | region = | town = | source = Skimmed cow's milk | pasteurized = Yes | texture = Firm | fat = | protein = | dimensions = | weight = | aging = Four to five weeks | certification = N/A Gamalost (Nynorsk; gammelost or gammalost in Bokmål) is a traditional Norwegian cheese.{{cite web |url= https://www.cheese.com/gammelost/|title= gammelost|publisher= cheese.com |accessdate= December 1, 2017}}
History
Gamalost, which translates as 'old cheese', was once a staple of the Norwegian diet. Like many traditional Norwegian foods, such as flatbread, dry salted meats and stockfish, gamalost could be stored for long periods without refrigeration. The brownish-yellow cheese is firm, moist, coarse and often granular. Gamalost is rich in protein with low fat content, measuring 1% fat and 50% protein.
Production
To make gamalost, lactic starter is added to skimmed cow's milk, causing it to sour. After several days of souring, the milk is slowly heated, before the curds are separated and pressed into forms. After removal from the forms, mold is introduced onto the surface of the cheese, either by exposure to the wooden walls of the form that is only used for gamalost, or rubbed on by hand in the traditional method. The cheese is then allowed to cure for four to five weeks. The ripening happens from outside inwards, so the center might be lighter than the parts near the exterior.
Gamalost production is very labor-intensive, particularly if traditional methods are used. Everything depends on the proper fermentation and maturation. It is not made in sufficient quantity for mass export. As such, it is rare to find the cheese outside Norway. Commercial production has principally been limited to the Tine facility in Vik.
Gamalost Festival
Gamalost Festival (Gamalostfestivalen) is an annual event held in Vik in Sogn at the beginning of summer every year.{{cite web |url= http://www.gamalostfestivalen.no/|title=Velkomen til Gamalostfestivalen 2017|publisher = Gamalostfestivalen|accessdate= February 1, 2017 }}
References
Other sources
Related reading
- Diehl, Kari Schoening (2012) The Everything Nordic Cookbook (Quarto - Everything Books)
- Scott, Astrid Karlsen (2015) Authentic Norwegian Cooking: Traditional Scandinavian Cooking Made Easy (Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.)
References
- "Gammelost". Worldnews, Inc..
- "Gamalost". Norway At Home.
- Jan Peter Aursnes. "gammelost". Store norske leksikon.
- Jeri Case. (July 2013). "Gammelost". cheesemaking.com.
- "''Gamalost frå Vik'' (Tine)".
::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::