Every home chef has experienced this moment. You’re cooking, and everything is going great. The kitchen smells wonderful; every dish is going according to plan when suddenly, you realize: you are missing an ingredient. One ingredient can make or break a dish, so it’s vital to have everything you need, but everyone makes mistakes. Here are several kinds of cheese you can use as a Gruyere cheese substitute:
| Gruyere Cheese Substitute | 7 go to options when it comes to cooking | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gruyere cheese substitute | Use this substitute? | Melting and texture | Taste |
| Comte cheese | Best substitute for gruyere | Basically same as gruyere | Basically same as gruyere |
| Beaufort cheese | Great gruyerre substitute | Very similar to gruyere | Very similar to gruyere |
| Swiss cheese | Good substitute | Similar to gruyere | Gruyere has stronger flavor |
| Parmesane cheese | Relatively good | Similar to gruyere | Not as rich as gruyere |
| Gouda cheese | Poor substitute but better than cheddar | Similar to gruyere | Similar to gruyere |
| Cheddar cheese | Not a good substitute | Similar to gruyere | Different than gruyere |
| Mozzarella cheese | Opposite of gruyere - not a good substitute | Right texture | Different flavor than gruyere |
Is Comte cheese a good Gruyere substitute?
Comte cheese is probably the best gruyere cheese substitute that you can find. In essence, Comte cheese is Gruyere cheese, made in France. It is slightly sweeter but still nutty and creamy. It is one of the best melting cheeses, just like Gruyere; that makes it the next best thing to Gruyere.
The only downside is that this cheese is harder to find than other cheeses. If you don’t have Gruyere, but you do have Comte, though, you are all set. Only those most familiar with cheese will be able to tell the difference, and even then, the dish won’t taste worse or off, only different. Comte cheese is regarded as the best Gruyere substitute. From soup to fondue to anything else you may need Gruyere for, Comte cheese will work almost as well, if not just as well.
Is Beaufort cheese a good Gruyere substitute?
Beaufort cheese is a great gruyere cheese substitute. Since it is in the Gruyere family of cheeses, it is very similar. It is a little moister, and it lacks the holes that characterize Gruyere, but it is similar in almost every other way. It is creamy, though sometimes milder than Gruyere. If you are only using a small amount of cheese in a recipe, if you use Beaufort, you won’t be able to tell the difference.
If your recipe is more heavily reliant on Gruyere, this could be a pretty good substitute, although cheese enthusiasts will probably be able to tell the difference. If you happen to have it lying around when you run out of Gruyere, no need to fret, Beaufort will come to your rescue, and it will almost be like the mistake never happened.
Gruyere cheese vs Swiss cheese; can you use it as a substitute for Gruyere?
Swiss and Gruyere are similar, although not exactly the same. Swiss and Gruyere both have a mild, nutty flavor, although the flavor of Gruyere is stronger. Both kinds of cheese get stronger as they age.
Most kinds of Swiss cheese are good replacements for Gruyere. They all have similar textures and melt in a similar way. They are also creamy, like Gruyere. The similarities in texture should be expected because Gruyere is a type of Swiss cheese, so they are alike in fundamental ways. The main difference is the moisture content and the size of the holes in the cheese, but these things are subtle differences and do not impact flavor or recipes too much.
You can use Swiss cheese in almost any way you would use Gruyere, which makes it a great gruyere cheese substitute.
Can I substitute Parmesan for Gruyere?
Parmesan is a relatively good substitute for Gruyere if you have a block of Parmesan, not shredded Parmesan. They both are slightly nutty. Parmesan is not as rich as Gruyere, but it’s a good choice if you don’t have another option. They also are similarly creamy, and they are both able to be melted. If you’re making a sauce with cheese, both of these cheeses will melt into the sauce.
Parmesan is a good substitute when Gruyere is a small ingredient in a heated recipe. The dish you make with the Parmesan as the substitute may have a slightly different flavor, but overall, the texture will be about the same, and the flavor will be similar enough that it still captures the dish well. It’s not the best substitute, but it will do.
Is Gouda a good substitute for Gruyere?
Gouda and Gruyere are similar in texture and taste, but they have specific differences that make other cheeses better substitutes for Gruyere cheese. Although Gouda is a better substitute than cheddar, it is not the best-suited cheese.
Both have a slightly nutty flavor, although Gouda is sweeter rather than saltier like Gruyere. They both get dryer as they age, although Gouda gets dryer than Gruyere, making Gruyere the better melting cheese. For this reason, Gouda is traditionally used on cheese and wine boards, not in cooking.
So while when you taste these two kinds of cheese, they may taste and feel similar, there are small differences that make Gouda a poor substitute for Gruyere in cooking. If you aren’t heating the cheese in the recipe, Gouda could be a great substitute, but in any recipe that involves cooking or baking, stick to another kind.
Can I substitute cheddar for Gruyere?
A young cheddar will melt similarly to Gruyere, although not exactly. Still, the taste of cheddar is different from the taste of Gruyere. If you use Gruyere, it will add a creamy or slightly nutty flavor to the dish, while cheddar has a much saltier and sometimes sharper taste, depending on the age of the cheese. If you use cheddar, cooking time will likely be similar, but the texture and flavor will be widely different.
Overall, if you are using an official recipe that calls for Gruyere specifically, cheddar will likely not be a good substitute. These cheeses are significantly different from each other. If you are making a simple lunch, like a sandwich or another dish that doesn’t directly involve cooking and heat, and enjoy the taste of cheddar better than Gruyere, cheddar is a great substitute.
Is mozzarella a good Gruyere substitute?
Mozzarella cheese is the opposite of Gouda; mozzarella is the right texture but not the right flavor. Mozzarella is mild; it has a very slight salty tang, which is very different from Gruyere’s nuttier, bolder flavor. This fact is especially true since, when aged correctly, Gruyere gets bolder, and mozzarella stays close to the same.
If the recipe doesn’t rely on the taste, only the texture, you can get by with mozzarella. Think, a sauce or soup that you can season to get a bolder taste instead of relying on Gruyere. Otherwise, mozzarella is a no-go. The lack of flavor will make any meal that depends on Gruyere fall flat, and no one wants to eat a disappointing meal. Stick to other Gruyere substitutes in complex meals.
What should I put in mac and cheese instead of Gruyere?
Preferred
The preferred option is, of course, Comte. It is so similar to Gruyere that it is the best substitute in almost any dish. Mac and cheese rely on the cheese for both taste and texture, so it is important that both taste and texture of the replacement are similar enough that the mac and cheese are still great. Comte is the most similar in both regards, so it is the preferred choice.
Other Options
If Comte isn’t available either, Beaufort or mozzarella will work. Beaufort is preferred because it has a more similar flavor, but if worst comes to worst, a mozzarella based Mac and Cheese can be seasoned until it has the flavor you want. Either of these cheeses would have the desired consistency, which is harder to fix than flavor.
Summary
In the end, missing one ingredient isn’t the end of the world because there are plenty of great substitutes for Gruyere cheese.
