Deprived of a consistent intake of fresh cheese curds over the last 30 years, it became apparent that a Sunday drive through the Driftless Region of Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin was in store.
“A cheese curd is a small chunk of cheese often identified as the freshest form of cheddar,” explains Golden Age Cheese.
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Sunday Drives
Baby Boomers can attest to the fact that Sunday drives are a Midwest family tradition. Having something to devour, while driving through the rich agricultural landscape is a necessity. It was not uncommon in the Corson family to enjoy a bag or two of cheese curds on their Sunday drives.
Finally, I have a free Sunday for a drive. I headed out on the first of many drives in search of the perfect cheese curds. Heading north from Decorah, Iowa to Mabel, Minnesota, I stopped at the local convenience store to purchase a bag of cheese curds. Half expecting to see an array of tempting flavors – (Dill, Ranch, Parmesan, or even Sour Cream and Onion), I was relieved to see a bag of traditional plain white cheddar cheese curds. The white curds are what I remember nibbling on as a little girl. Opening the bag, I grabbed the first peanut-shaped curd that my fingers touched. Closing my eyes, I slowly took that long-awaited bite, eagerly expecting to hear that familiar squeak between my teeth; I heard– nothing.
La Crosse, Wisconsin
Disappointed, I drove headed toward La Crosse, Wisconsin, snacking in silence toward Wisconsin touted as the United States’ cheese capital. According to Quora.com, Wisconsin is a cheese curd lovers’ paradise. Wisconsin is where I remember my parents going to buy cheese curds. Not able to find any curds that caused me to cringe from that signature squeak when I bit into them,
Not willing to give up, I decided to find a restaurant offering homemade fried cheese curds. They were as good as I remembered enjoying with my former mother-in-law. Still, there was only a squeak now and then. Maybe I was dreaming? Did cheese curds not squeak as I remembered?
It was time to compare Minnesota and Wisconsin curds with those made in Iowa. I anxiously awaited my first bite of Iowa cheddar cheese curds.
Throughout my month-long journey, I became intrigued with finding out what made cheese curds squeak. After a quick internet search and chatting with cheesemakers, it became clear that an understanding of the process of making cheese curds is essential to understanding what makes curds squeak.
According to Livestrong.com, “As whey is drained from the vat during the creation of cheddar, cheese curds remain as an end product. Most cheese curds are best within a few days of production.”
WW Homestead Dairy
Just down the road from Decorah in Waukon is WW Homestead Dairy, self-proclaimed the cheese capital of Iowa. After a tour and lots of questions, I got my answer and much more. As it turns out, eating fresh warm curds is the key to the squeakiest cheese curds that you can imagine. Cheese curds that can cause one to cringe as if you’d just heard fingernails run down the face of a chalkboard.
Caring friends and colleagues suggest briefly warming up cheese curds in the microwave to force them to squeak as if fresh, but that didn’t work for me. No matter. My search is over. I have found the secret to tasty cheese curds.
Stop in at Homestead Dairy on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 10:30 a.m. The time when you can purchase curds straight out of the vat– large, warm, tasty, and squeaky.
Where to Find Fried Cheese Curds
In my quest to find the best cheese curds, step two was to find area restaurants that serve fried cheese curds made from Homestead Dairy cheese. I checked out T-Bocks, Good Times, and Luther College in Decorah. The fried cheese curds were all made from cheddar from the WW Homestead Dairy and were delicious at all three places.
Fried Cheese Curds Recipe
Having now experienced deliciously fried local cheese curds, I thought it would be fun to learn how to make them.
After only five minutes of research on the internet, I came across the following recipe on AllRecipes.com.
Ingredients
2 quarts of corn oil for frying
¼ cup milk
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup beer
½ teaspoon salt
Two eggs
2 lbs. Cheese curds, broken apart
15-minute prep 15-minute cook | Ready in 30 minutes
Directions
1. Heat corn oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C)
2. Whisk together milk, flour, beer, salt, and eggs to form a smooth, relatively thin batter.
3. Place cheese curds, about six to eight at a time, into the batter, stir to coat, and remove with wire strainer.
4. Shake curds to remove excess batter.
5. Deep fry until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes.
6. Drain on paper towels.
7. Serve hot with Ranch dressing.
Researching information for this article produced unexpected results. When I set out on this adventure initially, it was to find the best-tasting cheese curds in the Driftless region of Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The journey turned out to be much more informative than imagined. CheeseUndergroundBlogspot.com offers the following advice and facts:
“Only buy cheese curds if they are fresh – anything over a day old isn’t the same.”
“High in fat but also high in taste.”
“Squeaky fresh and fun to eat.”
“Traditionally, cheese curds were the leftover bonus from a batch of cheddar, but cheesemakers brought it home for their children to eat.”
Calories
110 calories in 1 serving | 1 serving are equal to a half a cup or 1 ounce
Knowing the number of calories in a serving and how many servings a person can eat in one sitting,
I realized that physical exertion is a requirement after enjoying cheese curds. According to CalorieKing.com, it takes 31 minutes of walking or 30 minutes of jogging or 9 minutes of swimming, or 17 minutes of cycling to burn 110 calories.
Time to Eat
It is now time for a handful of curds.