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Quick Tip: Flavor Soups with Cheese Rinds

2008_11_10-CheeseRind.jpgWe go through a healthy amount of Parmesan and Pecorino cheese in our house, and we used to just throw the rind away. This was until we discovered this trick used by chefs and Italian grandmothers for centuries!

 
 

When your soup or sauce is ready to simmer, throw in an old cheese rind. The rind will soften and the flavors of the cheese will infuse throughout the dish. If the rind hasn't completely dissolved by the time you're ready to serve, you can either remove the remaining rind altogether or use your spoon to break it into small, chewy pieces.

If you're not ready to use a rind right away, it can be stored indefinitely in the freezer. As we do with shiitake mushroom stems, we keep a bag in the freezer that we add to or take from as needed.

Give this a try in these recipes!

Hearty Kale and Sausage Soup
Mushroom Soup
Zucchini Garlic Soup
Ratatouille
Basic Tomato Sauce

Related: Cheesemonger: To Rind or Not to Rind

(Image: Emma Christensen for the Kitchn)

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Tips & Techniques, Inspiration, Frugality, cheese, cooking by feel, rind

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Comments (14)

I just threw my first rind in the freezer last night based on tips I've found here on AT.

A million thanks :)

posted by VeryDelishVeg on November 10th 2008 at 9:10am
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I've just started saving cheese rinds after years of just throwing them out... next time I make a soup I will definitely toss one into it...

Along the same lines what else should be saved that perhaps people normally don't think of...

Not too long ago I made beets for the first time and just tossed out the greens >_
if i'm juicing a lemon, should i keep the peel? for lemon confit perhaps?

anything else that i should be keeping during these hard times?

posted by MikeyV on November 10th 2008 at 9:35am
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I second saving the cheese rinds.

A nice, hearty minestrone or a brothy bean soup...

posted by art on November 10th 2008 at 9:49am
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Mikeyv,
On saving lemon peels, I'd say to save them in the fridge if you're planning on making something that needs lemon zest in the next week or so. I find they can get hard to zest after a while.

On America's Test Kitchen, they recommend freezing juiced lemon halves and adding them to bowls of water to keep apple slices from going brown. I suppose they could also serve as slightly ghetto ice cubes too.

posted by Michelle of Montreal on November 10th 2008 at 9:52am
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what about using cheese rinds to add flavor to chicken broth? OR would that be too overwhelming?

posted by spossberg on November 10th 2008 at 9:55am
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I've been doing this for years. During the 3 or 4 times a year that my husband would decide to do a big freezer clean-out, he would threaten with throwing them out until he noticed how much Whole Foods was charging for them.

posted by rosebud on November 10th 2008 at 10:46am
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I save the dark green tops of leeks and use them (and cheese rinds, mushroom stalks, ginger, orange zest whatever else I have on hand) in wiht the chicken when I make both.

posted by lindsaylou on November 10th 2008 at 11:07am
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I saw this tip a few years ago and have vowed to the same. Unfortunately, I have had no rinds to save since then! It's like bones for stock: when you need some, you don't have them, and nobody sells them.

posted by Sprouted in the Kitchen on November 10th 2008 at 11:40am
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Using the rind for stock makes me feel better about paying top dollar for parmesan!

posted by cmcinnyc on November 10th 2008 at 11:58am
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i remember seeing rinds for sale at whole foods.

posted by Storm on November 10th 2008 at 12:10pm
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You guys don't eat mushroom stems?

posted by squiggle on November 10th 2008 at 2:56pm
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Great tip!
MikeyV - how about saving butter wrappers to grease pans?

posted by JuniperGreen on November 10th 2008 at 3:25pm
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I made soup tonight and while unwrapping the last of my parm I remembered this post! Turned out great.

posted by kari-anne on November 10th 2008 at 6:47pm
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Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!!!! We're finishing a wedge of Romano soon and this is a PERFECT suggestion. I'm imagining it in a Broccoli Cheddar soup... adding extra dimension to the cheesy flavors!

So smart! I can't wait to try this.

Emily

posted by Emily Sneds on November 11th 2008 at 4:04am
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