Definitive Ranking of the Best Cottage Cheese Brands

If you had been to look into my fridge at this very second, you’d assume I used to be making ready for an apocalypse, and my weapon of alternative was…cottage cheese.

Why? Well, for the previous few days, I’ve been working round city scooping up tubs of ‘em to crown the best cottage cheese brands of them all.

Cottage cheese ice cream has been all the rage on social media lately, which is interesting because cottage cheese can be… quite polarizing. So before we jump in, let’s just have out with it: Cottage cheese is far from being *just* your Florida grandparents’ chosen breakfast food. Fellow long-time cottage cheese stans know: The good stuff (see also: the reviews below) is god-tier.

Don’t believe me? We’ve rounded up eight of the finest cottage cheese manufacturers ranked by style, texture, and dietary worth beneath—and there is one thing to fulfill each dairy queen’s palate.

The 6 finest cottage cheese manufacturers, at a look:

A rating of the finest cottage cheese manufacturers

A pair of fast disclaimers earlier than we dive in. I’ll preface by saying that regardless of having a complicated culinary diploma and having fun with cottage cheese myself, I’ve by no means been aligned with a selected cottage cheese model. This, I hope, lended to my means to be as neutral as doable when tasked with selecting the finest one. Next, because of the restricted availability of sure merchandise in my space, I branched out to incorporate a range of choices, together with low-fat, full-fat, flavored, and a few native favorites in the combine.

And as a result of visuals are key in the case of any meals’s attract (however let’s be trustworthy, particularly this one), I took the time to capsure the texture of every cottage cheese model I attempted in images. Enjoy!

Lastly, no cottage cheese will likely be harmed on this check. As it seems, opened cottage cheese will be frozen for as much as three months. (It appears like… I’ll be making protein-rich meals starring copious quantities of cottage cheese for the foreseeable future.)

Best total: Good Culture’s Low-Fat, 2 Percent Milkfat Classic Cottage Cheese ($3.79)

Taste: Out of the bunch, this one was by far my favourite in phrases of taste. It has a barely tangy style, akin to bitter cream, that’s not too overpowering. That mentioned, it does run a bit on the savory (vs. candy) aspect—which is probably why I discovered that it tasted the most balanced by itself and my go-to when consuming cottage cheese by itself. However, because it’s largely neutral-tasting, it additionally pairs nicely with different added elements if toppings are in your thoughts. Say, recent strawberries and a drizzle of honey?

Texture: The small to medium-sized, mushy curds collapse on the tongue and aren’t dense in any way. The texture jogs my memory of the inside of a ball of freshly-made burrata cheese, however with further nooks and crannies.

Nutritional content material (per half-cup serving): 100 energy, 3g whole fat, 2g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 15mg ldl cholesterol, 340g sodium, 4g whole carbs, 0g fiber, 3g sugar, 14g protein

Ingredients: Skim milk, entire milk, cream, sea salt, dwell and lively cultures (Lactobacillus paracasei)

Best lactose-free: Lactaid’s Lactose-Free, 4 Percent Milkfat Cottage Cheese ($4.29)

Taste: I’ll be frank: I observed this product had a barely bitter and even acetone-like taste upon the first chunk. However, it rapidly dissipated after a number of moments, forsaking a pleasing and creamy aftertaste. Of course, this is a wonderful alternative for these in search of a lactose-free possibility. (Note: There aren’t many lactose-free cottage cheese merchandise on the market, so this feature didn’t have a lot competitors in the first place.)

Texture: The packaging says small curds, however I discovered that the curds really ranged in dimension, from small to giant, reasonably than wanting utterly homogenous.

Nutritional content material (per half-cup serving): 110 energy, 5g whole fat, 3g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 30mg ldl cholesterol, 440g sodium, 5g whole carbs, 0g fiber, 4g sugar, 13g protein

Ingredients: Cultured pasteurized skim milk and cream, whey protein focus, whey, salt, pure taste, lactase enzyme (ingredient not present in common cottage cheese), xanthan gum, locust bean gum, guar gum, lactic acid, sorbic acid and carbon dioxide (to keep up freshness), and enzymes

Best funds: Trader Joe’s Small Curd, 4 Percent Milkfat Cottage Cheese ($2.99)

Taste: I get the hype. This product is form of what I think about cottage cheese ought to all the time style like. It’s the most impartial in taste, that means it’s extremely versatile and pairs nicely with candy or savory elements. In a phrase: Inoffensive.

“I’ve been getting my cottage cheese from Trader Joe’s long before I started doing my grocery shopping. It was the cottage cheese my mom always got from the store, and it’s the cottage cheese I now buy for myself—it truly does stand the test of time. I get the small curd, full-fat variety, which is ultra creamy, a little bit tangy, and has the perfect amount of sweetness to be eaten on its own, complement a side of fruit, or work as a savory topping for a salad or some slices of cucumbers and tomato. I’ve also been adding it to my scrambled eggs for extra protein, and it adds a really nice fluffy, creamy texture and taste. It’s no-frills, budget-friendly, and tasty,” says Gina Vaynshteyn, Well+Good editorial commerce director.

Texture: The curds have a scrumptious melt-in-your-mouth consistency and are extraordinarily uniform all through.

Nutritional content material (per half-cup serving): 110 energy, 5g whole fat, 3g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 20mg ldl cholesterol, 320g sodium, 5g whole carbs, 0g fiber, 3g sugar, 12g protein

Ingredients: Cultured pasteurized nonfat milk, pasteurized milk, pasteurized cream, sea salt, stabilizer (nonfat milk, locust bean gum, Agar), and carbon dioxide (to keep up freshness)

Best texture and minimal elements: Daisy’s Low-Fat, 2 Percent Milkfat Cottage Cheese ($3.29)

Taste: I really like Daisy’s bitter cream, and that is positively its cottage cheese sibling. It has the same barely bitter be aware that’s very palatable with a impartial aftertaste, which might pair nicely in most preparations.

Texture: As promised on the packaging, this product is, in reality, further creamy and splendid. The curds had been extra in the medium-sized vary (as a substitute of small), however they had been so clean it wasn’t bothersome in any respect.

Nutritional content material (per half-cup serving): 90 energy, 2.5g whole fat, 1.5g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 10mg ldl cholesterol, 350g sodium, 5g whole carbs, 0g fiber, 4g sugar, 13g protein

Ingredients: Cultured skim milk, cream, and salt

Best low-sodium: Lucerne’s Low-Fat, 1 Percent Milkfat Cottage Cheese ($3.49)

Taste: Yes, it’s form of bland. But it’s additionally the solely possibility I discovered made with out added salt. For these in search of a low-salt product, this one’s your finest guess. It tastes like a glass of milk, and though it may not tingle your tastebuds with a punch of taste, it does have a pleasing mouthfeel. Plus, the no-salt issue makes it excellent for whipping up a batch of, say, cottage cheese ice cream.

Texture: The mouthfeel is all the pieces in the case of this product. It’s creamy, has very small curds, and really minimal wateriness, which is an enormous promoting level in my e book.

Nutritional content material (per half-cup serving): 90 energy, 1.5g whole fat, 1g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 10mg ldl cholesterol, 60g sodium, 7g whole carbs, 0g fiber, 5g sugar, 12g protein

Ingredients: Cultured pasteurized Grade A fat-free milk, pasteurized fat-free milk and milk, salt, cultured, Grade A dairy solids (Grade A whey, citric acid, and lactic acid tradition), and dry, Grade A whey, maltodextrin, titanium dioxide (shade), guar gum, citric acid, potassium sorbate (preservative), carrageenan, locust bean gum, carbon dioxide (to assist keep freshness), vitamin A palmitate

Best crowd-pleaser: Knudsen’s Low-Fat, 2 Percent Milkfat Cottage Cheese ($4.29)

Taste: By far, the highest-ranked crowd-pleaser amongst my friends, this cottage cheese model is tried-and-true. “I grew up eating Knudsen cottage cheese with pears at my grandma’s nursing home, so it’s a very special food to me, and now that I’m trying to be a gym girlie again, it’s really helping me hit my protein goals,” says Helen Carefoot, Well+Good life-style author. Meanwhile, Well+Good fitness author Rachel Kraus provides that she enjoys it most when it’s just-out-of-the-fridge chilly and slathered on toasted wheat bread or paired with recent cantaloupe.

That mentioned, I attempted their pineapple-flavored model—which I wouldn’t advocate, personally. The pineapple tasted like cotton sweet greater than tropical fruit. It was overly candy and tasted virtually synthetic. Admittedly, I’d reasonably combine in recent fruit than the syrupy pineapple chunks I discovered swimming in the tub.

Texture: The texture, nevertheless, of all Knudsen cottage cheeses are, certainly, very good. They’re barely dense and have a pleasing chewiness in each chunk. The combination can also be considerably watery, however the creamy curds assist give this cottage cheese construction and texture.

Nutritional content material (per half-cup serving): 90 energy, 2.5g whole fat, 1.5g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 15mg ldl cholesterol, 420g sodium, 6g whole carbs, 0g fiber, 4g sugar, 11g protein

Ingredients: Cultured pasteurized Grade A nonfat milk, milk and cream, whey, incorporates lower than 2 % of modified meals starch, salt, calcium phosphate, xanthan gum, citric acid, guar gum, pure taste, vitamin A palmitate, vitamin D3

The different cottage cheeses I attempted

365 by Whole Foods Market’s Organic, 4 Percent Milkfat Cottage Cheese ($3.99)

Taste: I observed a reasonably funky scent after I opened the container, which made me really feel the must double-check that the tub wasn’t expired. (It wasn’t.) Although the tinge largely went away as soon as the container had an opportunity to air out for a number of seconds, the scent carried over into the taste, which I didn’t love. The curds themselves had extra style than the milky liquid they swam in, and every chunk of this product left an total acidic aftertaste on the palate.

Texture: The product has smaller, extra uniform curds. However, they had been chewier and denser than the relaxation of the choices.

Nutritional content material (per half-cup serving): 110 energy, 5g whole fat, 3g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 20mg ldl cholesterol, 350g sodium, 4g whole carbs, 0g fiber, 3g sugar, 12g protein

Ingredients: Cultured pasteurized Grade A natural nonfat milk, pasteurized Grade A natural milk, pasteurized natural cream, sea salt, stabilizer (pasteurized Grade A natural nonfat milk, natural locust bean gum, Agar), carbon dioxide (to keep up freshness)

Happy Belly’s Low-Fat, 2 Percent Milkfat Cottage Cheese ($2.49)

Taste: This was the most watery of the choice. The liquid-to-curd ratio was about three to 1, which could go well with those who aren’t fond of the texture of most cottage cheeses. In phrases of taste, it tasted very impartial, like ingesting a glass of plain ol’ milk—which implies it may be utilized in a range of alternative ways. Not to say, the value level was, by far, the most wallet-friendly of all of them.

Texture: It’s very watery, with minimal quantities of curds, and extra like a hybrid between yogurt and your commonplace cottage cheese merchandise.

Nutritional content material (per half-cup serving): 90 energy, 2.5g whole fat, 1.5g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 15mg ldl cholesterol, 360g sodium, 5g whole carbs, 0g fiber, 4g sugar, 12g protein

Ingredients: Cultured nonfat milk, milk, cream, incorporates lower than 2 % of: nonfat milk, whey, salt, maltodextrin, citric acid, carrageenan, mono and diglycerides, locust bean gum, guar gum, pure flavors, vitamin A palmitate, carbon dioxide (to protect freshness), enzyme

Just a few extra honorable mentions

Just a few colleagues additionally advisable some extra (beloved) native choices, together with Michigan Brand’s Small Curd Cottage Cheese. “Michigan Brand is the best cottage cheese brand, and no one can change my mind; it’s best on some gluten-free crispy toast with chili crisp or a little honey and salt,” says Hannah Schneider, Well+Good health author. Meanwhile, Well+Good senior meals editor, Betty Gold, swears by Meijer’s Low-Fat Cottage Cheese. “Live it, learn it, love it. Sincerely, Grandma Betty, long lover of cottage cheese,” Gold says.

TL;DR? 

Regarding taste, texture, and dietary worth, Good Culture’s Low-Fat, 2 Percent Milkfat Classic Cottage Cheese ($3.79) ranks at the high of the checklist. What’s extra, the product contains a easy checklist of elements and has the highest quantity of protein out of all of the choices we ranked. Not to say, it’s impartial however extremely nice, taste pairs nicely with nearly all the pieces. And let’s take a second for the texture: It’s ethereal, creamy, and splendid. What extra are you able to need?