We’ve put together a list of cheeses that go well with chorizo. We have options like manchego, idiazabal, parmesan, and more. Chorizo is a Spanish wonder. It’s strong with paprika, garlic, and pork fat. It is commonly served in cold cuts spreads or even eaten as a snack at any time of the day. You can buy expensive versions of chorizo or you can easily find it in convenience stores across the country.
Chorizo is a fantastic aromatic Spanish sausage filled with flavors from paprika, garlic, and fat. It’s one of the best creations by the Spanish for the culinary world. It is air-dried and cured. It is mostly made up of delicious pork meat and fat that has been ground well but not too smooth that it’ll end up feeling like a bratwurst.
Chorizo is often served in a spread of cold cuts with a delicious selection of cheeses, dried fruits, and nuts. Chorizo is also often added to strong dishes like fabada which is a dish of stewed beans with different kinds of chorizo from spanish to blood sausage or morcilla.
This pungent and slightly tangy sausage can become a background flavor for a series of dishes. We’ve established that this sausage could be a flavorant for some dishes and stews but that’s not limited to Spanish dishes. In the United States, chorizo is also used to create many dishes. In the Philippines, a country that Spain colonized for 300 long years, chorizo became a staple in the cuisine. In Mexico, another colony of Spain back then, chorizo became a huge part of its cuisine as well.
Chorizo can come in many different forms but the most popular is the one packed with paprika and garlic.
We’ve come up with a list of cheeses that you could enjoy chorizo with.
Table of Contents
1. Manchego
Manchego is the ultimate Spanish cheese. You will always find this cheese in any Spanish cheese and cold cuts platter. It is made with cow’s milk and is quite sharp and salty. Manchego is like the parmesan of Spain but it’s a lot more rounded in flavor. This cured cheese is so good with different kinds of Spanish cold cuts, most especially with chorizo.
2. Idiazabal
Idiazabal is Basque’s pride and joy when it comes to cheese. It is made of sheep’s milk and it could even be aged longer or smoked, giving it a pungent and sharper flavor. This cheese is supple, slightly gamey, and buttery in flavor. It goes really well with chorizo because they balance out each other. The sharp chorizo tones down the gamey flavor and the buttery taste of the cheese evens out the sharp paprika taste of the chorizo.
3. Cabrales
Cabrales is the Spanish version of blue cheese. It’s a lot more aged than roquefort or gorgonzola and the blue veins in the cheese are more ingrained deep within the wheel. What does this mean? It means that cabrales is a lot more pungent in flavor and aroma compared to gorgonzola and roquefort. If you’re looking for a stronger blue cheese, this is the cheese for you. It’s also perfect with Spanish chorizo.
4. Parmesan
Parmesan is a salty, nutty cheese with notes of caramel. The older the cheese, the sharper it is and saltier. We love pairing parmesan with chorizo because it’s very easy to source and it tastes great with absolutely anything. If you want to pair parmesan with Spanish chorizo, we suggest you look for Parmigiano Reggiano because it’s the best-tasting parmesan cheese in the market.
5. Queso Tetilla
If you’re looking for a more interesting cheese in terms of flavor, queso tetilla could be the cheese for you. It’s a small cheese that’s shaped like a nipple and it is delicate in flavor. It’s soft and has notes of walnuts and vanilla, making it a great equalizer in flavor with the very sharp chorizo. Queso tetilla is a cheese that you could easily devour with a plate of sliced Spanish chorizo and a glass of red wine or sangria.
6. Mahon
Mahon is a very popular Spanish cheese that you could easily find in a lot of delis, even outside of Spain. Mahon is a nutty, buttery, creamy, sweet, and sharp cheese. It usually comes in a medium-sized wheel and it is generally perfect to have with different kinds of cheeses and cold cuts. We love pairing mahon with the best Spanish cold cuts like chorizo Iberico, jamon Iberico, even with prosciutto di Parma and bresaola. Give mahon a try and you won’t go back.
7. Gruyere
Gruyere is a super delicious Swiss cheese that reminds us a lot of parmesan. It is salty, nutty, and sometimes has that caramel-like flavor note to it. Gruyere is commonly added to sandwiches and some salads. However, it is also perfectly delicious to have on its own, most especially with strong-tasting cold cuts like chorizo or jamon Iberico. Try adding gruyere to you cheese and cold cuts platter for tapas night and enjoy it with a glass of red!
