If you’re anything like the team here at IN, food trends have been permanently imbedded into your social media algorithms. Of the trends we’ve seen, few have the staying power of an old classic that’s taken the social scene by storm: cottage cheese. Even if you’ve just dipped your toe into “Foodtok,” chances are you’ve stumbled upon this protein-packed, versatile ingredient being used in new and interesting ways. Not all cottage cheeses are created equal, however, and so we decided to compare the 4% small curd option of the four most readily available brands. As usual, we asked our team to rate each brand in three categories: flavor, texture, and packaging design. Here are the cheesy results:
THE BRANDS
Good Culture
Price per ounce: $0.25
A relatively new brand compared to its competitors, Good Culture is doing interesting things with cottage cheese. Their product portfolio ranges from traditional to snack cups with fruit options like strawberry and pineapple. For this test, however, we kept things classic.
Kemps
Price per ounce: $0.16
In business since 1914, Kemps has flooded the grocery store with their butters, cheeses, ice-creams and more. Let’s see how their cottage cheese stacks up.
Old Home
Price per ounce: $0.24
Old Home is no stranger to the dairy game, this Minnesota-native company has been milking the cow so to speak for over 100 years.
Daisy
Price per ounce: $0.15
Better known for their sour cream, Daisy is an instantly recognizable powerhouse in the dairy section.
THE VERDICT
Flavor: The clear winner in this category was Good Culture. Our testers praised its rich and creamy taste, some detecting a subtle nutty flavor while others enjoyed sour notes. Kemps came in second with a buttery, creamy flavor much enjoyed by our testers, followed closely by Old Home which had a saltier flavor. With its slightly sour taste, Daisy came in fourth. The flavor was preferred by a couple of testers, but it failed to stand out for the majority.
Texture: Good Culture also came ahead this category. Our testers enjoyed the smooth consistency, some describing it as lighter than the other options. Old Home came in second with a similar curd texture to Good Culture, followed by Kemps and then Daisy. The testers lauded the creaminess of each of these options but decided that Daisy had a bit of a runnier consistency that placed it slightly behind its peers.
Packaging design: Good Culture completed its sweep by winning this category as well. Our testers liked its simple, modern design and said it looked like a premium product. Daisy came in second, carried by its classic and clean design. Following was Old Home with an old-fashioned look and feel. In fourth, Kemps packaging seemed a bit too busy for our tester’s tastes.
Despite Good Culture sweeping the categories, the bulk of our testers had to admit they would happily purchase any of these products again. On our journey to find the greatest, we discovered the only bad cottage cheese is no cottage cheese.