Imagine opening your fridge to grab a block of sharp cheddar you've forgotten about for three weeks. As you take out the block, you notice some white crystals that have formed on the sharp cheddar's surface. Panicking, you wonder whether the block has gone bad or not. Would you throw the block away or scrape off the crystals and hope that everything else is alright? Before you decide to throw away a good block of cheese, here's something you should know. According to a 2022 UConn Extension article, it's entirely normal for these crystals to form, as it's simply calcium lactate, a harmless by-product of the cheese-making process, and not mold.
So, what are these crystals, exactly?
