Asadero Cheese. Alejandro Linares Garcia / 2010 / Wikimedia / CC BY-SA 4.0
Asadero is an off-white, semi-firm Mexican cheese often sold in a log shape for convenient and easy slicing. It is an excellent cooking cheese: when it melts, it becomes quite creamy without giving off any oil, even at higher temperatures.
It has a light, fresh taste with just a bit of tang to it. It is very creamy, and layered almost like fresh mozzarella.
Asadero is made particularly in the Chihuahua area of Northern Mexico. In some parts of Chihuahua, a plant is used to curdle the milk instead of animal rennet.
Cooking Tips
Asadero is one of the cheeses often called for when Mexicans make quesadillas.
Substitutes
Fresh mozzarella, Fontina, Monterey Jack, Provolone, Queso chihuahua, Queso manchego.
Literature & Lore
‘Asadero’ in Spanish means ‘baking’, indicating that the cheese was developed especially for cooking.