Why is my whole milk mozzarella turning pink?

[kimgarden]

I have a nice sized chunk of whole milk mozzarella that is turning a cotton candy pink hue. I got really, really sick once from eating unpasturized imported sheep feta. I know a lot about cheese but I never saw this happen before. I don't want to throw it away, but I dread the thought of tempting fate again. Anybody have an answer?

[Cachetes]

I'm going to guess mold

[kpzoo]

I agree - it's mold. Throw it away. Some cheeses can be salvaged when they turn moldy, but mozzarella isn't one of them. Here's a chart that tells you which cheeses can be saved after growing some mold and which should be tossed:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/food...

[EWSflash]

Great link, kpzoo, it has a bunch of good links at the bottom, too.

I just wish they'd gone into more detail. I guess the old Catholic School veteran rebel in me isn't satisfied with "because I said so", and I'd like to know what the pathogens are, what they look like, why they're considered dangerous whe contaminated with outside mold, and so forth.

Every so often I'll overlook a container of mini mozzarella balls from TJ's in the fridge, and when I taste test them WAY past their sell by date they're usually just a little bitter tasting, but what's interesting is that they seem almost carbonated.

[Cachetes]

I thought I had read somewhere that it had more to do with the texture of the cheese, with softer cheeses experiencing deeper mold penetration than harder cheeses. But I think kpzoo likely has the definite answer!

[scubadoo97]

That's an interesting and helpful bit of information. I wonder why blue cheese and roqueford needs to be discarded and gorgonzola is safe to eat. And how do you know when those 3 cheese have mold? ; ))

[smartie]

blue cheeses also go pink-ish when they have gone off

[cheesemaestro]

Get rid of it. Common blue/green and white/grey molds can usually be cut away and the remainder of the cheese safely eaten, but don't mess with pink or black mold that appears on cheese.

[goodhealthgourmet]

it's most certainly mold. toss it. and don't just cut off the pink area and try to "save" the rest, because there's a good chance that the mold spores have infiltrated other areas even if it looks ok.

[SusanaTheConqueress]

My memory banks recall reading to wrap cheese in either vinegar-dipped, or saltwater-dipped cheesecloth to retard spoilage ~ (Good for next time?)
I don't do the dipping & wrapping; I buy with a thought toward how much I'll be using - and for how long.
Other cheeses, like cheddar (mild), I buy without a care because, like the #40 from a deep sale at Fresh & Easy recently, it'll just be stacked in the freezer and used to add "body" to dishes as needed.
Maybe start a habit of making TJ shopping days the ones where the balls are the stars of that evening's meal - or, next day's lunch? They're great in a container with tomato slabs and basil leaves for "office lunch" :-)