Cheese roll
Encyclopedia
A cheese roll is a snack food similar to Welsh rarebit, but created by covering a slice of bread
in a prepared filling consisting mainly of grated or sliced cheese
, and then rolling it into a tube shape before toasting. Cheese rolls are a very popular food in Otago and Southland of New Zealand
, where they are commonly found as a menu item at cafeteria
s and similar food outlets. They are one of only a very small number of recipes which are specific to only one of New Zealand's two main islands.
, Worcestershire sauce
,and onion soup mix though other fillings, such as crushed pineapple
or sweet corn are also known. An important factor in the preparation of cheese rolls is that this filling mixture is prepared separately before being added to the bread, rather than the filling simply being a slice of cheese covered with any other ingredients.
The bread is kept in a rolled shape either by breaking the crust so that the slice does not spring back into a flattened shape or by skewering the bread with toothpicks. The outer side of the roll is occasionally coated thinly in butter before toasting to add to the flavour and give the toasted roll a more golden appearance. The resulting roll has the advantages over simple cheese on toast of allowing for a more contrasting combination of a crisp outer surface with a soft interior (often with the cheese in a semi-liquid state), and its shape makes for easier eating.
Food researchers, notably Professor Helen Leach of the University of Otago
, have identified three basic traditional styles of filling, with all known recipes seemingly a variant of these three. The first of these recipes developed as a spread in the 1920s, prior to the invention of cheese rolls, and was based around a specific spicy Australia cheese, Rex Cheese. Variants on this style of filling include the use of spicy or strong cheese with mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and even liqueurs such as Kahlúa
. A second basic recipe again used spicy cheese, but this time mixed with savoury ingredients such as onion, which was cooked in butter or milk, mixed with the cheese, then thickened with flour or cornflour. A third version is similar to the second, but uses pre-processed food items as major ingredients, most notably dried onion soup mix and evaporated milk.
from 1935. Though known from this period, the popularity of the delicacy seems to have taken off with the widespread availability of sliced bread
from the 1950s. Early recipes referred to the food under the seemingly disparaging name of "Rat traps", a play on the longstanding nickname of "Mouse traps" used for cheese on toast, but also likely a reference to the cylindrical shape, which was similar to commercial rodent traps of the era. The earliest known cookbook recipe for cheese rolls dates from Dunedin
's Roslyn
Church Jubilee Cookery Book in 1951, with numerous other South Island community cookbooks listing the recipe in the decade that followed. Cheese rolls were not found in any North Island cookbooks, however, until the late 1970s, and the food is still little known north of Cook Strait
.
Bread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
in a prepared filling consisting mainly of grated or sliced cheese
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
, and then rolling it into a tube shape before toasting. Cheese rolls are a very popular food in Otago and Southland of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, where they are commonly found as a menu item at cafeteria
Cafeteria
A cafeteria is a type of food service location in which there is little or no waiting staff table service, whether a restaurant or within an institution such as a large office building or school; a school dining location is also referred to as a dining hall or canteen...
s and similar food outlets. They are one of only a very small number of recipes which are specific to only one of New Zealand's two main islands.
Recipes
The food is very simple to prepare, involving at minimum a slice of bread and cheese. More often, added ingredients are placed into a filling mixture, which is prepared earlier. These ingredients typically include onionOnion
The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...
, Worcestershire sauce
Worcestershire sauce
Worcestershire sauce , or Worcester sauce is a fermented liquid condiment; primarily used to flavour meat or fish dishes.First made at 60 Broad Street, Worcester, England, by two dispensing chemists, John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins, the Lea & Perrins brand was commercialised in 1837 and...
,and onion soup mix though other fillings, such as crushed pineapple
Pineapple
Pineapple is the common name for a tropical plant and its edible fruit, which is actually a multiple fruit consisting of coalesced berries. It was given the name pineapple due to its resemblance to a pine cone. The pineapple is by far the most economically important plant in the Bromeliaceae...
or sweet corn are also known. An important factor in the preparation of cheese rolls is that this filling mixture is prepared separately before being added to the bread, rather than the filling simply being a slice of cheese covered with any other ingredients.
The bread is kept in a rolled shape either by breaking the crust so that the slice does not spring back into a flattened shape or by skewering the bread with toothpicks. The outer side of the roll is occasionally coated thinly in butter before toasting to add to the flavour and give the toasted roll a more golden appearance. The resulting roll has the advantages over simple cheese on toast of allowing for a more contrasting combination of a crisp outer surface with a soft interior (often with the cheese in a semi-liquid state), and its shape makes for easier eating.
Food researchers, notably Professor Helen Leach of the University of Otago
University of Otago
The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealand's oldest university with over 22,000 students enrolled during 2010.The university has New Zealand's highest average research quality and in New Zealand is second only to the University of Auckland in the number of A rated academic researchers it...
, have identified three basic traditional styles of filling, with all known recipes seemingly a variant of these three. The first of these recipes developed as a spread in the 1920s, prior to the invention of cheese rolls, and was based around a specific spicy Australia cheese, Rex Cheese. Variants on this style of filling include the use of spicy or strong cheese with mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and even liqueurs such as Kahlúa
Kahlúa
Kahlúa is a Mexican coffee-flavored rum-based liqueur. It is dense and sweet, with the distinct taste of coffee, from which it is made. Kahlúa also contains sugar, corn syrup and vanilla bean.-History:...
. A second basic recipe again used spicy cheese, but this time mixed with savoury ingredients such as onion, which was cooked in butter or milk, mixed with the cheese, then thickened with flour or cornflour. A third version is similar to the second, but uses pre-processed food items as major ingredients, most notably dried onion soup mix and evaporated milk.
History of the cheese roll
Early recipes for the food date from the 1930s, with the earliest being in New Zealand newspaper New Zealand TruthNew Zealand Truth
The New Zealand Truth is a tabloid newspaper published weekly in New Zealand. It started as the Auckland Truth in 1887.Described as "scandal mongering" and "scurrilious", it has employed well-known New Zealand authors, e.g. Robin Hyde in 1928....
from 1935. Though known from this period, the popularity of the delicacy seems to have taken off with the widespread availability of sliced bread
Sliced bread
Sliced bread is a loaf of bread which has been pre-sliced and packaged for convenience. It was first sold in 1928, advertised as "the greatest forward step in the baking industry since bread was wrapped." This led to the popular phrase, "the greatest thing since sliced bread".- History :Otto...
from the 1950s. Early recipes referred to the food under the seemingly disparaging name of "Rat traps", a play on the longstanding nickname of "Mouse traps" used for cheese on toast, but also likely a reference to the cylindrical shape, which was similar to commercial rodent traps of the era. The earliest known cookbook recipe for cheese rolls dates from Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
's Roslyn
Roslyn, Otago
Roslyn is a major residential and retail suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located above the city centre on the ridge which runs in a crescent around the central city's western edge. It is to the northwest of the city centre, immediately above the Town Belt. Roslyn's 2001...
Church Jubilee Cookery Book in 1951, with numerous other South Island community cookbooks listing the recipe in the decade that followed. Cheese rolls were not found in any North Island cookbooks, however, until the late 1970s, and the food is still little known north of Cook Strait
Cook Strait
Cook Strait is the strait between the North and South Islands of New Zealand. It connects the Tasman Sea on the west with the South Pacific Ocean on the east....
.