Copycat Recipe: Homemade Velveeta Cheese (2025)

FAQs

What are the original ingredients in Velveeta cheese? ›

The original process for making Velveeta involved blending tiny bits of various cheeses, including cheddar, Colby and Swiss, along with an emulsifier. Today, the process is different in that instead of starting with bits of cheese, it is made from pasteurized milk, along with whey, emulsifiers and salt.

SKIM MILK, MILK, CANOLA OIL, MILK PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, WHEY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, MALTODEXTRIN, WHEY, SALT, CALCIUM PHOSPHATE, LACTIC ACID, SORBIC ACID AS A PRESERVATIVE, MILKFAT, SODIUM ALGINATE, SODIUM CITRATE, ENZYMES, APOCAROTENAL AND ANNATTO (COLOR), ...

Heat the cheese using the low setting for a total of 30 minutes, then open the lid and stir the partially melted cubes. Stirring the cheese at this time helps promote even melting. You should not need to add butter or milk to the Velveeta when you use this method.

Cut the Velveeta:Cut the Velveeta cheese into smaller cubes. This will help it melt more easily. Choose a Liquid:Decide whether you want to use milk or broth to thin out the Velveeta. Milk is a common choice for a creamier sauce, while broth can add flavor.

The name Velveeta was intended to connote a "velvety smooth" product. On February 14, 1923, Frey incorporated a separate Velveeta company independent from the Monroe Cheese Co. In 1926, the Monroe Cheese company closed down and one year later Velveeta was sold to Kraft.

No, there's no plastic. But there are emulsifiers that bind the cheese's components tightly and do not lose their hold with a sudden increase in temperature. They do, however, let go with prolonged heating at a lower temperature. There is nothing devilish here, just some clever chemistry.

Sodium Citrate is most known these days for the magical texture it gives to Velveeta and other processed cheeses.

The reason Velveeta melts so readily into a puddle of uniform-seeming goo is that it includes sodium alginate, an emulsifying salt that's extracted from brown algae.

Whether you're using sharp cheddar cheese, mild, or any other type, cheddar is a good replacement for regular Velveeta. You'll also find that shredded cheddar cheese is a wonderful replacement for shredded Velveeta. Cheddar typically has an orange or yellow color, just like Velveeta, and is very versatile.

The best substitute for Velveeta is another processed cheese product, such as American cheese or Cheez Whiz. Since Velveeta isn't actually cheese, substituting in real cheese will not guarantee the same results — part of Velveeta's processed charm is its fluid texture and ability to melt easily.

How do you keep Velveeta cheese creamy? ›

Evaporated milk makes for a smoother tasting Velveeta Cheese Dip. It sounds a bit strange, but it's a huge difference-maker, especially when it comes to the pace at which the dip hardens. If you don't have evaporated milk, you can sub in fresh milk or even water.

Velveeta and similar products owe their uniquely smooth and creamy texture to a class of chemicals known as melting salts, a class that includes sodium citrate.

If it's too thick, whisk in some more milk until it reaches the consistency you want. Microwave Velveeta and milk in a microwaveable bowl on high for 2-3 minutes, stopping to stir every 30-seconds or so, until completely melted and well-combined.

I've made mozzarella from scratch using dried milk (using rennet) in the past and I've made ricotta cheese using evaporated milk. (And yes, I also have freeze dried mozzarella cheese in my storage.)

substitutions. Flour and butter in a cheese sauce. If you are out, but find you have citric acid available and are in a pinch for time, you can also utilize the citric acid by mixing it with baking soda, which in the foaming reaction that follows, will neutralize the acidity which will then be aqueous sodium citrate.

Originally, Velveeta was made from real cheese, but that is no longer the case. In 2002, the FDA issued a warning to Kraft that Velveeta was inaccurately being sold under the label of "pasteurized process cheese spread." Since then, the labels have been changed.

By the defining standards of the FDA, it's instead classified as a "pasteurized process cheese product." This is a 2002 re-classification from its former grouping amongst items considered "cheese spreads." Earlier still, at its very beginning in 1918, it actually was a genuine cheese, albeit one made from scraps of ...

From the Package

CHEDDAR CHEESE (PASTEURIZED MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT, ENZYMES), WHEY, MILK PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, MILKFAT, WHEY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF CALCIUM PHOSPHATE, SALT, SODIUM ALGINATE, LACTIC ACID, SORBIC ACID AS A PRESERVATIVE, APOCAROTENAL (COLOR), ANNATTO (COLOR).

Government cheese is "pasteurized process American cheese", a term with a standard of identity. It is produced from a variety of cheese (Cheddar cheese, Colby cheese, cheese curd, or granular cheese), made meltable using emulsifiers and blended. Other ingredients specified in the standard of identity may be used.