The chips and guacamole at La Verdad are stirring up a fair bit on controversy over on Chowhound. Are the chips cut too thick? Is the guacamole refreshingly delicious as is or does it need a chile kick? Opinions are divided but one thing seems to be constant among both the Chowhounders and patrons we’ve witnessed: people are impressed by the cheese sprinkled atop the dish. Well, impressed and possibly a little bit baffled. Our own dining companion thought it was parmesan and was very confused. What is this puzzlingly tasty cheese?
The mystery cheese is none other than queso Cotija, a Mexican semi-hard cow’s milk cheese with a flavor somewhere between feta and parmesan. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the cheese comes from the town of Cotija de la Paz in the Mexican state of Michoacan, along the Pacific coastline. Queso Cotija is quite granular, which makes it ideal for grating. Its super-salty flavor makes it an ideal accompaniment to dishes in need of a little kick. If you’re keen to buy some for home use, try looking at La Internacional Foods in Somerville.
La Internacional Foods, 318 Somerville Ave, Somerville, (617) 776-8855
La Verdad [MenuPages]
La Verdad: 3 out of 4 is pretty damn good [Chowhound]
Cotija Cheese [Wikipedia]
Cotija Puts The Accent On Mexican Foods [San Francisco Chronicle]
Cotija Cheese [Official Site]
