At the deli counter yesterday...

...and a woman orders a half pound of sliced yellow American cheese.
Can anyone tell me why someone would wait in line for 10 minutes to have this product sliced "fresh" instead of buying the pre-packaged stuff?

Signed:
"Not a fan of American Cheese anyway."

...and a woman orders a half pound of sliced yellow American cheese.
Can anyone tell me why someone would wait in line for 10 minutes to have this product sliced "fresh" instead of buying the pre-packaged stuff?

Because they've saved enough time in not hunting down good food?

I am always amazed at all the things I see in stores and wonder "Who buys this stuff?" Cheap, skinless hot dogs, canned mackerel, fat free half & half (I still haven't figured that one out), Miracle Whip, etc.

My brother made the mistake of buying a can of mackerel once, found out he didn't like it, and gave it to me to feed to my cat. She wouldn't eat it, either.

I have never dared look at the ingredient list on "fat-free half-and-half". Half-and-half means "half cream, half milk". Cream is the butterfat that floats to the top of milk that has not been homogenized. So half-and-half, by definition, is supposed to be (nearly) half fat. I don't see how you can make it fat-free.

Someone in another cooking discussion list once asked about the term "pasteurized process cheese food". She said she'd put some in her refrigerator, but the cheese won't touch it.

-Paul W.

...and a woman orders a half pound of sliced yellow American cheese.
Can anyone tell me why someone would wait in line for 10 minutes to have this product sliced "fresh" instead of buying the pre-packaged stuff?

Signed:
"Not a fan of American Cheese anyway."

Well, you probably get fewer preservatives in the sliced deli version than in Kraft singles, and it's almost certainly less expensive to buy it that way. I've bought Provalone sliced at the deli counter when making hot roast beef sandwiches for a large group, but were the tastes of the group different, I suppose that it could have been American.

Mark Lipton
(not a fan, either)

I have a diabetic friend who buys American cheese (not the cheap versions) this way so that he can control how thick the slices are (thicker than packaged). He then nukes it and it makes the approximation of a crispy cheese cracker for a snack that doesn't impact his blood glucose level.

[Jenise]

Okay, I'll step up here: when it comes to a burger or a grilled cheese sandwich, I love American cheese. I love it's tang, and I love the way it melts so smoothly. Conversely, I detest the rubberry way even moderately aged cheddar melts, or the powdery texture of some of the dryer English cheddars. Swiss melts well but I find it too sweet for the aforesaid applications. Jack's good. And I'm not alone, a lot of top chefs in this country agree that American cheese has its place. And there's a lot of difference between the stuff in the littel wrappers and the stuff that comes sliced at the deli counter both in taste-quality and slice thickness, as someone pointed out. If there's no deli counter, then Kraft Deli Deluxe is the only acceptable American cheese.

I usually have cheese sliced at the deli counter. I have a sandwich of some sort for lunch perhaps once a week, and often only need a few slices of cheese (non-American) to add for that purpose. Don't need an entire package.

Jenise
I agree with cheddar - generally awful for melting onto food.
regards
Ian

Jenise
I agree with cheddar - generally awful for melting onto food.
regards

Wow, I love a good Cheddar or Gruyère (or Reblochon) melted onto grilled bread. À chacun son gôut.

Mark Lipton

Gruyère (or Reblochon) melted onto grilled bread. À chacun son gôut.

Agreed. When I'm thinking of cheese that melts well I turn to the Gruyère family, the Comté family, Fontina, Taleggio/Robbiola, or Gorgonzola Dolce (depending on the dish and to name a few of my core favorites). I've never seen what American or "Swiss" cheese offers in comparison.

Thank you all for the varied opinions and overall enlightenment!

I'll go with Mark on this. A good aged cheddar that's been melted over a slice of baguette 'til it gets all bubbled and slightly brown is good stuff! (Same with gruyere and such, of course.)

Haven't bought any form of American cheese in many years. Might have to re-visit the genre based on Jenise's comments.

And there's a lot of difference between the stuff in the littel wrappers and the stuff that comes sliced at the deli counter both in taste-quality and slice thickness, as someone pointed out.

Who knew??