Is Velveeta Real Cheese?

Velveeta is great if you want to make a queso dip or a mac and cheese with a smooth silky sauce, and it's the most delicious way to make scalloped potatoes. But what's curious is that you don't purchase blocks of it in the refrigerated section (aside from the individually wrapped slices); rather, you pluck it from a room temperature shelf. Does that mean it's not real cheese? The answer is, well, sort of.

Velveeta is what's known as a pasteurized process cheese product, which is a sneaky way of saying it's not actual cheese. At one time, it was made out of cheese, and classified as a "pasteurized process cheese spread," but the Food and Drug Administration declared in 2002 that this description was misleading. The label was tweaked to reflect that fact, so it became "pasteurized process cheese product." 

Velveeta no longer contains actual cheese, but things like skim milk, milk protein concentrate, and whey protein concentrate. So it's cheese-ish, but not technically cheese. There's also other ingredients in it, like canola oil and food additives, which help it melt into something, well, velvety.

You might wonder, then, if Velveeta is the same as American cheese, but packaged under a different brand name. However, it is not the same thing. That's because American cheese does start with a real cheese base, and oftentimes a blend of multiple cheeses with additives to those found in Velveeta that make it the perfect choice for melting. But that doesn't mean their flavor profiles are dissimilar: Both are tangy in the same way, and they both provide a gooey creamy center for a grilled cheese sandwich. American cheese is also a "pasteurized processed American cheese food" that also happens to contain cheese.

It does seem that since Velveeta is such a unique product, people seem to have extra fun with it. During my time here at The Takeout, I've witnessed some wild Velveeta products come to fruition, like packets of Velveeta designed to fit in your pocket, Velveeta-filled cheesy chocolate truffles, and even a questionable-sounding Velveeta martini. So even if it's not real cheese, it doesn't mean Velveeta can't still be cheesy.