Cottage cheese varies quite a bit from brand to brand. Here's how they all compare to each other, plus the brand I go back to every time.
Whether you’re a cook, a baker or a professional snacker, you know how versatile cottage cheese is. This protein-rich food can be packed into pancakes, baked into vintage biscuits and even churned into cottage cheese ice cream. While the chewy, curdy texture might splinter opinions, I’m in the camp that thinks it’s truly miraculous.
This good-for-you cheese was a huge hit in the ’70s and ’80s, but was then swept to the side after yogurt sales started to rise. It’s made a comeback in recent years, which isn’t surprising given that everything seems to be about high-protein snacks nowadays.
In my house, the trend never died. Cottage cheese was always in the fridge. My mom ate it constantly. She loved her small curd, 2% milk fat option the most. She wouldn’t have it any other way. So with a lifetime of cottage cheese consumption under my belt, I set out to find the best brands on the market.
Here are the cottage cheese brands I judged:
Breakstone’s
Daisy
Friendly Farms
Good Culture
Great Value
Kemps
Prairie Farms
Trader Joe’s
To keep things consistent, I bought the 2% milk fat version of every brand except for Trader Joe’s, which was 1.5% (2% was not an option where I shop). I ranked based on the amount of curds versus whey, creaminess and flavor. I also considered protein per serving and sodium, as cottage cheese tends to be high in sodium content.
8. Kemps
Emiko Franzen For Taste Of Home
The texture of the curds in Kemps cottage cheese is just fine, and the consistency is creamy, but the taste is almost sour and artificial. While it does offer 12 grams of protein per half-cup serving, the 480 mg of sodium per serving is a turn-off.
Bottom Line: If you’re looking for a quick hit of protein and you’re mixing this cottage cheese into another dish, this brand might work, but for standalone scooping, there are plenty of other brands worth trying.
7. Great Value
Emiko Franzen For Taste Of Home
When it comes to generic store brands, Great Value is often at the top of my list. Most products are comparable or better than the well-known brands, and it saves me a good amount of cash. Unfortunately, I have a bit of an issue when my food is too liquidy. The amount of whey (aka the liquid protein that separates from milk after it’s curdled) versus curds is highly unequal in the Great Value cottage cheese. The curds are smaller than all the other brands too. One bonus is that the taste is much softer and tangier than Kemps, and it has 12 grams of protein per half-cup serving.
Bottom Line: Great Value cottage cheese is good for people who don’t love a curd-heavy cheese, but the overtly liquid texture hurt its score in my books. 490 mg of sodium per serving is also a bit too high for my liking.
6. Trader Joe’s
Via Traderjoes.com
I’ll start this by saying I’m a Trader Joe’s fiend. I almost always have the chain’s frozen orange chicken, salads and wraps in my fridge, plus I love the prices of everything. I had high hopes for the TJ’s cottage cheese, but I was sadly disappointed! The curds sat in a bath of liquid, just like Great Value, and the flavor was sour. I know it’s easy to strain the whey and stick to the curds, however, I find it affects the overall creaminess and chewiness. 12 grams of protein per half-cup serving and 320 mg of sodium are positives, though.
Bottom Line: While Trader Joe’s is quite reliable everywhere else, its cottage cheese missed the mark pretty hard for me. It was watery with an overly sour taste. Its greatest quality is its lower sodium content.
5. Prairie Farms
Emiko Franzen For Taste Of Home
Much like its Great Value brethren, I found the Prairie Farms cottage cheese to have a standard cottage cheese taste. The classic tang with a slightly sour bite is perfectly typical. The curd size is quite varied, which I like. Some curds are extremely small while others are jammed together in large clumps. If larger curds bother you, there’s a fix! Pulse the cheese in a blender for a smoother texture. Prairie Farms offers 12 grams of protein per half-cup serving with 490 mg of sodium.
Bottom Line: With a standard taste and slightly watery texture, this was a middle-of-the-road cottage cheese compared to the rest. The best thing about it was the curd texture.
4. Breakstone’s
Emiko Franzen For Taste Of Home
Breakstone’s is a completely new brand for me, so it was nice to start with a clean slate. It has a clean, tangy, cheesy taste, and it’s slightly more gritty than creamy. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The curds are all uniformly small, and the cottage cheese overall is much thicker than all the previously ranked brands. I imagine this would go well in a healthy lasagna. With 13 grams of protein per half-cup serving and only 200 mg of sodium, this is a phenomenal choice for those looking to watch their sodium intake.
Bottom Line: While it’s not the most mesmerizing option, it gets the job done and tastes good. It also offers a much lower sodium content than the rest.
3. Friendly Farms
Emiko Franzen For Taste Of Home
Now we’re getting into the good stuff. Friendly Farms is Aldi’s brand, and it’s easily one of my absolute favorites. I am a raving fangirl for the brand’s cheap prices and delicious Aldi originals. I went into this spoonful with extremely high hopes and was subsequently rewarded. The curds are a bit larger than the others, and they’re chewy and bouncy in the best way, with minimal surrounding whey. The taste has a tangy pop that made me want to keep scarfing down spoonfuls (which I did). It was tough making it number three, but it’s still an overall winner to me. This cottage cheese offers 12 grams of protein per half-cup serving and 450 mg of sodium.
Bottom Line: With a bouncy texture and clean taste, this cottage cheese is a total winner. The best part? You can grab a 24-ounce tub for a little over $3.
2. Daisy
Emiko Franzen For Taste Of Home
We’re almost there. If you know dairy products, you surely know Daisy. This famous dairy company has been around for over 100 years, and there’s a reason it has stood the test of time. The curd texture of Daisy’s cottage cheese is phenomenal, and the surrounding whey is thick, soft and creamy. It has a classic cottage cheese taste with a bright pop of tangy tartness. The best part is that it comes in larger tubs or smaller cups for on-the-go snacking. It offers 13 grams of protein per half-cup serving and 330 mg of sodium, an excellent combo.
Bottom Line: You know the Daisy name for a reason. This cottage cheese is a quintessential winner. It has a stellar texture and taste while offering high-protein and lower-sodium benefits.
1. Good Culture
Emiko Franzen For Taste Of Home
We’ve come to the end. Good Culture won my heart long ago, and I’m glad it’s kept its title. While Daisy did a fantastic job competing, there’s just something a little special about Good Culture. The creaminess is what sets it apart from other brands. The taste is similar to Daisy with the slightest twang of something else—maybe a bit more tartness. Either way, it’s thick and velvety and invites you to keep eating. I recommend adding it to a high-protein breakfast bowl. It offers 14 grams of protein per half-cup serving with 340 mg of sodium.
Bottom Line: Good Culture is incredible on its own or folded into any of your favorite cheesy recipes. It has been my overall favorite that continues to stand the test of time.
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