Feta Cheese vs Goat Cheese

Diffen › Food › Dairy › Cheese

Feta cheese, according to the latest EU regulations, is a variety of cheese that is made in specific areas of Greece and is manufactured using sheep's milk. The cheese may also be considered ‘feta’ if it is made of a mixture of sheep and goat's milk, with goat's milk being less than or equal to 30% of the entire mixture.

Goat cheese, as the name suggests, is cheese prepared using goat's milk.

Comparison chart

Feta Cheese versus Goat Cheese comparison chart
	Feta Cheese	Goat Cheese
Properties	Contains ‘good’ bacteria that kills Listeria.	Contains protein. Can be eaten by patients suffering from Chronic Kidneys.
Nutritional Information (per 100g)	Calories: 264 Total Fat: 21g Saturated fat: 15g Trans fat: Cholesterol: 89mg Sodium: 1116mg Total Carbohydrate: 4g Dietary Fiber: 0g Sugars: 4g Protein: 14g	Calories: 364 Total Fat: 30g Saturated fat: 21g Trans fat: 0g Cholesterol: 79mg Sodium: 515mg Total Carbohydrate: 3g Dietary Fiber: 0g Sugars: 3g Protein: 22g
Taste	Salty, tangy, sharp. Sometimes bitter.	Tastes somewhat like cream cheese, but firmer and tangier.
Texture	Chunky.	Delicate in texture, crumbles easily. Becomes harder and chalky as it ages.
Types	French, Bulgarian, Greek and Israeli	Gevrik, Mato, Caprino, Buche Noir
Source	Sheep milk. Sheep milk & Goat milk (70:30)	Goat milk
History:	First found in the Byzantine Empire.	Evidence gathered from Egypt and Switzerland date back to between 6000 and 2000 BCE.

Properties

Feta cheese is known to contain ‘friendly’ bacteria that make antibiotics which help kill Listeria – a food poisoning causing bacteria. However, if you are looking to increase your protein intake, you can feast on goat cheese. Since it is usually made in places that have low refrigeration possibilities, it contains salt as its primary preservative. This is how Goat cheese gets its salty flavor. The cheese is also suitable for patients suffering from chronic kidney disease since it’s very low in potassium.

History

The Byzantine Empire was the first to taste Feta cheese. It was mainly associated with Crete. Written evidence was also found authored by an Italian visitor in 1494 where he described the storage process very clearly. Archeologists discovered that cheese prepared with goat and cow milk was being manufactured as far back as 6000 BC. At that time, they were stored in tall jars. Switzerland was home to milk curdling vessels which belonged to the 5000 BC era. Egypt has also retained evidence depicting cheese being made in skin bags suspended from poles during the 2000 BC time - line.

Types

Feta cheese is manufactured all over the world. Every country, thus, lends its own flavor to the cheese. French Feta is known to be mild and creamy. Bulgarian Feta however, is creamier and a tad less salty with a tangy finish. Greek Feta can be distinguished by the other Fetas because of its crumbly texture. Israeli Feta however, is a full body sheep milk cheese. American Feta on the other hand, is less creamy and tangy in taste. They use cow milk to process it as well.

Goat cheese is predominantly made in France, Greece, Italy, United Kingdom, Norway, China, Australia, Spain and Portugal. The produce from each country is therefore different. Mato is produced in Spain. Pantysgawn is a Welsh goat's milk cheese, and Gevrik is a Cornish goat's milk cheese (literally: 'little goat'). Caprino is an Italian goat's milk cheese. Buche Noir is a fresh pressed goats curd from the Sydney region covered in fine vine ash.