时差N小时:发霉的奶酪

Usually when we think of moldy foods, we picture amonth-old loaf of bread forgotten in the back of arefrigerator. But some moldy foods can be quitedelicious. For instance, many cheeses owe their sharpflavor to molds. The making of any cheese isessentially a process of limited, controlledspoilage.

通常，我们一想到发霉的食物时，脑海中会浮现出一条遗忘在冰箱后面一个月的面包的画面。然而有些发霉的食物是相当美味的。例如，许多奶酪发霉之后就有一种独特的风味。任何奶酪的制作工艺实际就是一种有限的，可控制的发酵过程。

In effect, a mold partly digests, or rots the cheese. The molds used to ripen cheese are not themolds that would naturally develop on the cheese over time, but are specially-produced molds.During the process of aging any mold-ripened cheese, fats and proteins are broken down intostrong smelling molecules. These molecules give mold-ripened cheese its particularly strongodor and taste. A bluish-green mold helps ripen blue cheese, giving it its name, aroma andcolor.

实际上，霉菌会一定程度上吞噬或者腐蚀着奶酪。把奶酪催熟的霉菌并不是奶酪自然生长一段时间所产生的，而是一种特制的霉菌。在霉菌催熟奶酪的过程中，脂肪和蛋白质经分解释放强烈气味的分子。这些分子使催熟的奶酪具有特殊而又强烈的气味与芬芳，而蓝青色的斑点霉菌则从外观上给予蓝色熟奶酪以颜色，气味和名称。

In order to age blue cheese, a cheese maker injects the mold into the cheese. Cheeses like bluecheese that are ripened from within are frequently washed or brushed to remove undesirablemicroorganisms which might interfere with the activity of the ripening mold inside. While bluecheese is mold-ripened from the inside, soft, pungent cheeses like Camembert and Brie areripened from the outside with a coat of a white mold whose enzymes slowly penetrate thecheese and transform it from a chalky, bland solid, into the custard-like, creamy treat cheesefanciers love.

为催熟蓝色奶酪，奶酪专家会向奶酪里添加催熟霉菌。蓝色奶酪等催熟奶酪则通过频繁洗刷，去除干扰催熟霉菌活动的多余微生物。与蓝色奶酪从里向外催熟的原理不同，向来以柔软、芳香著称的法国卡曼波特奶酪和布里白奶酪都是由外及里催熟的，表面的一层白霉菌会慢慢的将其中的化学酶渗入奶酪，并把白色无味的固体转变成人们喜爱的蛋糊乳状。

Of course, eating most moldy foods is not a good idea, but eating cheese that has ripened dueto a special molding process can be a delectable experience.

当然，吃很多发霉的食物不是什么好事，但是吃那些在特殊霉变过程中变熟的奶酪会是一个很享受的体验。