Flavor of the Week: Oaxaca cheese, the Mexican cheese taking menus by stormFlavor of the Week: Oaxaca cheese, the Mexican cheese taking menus by storm

Joining the ranks of trending queso fresco and cotija, Oaxaca cheese is another Mexican cheese variety taking off on restaurant menus.

With a texture like string cheese and a flavor similar to Monterey Jack, Oaxaca cheese is made by stretching and kneading pasteurized cow’s milk curd into long ropes which are wound into a ball. Well-suited to melted cheese applications, Oaxaca cheese can play a starring role in quesadillas and queso fundido dishes, or it can top tacos and burgers.

It pairs well with another Mexican trend, the goat or beef stew called birria, when combined as a taco filling to form quesabirria tacos.

Market research firm Datassential reports that mentions of Oaxaca cheese on restaurant menus has increased by 48% over the past four years and around 27% of the population is familiar with it.

Click through the gallery to learn more about this Flavor of the Week and see how one chain is using Oaxaca cheese on its menu.