How to Bake Camembert

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Last Updated: June 10, 2021 References Tested

Camembert is a creamy, soft cheese with a taste similar to brie. Seasoning camembert with herbs and baking it can give it a richer flavor. With some garlic, rosemary, and either olive oil and honey, you can compliment camembert's flavors and give it some extra sweetness. Pair camembert with your favorite bread, fruits and vegetables, crackers, or wine to make your baked camembert meal gourmet.

Ingredients

Camembert wheel
Extra virgin olive oil or honey
1 garlic clove
1-2 rosemary sprigs
Sea salt
Bread, fruit, vegetables, crackers, or wine
Chili flakes (optional)
Black pepper (optional)
White wine (optional)

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Prepping the Camembert

1
Preheat the oven to 350 °F (177 °C). Depending on your oven, it should take about 15-20 minutes to preheat. Score and season your camembert after setting the temperature so it will be ready to bake when your oven's done preheating.^{[1]
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2
Score the top of your camembert wheel. Place the camembert on a flat table, preferably on top of a cutting board. Make diamond-shaped cuts along the top of the cheese at about ¹⁄₂ centimetre (0.20 in) deep.^{[2]
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- Scoring the camembert wheel allows more flavor to permeate the cheese and adds a decorative touch.
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3
Top the camembert with fresh garlic and rosemary. Mince your garlic and remove the tips from your rosemary sprigs. Spread the garlic and rosemary evenly over the top of the camembert and garnish it with a pinch of sea salt.^{[3]
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- You can also opt to sprinkle the camembert with chili flakes or black pepper for extra spice.^{[4]
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4
Drizzle the camembert with olive oil or honey. Both can give your camembert a subtle sweetness. Choose either one or the other, as using both can detract from the cheese's flavor.
- If you use olive oil, choose an extra virgin olive oil.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Putting Camembert in the Oven

1
Place your camembert in a wooden box or baking pot. Although it's traditional to bake camembert in a wooden box, you can use a metal baking pot instead. Choose a container that has a greater height than the cheese to prevent the melted cheese from spreading.^{[5]
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- Some camembert wheels come with its own wooden box. If yours did, bake your cheese in it.
- Make sure the wooden box is held together with staples and made specifically for baking. Wooden boxes held together with plastics or glue will melt in the oven.
2
Put your camembert in the oven and let it bake for 10-15 mins. Watch your cheese carefully while it's in the oven. Take it out after about 10-15 minutes, or until the middle is soft and gooey.^{[6]
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- Set a timer to make sure you take it out after 15 minutes. If the cheese stays in the oven for too long, it will harden.^{[7]
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3
Test the camembert's softness with a spoon. After taking the cheese out of the oven, tap the top of the cheese with a spoon. The camembert should feel similar to a waterbed: hard on the outside but soft and gooey on the inside.^{[8]
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- If the texture still feels unbaked, place your camembert back in the oven and check again in 3-5 minutes.
- If the texture feels hard but the camembert has baked for more than 15-20 minutes, you may have overbaked your camembert. If you overbake it, there is no way to soften the cheese in the middle.^{[9]
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4
Serve the camembert directly after baking it. Transfer the camembert to a decorative plate or serve it in the box or pot you baked it in. The camembert will taste best if you serve it right after baking it, when it's still warm and soft.
- Pair the camembert with a bread, fruits and vegetables, or wine that compliments its flavor.
- If you have leftovers, store them in a sealed container. Reheat the camembert in the oven, checking on it every 3-5 minutes to avoid baking it for too long.^{[10]
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Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Pairing Your Baked Camembert

1
Bake garlic bread to serve with your camembert. Garlic bread can bring out your camembert's garlic notes and make an excellent dipping bread. Spread garlic butter on bread slices and place them in the oven for 5-10 minutes.^{[11]
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- Ciabatta bread makes an excellent garlic bread and tends to pair well with camembert.
2
Serve stale bread with the camembert. Drizzle bite-sized pieces of stale bread with olive oil and sea salt, then let them bake on a pan for 10-15 minutes. If you saved your rosemary sprigs, thread the bread pieces onto the sprigs to make dipping them easier.^{[12]
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- You can purchase stale bread at some grocery stores or by baking bread in the oven for 40-45 minutes at 275 °F (135 °C).^{[13]
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- You can also dip crackers in you camembert as an alternative.
3
Dip fresh fruits and vegetables into your camembert. For a healthier alternative to bread, try pairing fruits and vegetables with your cheese. Grapes, broccoli, blueberries tomatoes, sliced apples, and bell peppers taste good when dipped in camembert.
- Raspberries drizzled with honey bring out a subtle sweetness in camembert.^{[14]
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4
Pair a sparkling wine with your camembert. Baked camembert pairs well with red, white, or rosé wine. Sparkling wine, particularly champagne, is ideal for bringing out the cheese's flavor.^{[15]
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- Cider, Pommeau, pinot noir, and chenin blanc also pair nicely with camembert.^{[16]
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- Most fruity red wines taste good with camembert.

Community Q&A
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Question

Can you bake camembert in the box?

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Camembert traditionally comes in a thin, wooden box. You can cook the camembert in the box, but make sure to remove any stickers or plastic wrapping first. It’s also a good idea to tie some kitchen twine around the box to keep it from popping open while it cooks. If the camembert comes in a cardboard box, transfer it to a different container to cook.
Question

Can you bake camembert in foil?

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Yes, but you will probably need to set it in another container, such as a ceramic camembert baking dish, in order to prevent the cheese from losing its shape.
Question

Should you cut camembert before baking it?

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Typically, you should slice off the top rind or at least score the top in a cross shape to vent air so that the cheese doesn’t dry out or expand too much. However, it’s best not to cut the cheese apart before you cook it unless you’re using a recipe that calls for cutting.