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{{short description|Semi-soft washed rind cheese originally from Oka, Quebec}}
{{Infobox cheese
| name          = Oka
| image         = Oka cheese 2.jpg<!--Why does the image include a plate reading "Made in Normandy" instead of something a little more Canadian, eh?-->
| alt           = 
| caption       = Oka Cheese
| othernames    = 
| country       = [[Canada]]
| region        = The [[Laurentides]]
| town          = [[Oka, Quebec|Oka]]
| source        = [[Cow]]
| pasteurised   = Sometimes
| texture       = semi-soft/creamy
| fat           = 
| protein       = 
| dimensions    = 
| weight        = 
| aging         = 1–2 months
| certification = 
| commons       = 
}}
'''Oka''' is a semi-soft [[washed rind]] cheese that was originally manufactured by [[Trappist monk]]s located in [[Oka, Quebec|Oka]], [[Quebec]], Canada. The cheese is named after the town. It has a distinct flavour and [[aroma]], and is still manufactured in Oka, although now by a commercial company. The recipe was sold in 1981 by Les Pères Trappistes to the [[Agropur]] cooperative.<ref name="globeandmail">{{cite news |last=Riedl |first=Sue |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/food-and-wine/food-trends/oka-the-making-of-a-canadian-classic/article4171296/ |title=Oka: the making of a Canadian classic |work=The Globe and Mail |location=Toronto |publisher=The Globe and Mail Inc. |date=2012-01-31 |accessdate=2018-01-25 }}</ref>

It was also manufactured by Trappist Monks at the Our Lady of the Prairies Monastery, located 8 miles southeast of [[Holland, Manitoba]]. A small Manitoba producer learned the process from Brother Albéric, but stopped making unpasteurized Trappist cheese in 2019 because of the cost of provincial regulations.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/trappist-cheese-monk-prairie-tradition-1.5367918|title=Manitoba chefs giving up on traditional Trappist-style cheese, blame costly provincial roadblocks|last=Bergen|first=Rachel|date=2019-11-22|website=CBC News|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-11-22}}</ref>

Brother Alphonse Juin arrived at the Notre-Dame du Lac Monastery in Quebec in 1893 with a recipe for Port-du-Salut cheese. He "tweaked and adjusted" the recipe, and Oka was born.<ref name="globeandmail"/> Since that time, Quebec has become a major producer of [[Cheese in Canada|Canadian Cheese]].

Oka cheese has a pungent aroma and soft creamy flavour, sometimes described as nutty and fruity.<ref name="foodnetworkca"/> The cheese, which is made from cow's milk, is covered with a copper-orange, hand-washed rind. Its distinct flavour sets it apart from more common cheeses such as [[colby cheese|colby]] and [[cheddar cheese|cheddar]], and does not go through a cheddaring process.

There are four types of Oka cheese:<ref name="foodnetworkca">{{cite web |url=http://www.foodnetwork.ca/archives/blog/oka/14130/ |title=Oka |author=Food Network Canada Editors |work=Food Network Canada |publisher=Corus Entertainment Inc. |date=2011-03-28 |accessdate=2018-01-25 }}{{Dead link|date=March 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>  
* ''Regular'' is pasteurized [[cow]]'s [[milk]].  It is ripened for four weeks. Several varieties of the regular version are also available including Ashed and Mushrooms and Truffle, as well as a limited edition Maple flavour.
* ''Classic'' is pasteurized and ripened for two months.
* ''Providence'' is of a much more creamy and soft texture than either "Classic" or "Regular".
* ''Light'' is similar to "Regular", but with a lower percentage of fat and always pasteurized.
* A Swiss style Oka has been introduced in regular and smoked varieties.
* An Oka-branded [[Raclette]] cheese is also available.

==History==
{{main|Abbey of Notre-Dame du Lac (Oka, Quebec)}}
Oka cheese was heavily influenced by the work of the monks of the [[Cistercian]] [[Abbey of Notre-Dame du Lac (Oka, Quebec)|Abbey of Notre-Dame du Lac]] (fr. ''Abbaye Cistercienne d'Oka''). Within a few years,<!-- of what? --> through an affiliation with the [[Université de Montréal]], the [[monastery]] created an agricultural school. Frequently called the ''Abbaye Notre-Dame-du-Lac'', the Trappist monastery became well known for its [[Port-Salut cheese]], made from a [[Brittany|Breton]] recipe brought with them from France.

==See also==
{{portal|Food}}
* {{annotated link|Trappista cheese}}, a Trappist cheese from Europe
* {{annotated link|List of cheeses}}

==References==
<references/>

{{Québécois cheeses}}
{{Canadian cheeses}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oka Cheese}}
[[Category:Quebec cheeses]]
[[Category:Cow's-milk cheeses]]
[[Category:Smear-ripened cheeses]]
[[Category:Trappist Order]]
[[Category:Trappist cheeses]]