Cheeses of Cuauhtémoc
A northern Mexican town settled by Mennonite farmers in 1922, home of queso menonita, the mild melting cheese of Chihuahua.
Made, aged and sold here
Best time: April to May and September to October, with apple harvest in autumn.
Cuauhtémoc lies on a high plain in western Chihuahua. In 1922 Mennonite farmers from Canada settled the land around it, laying out numbered villages, or campos, along a single long road. They brought dairy farming and cheese making, and the mild, pale cheese they make, queso menonita, is now known all over Mexico as queso Chihuahua.
Queso menonita
Queso Chihuahua is a cow's milk cheese, pale yellow and semi-soft, similar to a mild cheddar or Monterey Jack. It melts smoothly, which makes it the cheese for queso fundido, quesadillas and chile con queso. In the Mennonite colonies it is made in small cheese factories and sold in wheels and blocks along the road.
The Mennonite corridor
The Corredor Comercial Menonita runs north of the city through farmland, apple orchards and Mennonite villages with plain houses and schools. Plautdietsch, the Low German of the settlers, is still spoken. A museum on the corridor tells the story of the colonies. The town of Cuauhtémoc itself is a busy farm centre on the road to the Copper Canyon.
A trail idea for Cuauhtémoc
- Mennonite corridor Drive the long road through the campos and orchards.
- A cheese factory shop Buy queso menonita where it is made.
- Mennonite museum Learn the history of the settlers on the corridor.
- Copper Canyon road Continue west to the canyons of the Sierra Tarahumara.
Written by the EveryCheese desk with AI assistance. Background: "Ciudad Cuauhtémoc, Chihuahua" on Wikipedia. Opening hours, markets, caves and tours change; check locally before travelling. If something is wrong, tell us.
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