Mexican soft cheese have two uses–either as melting cheese or for making cheese balls/strings. When heated, they melt without separating into solid and oil. They have a rich, creamy, acidic, mellow flavor, and can even be eaten directly as a snack. They give a cheese-like flavor to American-favorite dishes like pizzas and cheeseburgers, and not an oily one like cheddar cheese. These are used in hot Mexican dishes like quesadillas, burritos, tacos, nachos, and chile con queso. Queso añejo Queso añejo is an aged variety of cheese that melts well, and is thus used in baked and grilled food items. It has a slightly tangy, salty flavor, and is prepared from goat's or cow's milk. After preparation, the cheese is rolled in paprika to complement its saltiness. Depending on its age, it may be soft and easily breakable when young, and can be hard when mature. Queso añejo is used in burritos, salads, enchiladas, tacos, and so on. It is regarded as an aged version of queso fresco. Queso oaxaca or quessilo Queso oaxaca is a white-colored, string-like, mild flavored cheese, similar to mozzarella cheese. Cheese prepared from cow's milk is pulled in strings, and then knotted or rolled into a ball to be prepared. It has a slightly salty and buttery flavor, which makes it popular with kids. It is used in quesadillas, empanadas, baked recipes, chile rellenos, pizzas, nachos, and grilled cheese sandwiches.

Mexican hard cheese is firm, crumbly, and can be grated or sliced. These have a bold flavor, and can be used to finish a dish. In earlier days, they were prepared by salting normal cheese, followed by further aging in the sun. They are used for garnishing dishes like tacos, fried beans, salads, grilled dishes, soups, pastas, and tortilla chips. Queso enchilado or añejo enchilado This is a version of añejo cheese that has been pressed into rectangular blocks and then coated with paprika, chile powder, or chile paste. Though the exterior of the cheese looks red and hot, it is a mildly spicy cheese that can be grated, shredded, or simply crumbled over various dishes. It is used in enchiladas, tacos, nachos, salads, beans, chile rellenos, pizzas, and soups. Queso cotija This type is a white, salty variety of cheese that is fresh when made, and becomes grainy or breakable with age. It is similar to Parmesan cheese, and is made from cow's milk. Being a dry cheese, it is used for grating, shredding, and direct crumbling over various dishes. It has two main varieties―one that is grainy, while the other is wetter, milder, and has more fat content. It is used in burritos, beans, tacos, tostadas, salads, soups, casseroles, chile, enchiladas, and even topped on fresh fruit. Queso manchego viejo Manchego cheese is made from unpasteurized milk from sheep of the manchega species. This cheese is characterized by a cylindrical shape, and a distinct zig-zag basket pattern on its outer rind and a wheat ear pattern on its top and bottom surfaces. When manchego cheese is aged for a year, it is called queso manchego viejo cheese. It is a yellowish to whitish, mild to slightly tangy flavored, hard, crumbly, and has a butterscotch color inside. It can be grated or eaten as tapas. It is used in salads, desserts, chorizo, membrillo, pizzas, beef burgers, with olives, and can even be eaten directly with bread or fresh fruit. Duro Blando This is a white, hard, dry, breakable cheese, with a strong spicy, slightly smoked flavor. It is prepared from cow's milk. It can be crumbled, but is mostly grated and used in toppings. It is used in quesadillas, tostadas, salads, re-fried beans, baleadas, pupusas, chili, enchilidas, and pasta.

These have a mild flavor and are wet cheese. Queso jalapeño This is a white, creamy cheese, with an evenly spicy flavor due to the jalapeños mixed in it. It is elastic and becomes soft when heated, but does not melt, thus, it is good for frying. It can be grated, shredded, or made into strings. Queso jalapeño is used in burritos, enchiladas, rellenos, quesadillas, tacos, nachos, and egg dishes. Queso chihuahua or queso menonita This is a yellowish, semi-soft cheese, with a mild, buttery taste, that was originally produced by the mennonite farming community of Mexico. Hence, also called queso mennonita. It is used as a melting cheese in quesadillas, casseroles, fundido, nachos, chilaquiles, chili con queso, pizzas, and sauces.

These are more aged than softer cheese, and have less wetness. Queso Edam Edam is a semi-firm cheese which has a red wax coating and is pale-yellow from inside. It is made from whole or partially skimmed cow's milk. The cheese has a mild, nutty flavor when fresh, but it becomes hard and sharp-tasting with age. Due to its dryness, it can be used in sandwiches and with fruits like peaches, apples, apricots, cherries, and melons. It was originally a Dutch cheese, named after the town of Edam. It is generally available in a spherical shape, and is much lower in fat than other cheese varieties. It is used in pizza toppings, soups, sauces, queso relleno, roulades, and casseroles. Queso Criollo Criollo cheese is one of the few yellow-colored Mexican types of cheese, and has a mild, salty flavor. The flavor becomes stronger with age, and the cheese can turn extremely hard. It is generally used for grating and has a low-fat content. It is used in tortillas, quesadillas, beans, rice, and with bacon. It can also be directly crumbled over recipes. It is prepared from fresh, raw milk, and can be substituted by Munster cheese.

Mexican creams are not cheese but simply thick, creamy, rich, curd-like creams that have various uses, like ingredients of quesadillas, enchiladas, dessert topping, garnishes, and so on. These creams have a cooling effect, which balance the spiciness of hot dishes. They have a mild to sour taste. Crema Mexicana This is a white, fresh cream cheese, with a mild to sour flavor, and gives a rich feel in the mouth. It cannot be whipped. It finds application in tostadas, soups, sauces, chile rellenos, dressings, tacos, nachos, dips, enchiladas, tamales, flautas, and gorditas. Crema Agria Crema agria is a white-colored, sour cream cheese, with a rich, creamy feel in the mouth. It is prepared by fermentation of cream made from fresh cow's milk. It is generally used in dips, sauces, garnishes, savory dishes, candies, desserts, casseroles, picadillos, and tacos.