A method for stabilizing cheese proteins includes preparing a cheese mass comprising cheese curds and whey adding a stabilizing additive to the cheese mass straining the cheese mass to separate a cheese curd and whey and forming the cheese curd into a cheese comprising about 18 to about 35% protein. In some embodiments, the method is modified to allow for a gentler cheese manufacturing process. A cheese composition may include cheese about 18 to about 35% protein comprising about 0.01 to about 25% of intact protein segments by weight of the protein and about 0.001 to about 5% of a stabilizing additive.
