RENNET-COAGULATED AGED CHEESES - THE FUN OF MAKING CHEESE - Mastering Basic Cheesemaking: The Fun and Fundamentals of Making Cheese at Home - Gianaclis Caldwell

Mastering Basic Cheesemaking: The Fun and Fundamentals of Making Cheese at Home - Gianaclis Caldwell (2015)

Part 2. THE FUN OF MAKING CHEESE

Chapter 8. RENNET-COAGULATED AGED CHEESES

ONLY GOOD CHEESE can become great aged cheese, but even a good cheese won’t survive poor aging techniques. As I mentioned earlier, I one day hope to devote an entire book simply to the subject of affinage, the art of aging cheeses. But for this book, I have limited the discussion to some methods that should ensure success at home without having to buy fancy equipment or deal with the growth of molds, the problems of humidity control, and the possible invasion of cheese mites.

The vast majority of cheeses consumed in the world are aged, to one degree or another, and most of these are semi-hard to hard. The classic cheeses that we will be covering in this chapter belong to this group. When attempting these cheeses, don’t be surprised when your homemade cheese does not mirror the industrial version! That’s a good thing, but it can take some getting used to.

The hardest thing for most new cheesemakers to do is to wait. It can be especially hard to wait long enough for a cheese to age. Don’t feel too badly if you fall victim to cutting into a wheel before time. Fortunately, when using vacuum sealing to protect cheese during aging, you can simply seal the bag back up and let the cut cheese age longer.

STEPS FOR MAKING RENNET-COAGULATED AGED CHEESES

Most of the steps in this method are the same as in the last chapter. The big differences come during the salting and aging steps, which I will cover here. (Please review the tips and steps of the last chapter if you need to.) Cheeses in this category will usually yield about 0.85-1.1 pounds per gallon of milk (0.4-0.5 kg per 4 L), depending on how they are pressed, salted, and aged.

Salting

Some cheeses are ready to salt before they are pressed, such as cheddar types. In that case, the salt is added to the curds in a minimum of two additions, sprinkling it on, letting it sit (called mellowing), and stirring.

Floating and soaking a pressed cheese in a saltwater solution, or brine, is the best way to salt many types of cheeses. When brining, the cheese is floated in a saltwater solution for a period of hours. The top is sprinkled with a handful of dry salt (my preferred method), or the cheese is turned halfway through its time in the brine bath. Pour the brine into a container large enough to hold the cheese, leaving room around all sides for the brine to circulate. After the cheese is finished soaking, pour the brine and any extra salt from the top of the cheese through a cloth lined sieve and back into the jugs and refrigerate.

Aging

Cheeses can age under a great variety of conditions and still turn out great. (I’ve even seen it successfully done on open shelves in a jungle environment.) The finest artisan cheeses, though, are aged under very strict, difficult-to-maintain conditions. I devote an entire chapter to it in Mastering Artisan Cheesemaking, but the subject deserves an entire book. For our lessons though, I want to make things as simple — and as likely to succeed — as possible, so we will be aging cheeses in a regular refrigerator using tubs and vacuum sealing. A natural rind can also be created by aging in a tub in a wine cooler fridge. Waxing is also an option, but I find it much less successful than vacuum sealing, in addition to being messy and awkward.

HOW TO MAKE A HEAVY BRINE

Combine 1 gallon (4 L) non-chlorinated water at room temperature, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) calcium chloride, and 2 teaspoons white or cider vinegar. Add 2.5 pounds (1 kg) of salt and stir until mostly dissolved. If it dissolves completely, add more salt until the solution will not hold any more salt. This makes what is called a fully saturated brine. Basically, as long as you can see some salt at the bottom of the solution, there is enough salt in the brine. The brine can be reused for many batches of cheese over many months. It should be stored in the refrigerator between use and filtered through a cheesecloth between batches, especially if any tiny curd particles are left by cheeses that have been floating in the brine. Let the brine come to about 50-55oF (10 to 12oC) before use and keep it at that temperature while cheese is being brined.

Brine can be made using the whey from cheesemaking. Add the same amount of salt as indicated and omit the vinegar and calcium chloride. Whey brines are more subject to getting too sour, unless they are heavily salted and kept cold, so if you try this method, test the brine for sourness now and then.

THE MISCONCEPTION OF THE AIR-DRYING PHASE

I can’t tell you how many cheesemakers I have met — licensed commercial cheese-makers — who still subject their beautiful wheels of cheese to an air-drying period. This step is a common one in some beginning cheesemaking books, but is not necessary when the cheese is to be aged naturally. Even if you plan on waxing or vacuum sealing the cheese, you do not want to let the cheese sit out in a dry, comfortably warm room. As you just learned, the cooling process is very important to stopping bacterial growth inside the cheese. If the cheese is left out in a warm dry room, not only do you risk more bacterial growth, but also you are very likely to dry the surface of the cheese so much that it will crack immediately or later. The cheese surface can be adequately dried in a cool room with the humidity low enough to allow surface drying but not dehydration of the cheese itself. If the humidity is too low, the cheese will dry out too much at the surface, will likely have a really thick rind, and may even crack.

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Accomplished home cheesemaker Elizabeth Boutin, Washington, checks a variety of cheeses being aged using vacuum sealing, waxing, and natural rinds in a large wine refrigerator/cooler.

VACUUM BAG AGING

This is the easiest method and requires almost zero follow-through during the aging process. The cheeses will age more slowly and without quite the complexity as when aged traditionally with a natural rind. There is a definite trade-off, but your life circumstances will make one or the other more likely to succeed, and that is the ultimate goal of this book.

To prepare a cheese for vacuum sealing, its moisture content must first stabilize; otherwise liquid will leak from the cheese and pool in the bag. Some of the cheeses we will make in chapter 8 are dry enough, thanks to the curd being salted before the cheese is pressed, to vacuum seal immediately. But some cheeses will need to sit for several days while their moisture content stabilizes. For this process, I recommend using a lidded tub large enough to comfortably hold the cheese without touching it. Set the cheese on a mat on top of a rack at the bottom of the tub. The tub should be set in a cool place, between 40oF (4.4oC) and 50oF (10oC). Flip the cheese daily and use a clean towel or paper towel to wipe away any humidity that collects on the lid or sides. If there is a lot of moisture on the lid, place a second mat over the cheese and a towel over that; change the towel under the mat if it grows moist. After about 10 days, the cheese should be ready to vacuum seal.

Once sealed, place the cheese in your aging space, whether the refrigerator or a wine cooler (see chapter 3), and check it daily. Flipping the cheese every few days is also a good idea, but not as critical as it is for a cheese that is aged without sealing. If any moisture does collect, open the bag, dry the cheese with a towel, and reseal.

NATURAL RIND AGING

If you have more time and don’t mind doing a little cheese maintenance, then aging a cheese without sealing it can be a wonderful way to create a distinctive, flavorful product. You have to prepare yourself, though, for accepting a certain amount of mold and blemishes. Naturally rinded cheeses can look a bit gnarly at times, but there is nothing to fear! Time and a bit of effort will transform them into delicious masterpieces.

To prepare a cheese for aging naturally, ensure that after pressing the cheese the rind is fully closed — without cracks or holes. If there are any cracks, the molds that will otherwise be harmless, will grow inside the cheese and damage the flavor. If there are lines from the cheesecloth, that’s okay, except that they will have more mold growing in them than if the cheese were smooth. After the cheese has been salted or brined, it is ready to go directly into aging. Place a cheese mat on a rack in the bottom of a tub that is larger than the wheel of cheese. You can age several cheeses at a time in the same tub. Place the cheese on the mat and place the lid on the tub. Place the tub in a refrigerator or preferably a wine or beverage cooler. These types of appliances can be set to 50-55oF (10-12oC), which is the ideal temperature for aging cheese.

Open the tub and turn the cheese daily for the first 4 weeks, then twice a week until it is done. If there is excess moisture in the tub, dry it with a cloth. But if the tub is too dry and the surface of the cheese is becoming overly dry — watch for cracks and hardening — then place a damp paper towel (or several) in the box with the cheese. When molds develop, and they will, take a clean, dry cloth (such as a cheesecloth) or a soft bristle brush and gently pat, rub, or brush the surface of the cheese. The goal is not necessarily to eliminate all of the molds, but to slow their growth. Over time, the molds will contribute to creating a beautiful, rustic finish on the cheese.

Please note that since natural rind aging leads to some moisture loss and drying in the cheese, the size of the wheel must be large enough to allow for this. For that reason, I highly recommend that natural rind cheeses aged over 6 months be larger than the 2-gallon (8 L) batches that the recipes in this chapter indicate. I suggest doubling the recipes at the minimum, to allow for the natural shrinkage that will occur during natural rind aging.

Store and Use

Once the cheese has finished aging and the wheel is opened, it can be stored in the refrigerator and used as desired for an extended period of time, even months. If any surface mold develops, it can be scraped or cut off. It is important to protect the cheese from absorbing off flavors and over drying simply to preserve its flavor — and to honor all of the work you have put into making it!

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Beginning cheesemaker Amanda Nunez gently patting down the molds on a wheel of aging cheese. Notice that the rind looks tender and not overly dry (the lines are from where the cheese was resting on a reed mat).

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No matter how you say it (GOO-duh, HOW-duh, or GOW-duh), this Dutch classic is well-known throughout the world and appears in many guises. Industrial red and black waxed grocery-store wheels; processed, artificial smoke-flavored slices; and huge, masterfully aged, crystalline artisan wheels are some of the cheeses that bear the name Gouda. While most of us are used to seeing waxed versions (and, I admit, they do look pretty), waxing is not a traditional step, but originally was done to help preserve the wheels during long overseas shipments before refrigeration was available. So don’t feel that your Gouda is less authentic if you don’t coat it with a thick layer of wax!

This recipe introduces a process step that is unique to some cheeses: washing the curd. Washed-curd cheeses are typically much more supple and mild, especially when young. They are pleasant and easy to slice and melt unless aged for a great deal of time. I adore washed-curd cheeses; they offer a lot of variety as they age and appeal to a broad spectrum of cheese eaters.

What You’ll Need

Milk: 2 gal. (8 L) whole milk

Culture: ⅛ tsp. (0.2 g) MA 4000

Calcium Chloride (optional): ¼ tsp (1.25 ml) calcium chloride diluted in ⅛ cup (30 ml) cool water

Rennet: ⅛ tsp (0.75 ml) double-strength vegetarian rennet diluted just before use in ⅛ cup (30 ml) cool, non-chlorinated water

Salt: Heavy brine (see chapter 3 for recipe) and pure salt

Equipment: Pot, thermometer, ladle, measuring cup, cheesecloth, tray or drainboard, cheese form and weights or cheese press with form, tub with lid, mat, rack,1 gal. (4 L) vacuum-sealable bag and vacuum sealer

Process in a Nutshell

Time: 3 hr. active, 7 hr. inactive

Steps: Heat milk, add culture, ripen, add rennet, ripen and coagulate, cut curd, stir curd, wash, heat and stir curd, partial drain, drain and press, salt, age, store and use

Step by Step

Heat Milk: Pour the milk into the pot, and place the pot over another pot of water on the stovetop. Heat the milk until the temperature reaches 88-90oF (31-32oC).

Add Culture: Sprinkle the culture on top of milk and let set for 3-5 minutes. Using the ladle, stir gently for 2-5 minutes.

Ripen: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 88°F-90oF (31oC-32oC), stirring occasionally, and let ripen for 45 minutes.

Add Calcium Chloride (optional): Stir in the diluted calcium chloride, if using, and let set for 5 minutes.

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Canadian cheesemaker Ian Treuer makes a large variety of cheeses, including this spice-rubbed, aged Gouda. PHOTO BY AND COURTESY OF IAN TREUER

Add Rennet: Stir the milk using an up-and-down motion with the ladle. Stop stirring briefly and pour the diluted rennet over the top of the ladle. Begin stirring again for 1 minute. Hold the ladle to the top of the milk in several spots to help still the milk.

Coagulate: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 88-90oF (31-32oC), and let the curd set until a clean break is achieved, about 45 minutes.

Cut Curd: Cut the curd mass into ⅜-inch (1 cm) cubes, and let rest at 88-90oF (31-32oC) for 5 minutes.

Stir Curd: Maintain the temperature of the curds at 88oF-90oF (31oC-32oC), stirring gently, for 15-20 minutes. If needed, cut any large curds into smaller pieces during stirring. Let the curds settle for 5 minutes; they will have shrunk some, but will still be quite soft.

Wash, Heat, and Stir Curd: Scoop out 2-2.5 qt. (2-2.5 L) of the whey. Stir the curds to break them apart. While stirring, add 150oF (66oC) hot water in 1 cup (250 ml) increments until the whey temperature is 101oF (38oC); this should take about 10 minutes. Continue stirring until the curds are uniform in size and feel tender but springy, similar to the texture of a hard-boiled egg white, 15-20 minutes. Let the curds settle for 5 minutes.

Partial Drain: Scoop out the whey to the level of the curds; reserve some of the whey. Using your hands, work the curds gently into a solid mass about the size of the form that you are using.

Drain and Press: Place the form on a tray or drainboard and line with the cheesecloth. Dampen the cloth and form with a bit of whey. Using your hands, lift the curd mass out of the pot and press it gently into the form. When it evenly fills the form, fold the excess cloth over the curd, set the follower on top, and press down gently. Add about 1 pound (0.5 kg) of weight. Press for 15 minutes. The room temperature during draining and pressing should be between 68-72oF (20-22oC).

Remove the weight and the follower. Then remove the wrapped cheese from the form, unwrap it, and flip it over. Rearrange the cheesecloth in the form and replace the cheese, pressing the cloth into the form along with it; the cheese should still look a bit wrinkled and the rind not yet smooth. Continue to press with only 1 pound (0.5 kg) of weight for 30 minutes more.

Repeat the steps above, flipping the cheese and rearranging it in the form; this time the rind should be smoother, but still not evenly closed. Add another 1 pound (0.5 kg) of weight for a total of 2 pounds (1 kg) and continue to press for 60 minutes more.

Repeat the steps again; now the rind should be very even, perhaps with a few small openings. If not, you may add up to 2 pounds more weight. Continue to press for 4 hours more.

Remove the cheese from the form, cut off a tiny piece, and taste it. It should have a very mild tang and taste milky with a hint of buttermilk. If it isn’t slightly tangy, press it for 1 hour more and taste again.

Salt: When you have achieved the desired tang, remove the cheese from the press and place in the container with enough room around all sides for brine. Pour the brine into the container until the cheese floats. Sprinkle a thin layer of salt on top of the cheese. Cover with the lid and let soak for 5 hours. The brine and room temperature should be cool, between 50-60oF (10-15oC).

Age Vacuum Sealed: Pat the cheese dry with paper towels. Place the rack in the tub, place a mat on the rack, and set the cheese on the mat. Put the lid on the tub and place it in a cool place (below 55oF [15oC]) or in the refrigerator or a wine cooler. Flip the cheese daily until the rind dries out a bit, 7-10 days.

Place the cheese in the vacuum-sealable bag, seal it, and place it back in the refrigerator. Check and taste the cheese weekly, making notes about the flavor and texture, if desired. You may have to vacuum more air out of the bag periodically if it loosens as the cheese shrinks.

Age for 2 months for a mild cheese, 4-6 months for medium flavor, and 1 year or more for the most complex results.

Or for Natural Rind Aging: Follow steps on page 110 and age for 2 months for a mild cheese, 4-6 months for medium flavor, and 1 year or more for the most complex results.

Variations

For a beautifully colored rind, rub the cheese with a thin paste of olive oil and finely ground paprika on day five of the drying phase, before you vacuum seal the cheese. Make a thick paste and rub it in an even, but not too thick, layer on the cheese. Continue to flip daily and massage the coating on the cheese; you shouldn’t need to reapply it, but you can if it looks too thin or uneven. By the time you vacuum seal the cheese, the coating should not be too oily or pasty; if so, continue to turn and massage it daily for a few more days.

Troubleshooting

After aging for a few months the cheese becomes rounded and when cut there is an open cave in the middle and lots of splits and small holes (eyes) around it: This is called late blowing and occurs toward the end of aging, usually after several months. It is caused by bacteria from the clostridium family, which can live in pasteurized or raw milk (they are not killed during pasteurization). The cheese isn’t necessarily dangerous, but its flavor will not be good. Late blowing is a sign of poor milk collection techniques (which may have also introduced other bad bacteria to the milk). Throw the cheese out (or give it to the chickens or pigs), and review the tips for choosing a good milk source in chapter 2.

See also Troubleshooting in lesson 14, page 104.

Recap

Compare the steps used to make the farmhouse cheese in the last chapter with those of the Gouda recipe. The ripening and final temperatures are identical, but it is what happens later that yields very different cheeses. The Gouda curd is cut and stirred for 15 minutes without heating, and its final temperature is achieved after removing the whey and adding very hot water. These differences create a final product that has a different mineral content and develops its acid at a different stage, and therefore has a different texture, flavor, and ability to age.

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Nine-month aged vacuum-sealed cheddar and monkey cheese.

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Cheddar is undoubtedly one of the most popular cheeses in the world. It is only surpassed in popularity and consumption by pizza cheese, also known as low-moisture mozzarella. The cheddar most of us were raised on, though, is quite different from traditional English cheddar, also called bandaged or cloth bound cheddar, which is usually wrapped tightly in a lard or butter cheesecloth and aged. The way that most American cheddar is both made and aged make it a different, but still delicious, cheese. The curds in this recipe can be enjoyed as squeaky fresh curds, pressed into a wheel and aged, or aged to make what I call “Monkey Cheese” (after the fun, pull-apart bread called monkey bread). It’s hard to beat fresh squeaky curds seasoned with basil pesto, roasted garlic, or lavender. They can be frozen and used any time as a great snack, salad or pizza topping, or party appetizer.

As convenient as curds are to have on hand, making cheddar is an all-day process. But, fortunately, you can step away for short periods of time. During this lesson, you’ll learn two new techniques, cheddaring, which involves stacking and restacking slabs of warm curds, and milling, the cutting of the cheddared slabs into finger-sized pieces. Industrially made cheddar is rarely produced using these age-old techniques, but instead employs a shortcut that we’ll learn in the next recipe.

What You’ll Need

Milk: 2 gal. (8 L) whole milk

Culture: ¼ tsp. (0.5 g) Flora Danica (for fresh curds) or MA 4000 (for aged)

Calcium Chloride (optional): ⅜ tsp. (2 ml) calcium chloride diluted in ¼ cup (60 ml) cool water

Rennet: ⅛ tsp. (1 ml) double-strength vegetarian rennet diluted just before use in ⅛ cup (30 ml) cool, non-chlorinated water

Salt: 3 tsp. (18 g) pure salt

Equipment: Pot with lid, thermometer, ladle, colander, 1 gal. (4 L) vacuum-sealable bag and vacuum sealer (for Monkey Cheese and traditional wheel), mechanical or strap press and form (for traditional wheel)

Process in a Nutshell

Time: 6 hr. active, 4-12 mo. aging (if desired)

Steps: Heat milk, add culture, ripen, add rennet, ripen and coagulate, heat and stir curd, drain, cheddar, mill, salt, use or age

Step by Step

Heat Milk: Pour the milk into the pot, and place the pot over another pot of water on the stovetop. Heat the milk until the temperature reaches 90oF (32oC).

Add Culture: Sprinkle the culture on top of milk and let set for 3-5 minutes. Using the ladle, stir gently for 2-5 minutes.

Ripen: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 90oF (32oC), and let ripen for 30 minutes.

Add Calcium Chloride (optional): Stir in the calcium chloride, if using, and let set for 5 minutes.

Rennet: Stir the milk using an up-and-down motion with the ladle. Stop stirring briefly and pour the diluted rennet over the top of the ladle. Begin stirring again for 1 minute. Hold the ladle to the top of the milk in several spots to help still the milk.

Coagulate: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 90oF (32oC), and let the curd set until a clean break is achieved, about 45 minutes.

Cut Curd: Cut curd mass into ⅜-inch (1 cm) cubes, and let rest for 5 minutes.

Heat and Stir Curd: Heat the curds very gradually, stirring gently, to 102oF (39oC) over 30 minutes. Maintain the temperature and continue stirring gently for 45 minutes. Let the curds settle for 5 minutes.

Drain and Cheddar: Position the colander over another pot or in the sink. Carefully pour the curds into the colander and let drain. Set the colander over a pot of hot water, cover, and maintain the temperature of the curds at 95-98oF (35-37oC) for 15 minutes. Flip the curd mass over in the colander and cover again, maintaining the temperature for 15 minutes more. Repeat the steps, flipping the curd mass one more time.

After 15 minutes, remove the curd mass from the colander and cut it into two equal slabs. Replace the slabs in the colander, stacking them on top of each other. Cover and maintain the curd temperature as above. After 15 minutes, flip each slab over and reverse the order of the stack. Continue flipping and swapping the slabs every 15 minutes until the texture of the curd resembles the texture of cooked chicken breast, about 2 hours.

Mill: Place the slabs on a cutting board and cut into approximately ½-inch-wide x 1-inch-long (1.25 cm to 2.5 cm long) strips. Place the strips back in the colander, and sprinkle with 1½ teaspoons (9 g) of the salt. Stir thoroughly and let set for about 8 minutes (this is called “mellowing”). Add the remaining 1½ teaspoons (9 g) salt, stir again, and let the curds mellow for 10 minutes more.

Finishing Variations

For fresh curds: Eat the curds plain or add seasonings such as pesto, garlic, chives, chipotle peppers, or lavender. You can even sprinkle beer on the curds and let it soak in.

For Monkey Cheese: Let the salted curds sit at room temperature, 68-72oF (20oC-22oC), in the colander, stirring hourly for 3-4 hours. Place the curds in a vacuum-sealable bag and pack to the bottom of the bag. Vacuum seal and age in the refrigerator or a wine cooler for 4 months. You can open the bag and pull a curd off when you want to taste how it is progressing.

For traditional cheddar: Place the form on a tray or drain board, line the form for the press with cheesecloth, and dampen it with a bit of whey and line with the cheesecloth. Fill the form with the curds, pressing and packing them in by hand. When all of the curds are packed into the form, fold the cloth over the top, and place the follower on top. Place the form in the press. If your press has a screw with a pressure gauge, start with 10 pounds of pressure. If you are using the strap press (see chapter 3 Presses), apply pressure just until you see a bit of white whey coming from the bottom of the form. Press for 15 minutes at room temperature, 68-72oF (20-22oC).

Increase the pressure to 20 pounds or tighten the strap until white whey again comes from the bottom of the form. Press for 15 minutes.

Release the pressure. Remove the cheese from the form, unwrap it, and flip it over. Rearrange the cheesecloth in the form and replace the cheese, pressing the cloth into the form along with it; the rind should be knobby, and you should still see the outline of all of the curds, but the mass shouldn’t fall apart. If the mass starts to fall apart as you handle it, leave it in the form and increase the pressure for 15 more minutes before turning.

Increase the pressure to 30 pounds or tighten the strap very firmly; there should be a lot of resistance from the cheese without a lot of white whey coming out. Press for 1 hour more.

Repeat the steps again; the rind should be closing nicely with only small outlines of the curd. Rewrap the cheese and replace it in the press. Increase the pressure to 50 pounds or tighten the strap about as tight as you can get it and press for 12 hours or overnight.

Aging vacuum sealed: Place the cheese in the vacuum-sealable bag, seal it, and place it back in the refrigerator or wine cooler for 6-12 months. Check and taste the cheese weekly, making notes about the flavor and texture, if desired. You may have to vacuum more air out of the bag periodically if it loosens as the cheese shrinks.

Or for natural rind aging: Follow steps on page 110 and age for 4-12 months. Rub the rind with butter or lard at 4, 6, and 12 weeks. For aging over 6 months, recipe size should be doubled.

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Fresh curds with pesto are hard to beat.

Troubleshooting

Curds never get “cooked chicken-breast” texture: Continue the cheddaring process for longer. You can also try filling a zipper-lock plastic bag with 100oF (38oC) water and placing it on top of the slabs during cheddaring.

See also Troubleshooting for lessons 14 and 15.

Recap

Let’s talk a bit more about the protein network in cheese. In chapter 2, you learned what rennet does when added to the milk: it changes the way the proteins behave and allows them to form a network that creates the curd. Now picture a 3-D network of interconnected fishing nets or Tinker Toys, (if you are old enough to have played with those). Now, think of that as we talk about the two different ways we manipulate cheese.

When we make mozzarella, we form a network that is able to stretch. We do that by using a combination of just the right amount of acid and the heat of the whey. When first working the curd, that 3-D network doesn’t want to stretch, but by slowly manipulating it, we are able to rearrange the strands so that they line up better and become elastic.

When we make cheddar, we do something similar, but we use time and the pressure of the stacked slabs to slowly realign the network. When finished cheddaring, we can see the changed structure in the cooked chicken-breast texture. Both mozzarella and cheddar are what are called “texturized” cheeses, meaning that the cheesemaker has purposefully created a different texture in the cheese. When you bite into a fresh cheddar curd, it’s the wet, slick protein network sliding against your smooth teeth that causes the squeak.

BONUS RECIPE: TWO-HOUR CHEDDAR CURDS

What You’ll need:

Milk: 1 gallon (4 L)

Culture: 1 cup fresh, cultured buttermilk (if purchased, buy one with the longest expiration date to ensure that the bacteria are still active)

Rennet: ¼ tsp.(1.25 ml) double strength (or ½ tsp (2.5 ml) single strength)

Utensils: Pot, thermometer, ladle, knife, colander, zipperlock bag

Steps:

Heat milk and add culture: Combine milk and buttermilk in a stainless steel pot. Place on direct heat and warm, stirring constantly to 95oF. Turn off or remove from heat.

Add rennet: Diluted in 2 TB (30 ml) cool non chlorinated water and stir into milk with 5 up and down strokes.

Coagulate: Let set for 10-15 minutes until just pulling away from the sides or firm when pulled away

Cut and Stir Curd: Cut into ⅜ to ¼ inch pieces then let rest for 5 minutes. Stir very gently for 5 minutes at 95oF. Begin to increase heat very slowly over 15 minutes to reach 102oF

Drain: Pour curds into cloth lined colander and tie in a bundle. Cover and keep curd at 100 F for 10 minutes

Cheddar: Cut slab into two pieces, stack, cover and keep warm, use a plastic bag filled with 100oF hot water to help keep the curd slabs warm. Turn every 10 minutes until chicken breast texture is achieved (about 1 hour)

Mill: Cut slabs into ½ to 1 inch (1-2 cm) long by ¼ to ½ inch (½ - 1 cm) wide pieces.

Salt: Place in colander over hot whey and sprinkle with ½ tsp salt. Stir then cover with hot water bag for 5 min. (mellowing) Repeat salting and mellowing one more time.

Use: Curds are ready to eat as soon as they are done.

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In this recipe, we’ll learn another new technique: stirring the curd in the pot after the whey has been removed. During this step, the curd continues to ripen and drain. As with traditional cheddar, the curd is salted and then pressed. The result is a cheese very similar to traditional cheddar, but made in a much shorter time. Many industrially made cheddars use this method, both as a way of shortening production and because it can be adapted to work in enclosed cheddar-making equipment. The biggest disappointment of this recipe when compared to the other is that you don’t end up with squeaky fresh curds!

What You’ll Need

Milk: 2 gal. (8 L) whole milk

Culture: ¼ tsp. (0.5 g) MA 4000

Calcium Chloride (optional): ⅜ tsp. (2 ml) calcium chloride diluted in ¼ cup (60 ml) cool water

Rennet: ⅛ tsp. (1 ml) double-strength vegetarian rennet diluted just before use in ⅛ cup (30 ml) cool, non-chlorinated water

Annatto (optional): 2 drops diluted in ⅛ cup (30 ml) water

Salt: 3 tsp. (18 g) pure salt

Equipment: 2 pots, thermometer, ladle, colander, cheesecloth, tray or drainboard, mechanical or strap press and form, 1 gal. (4 L) vacuum-sealable bag and vacuum sealer

Process in a Nutshell

Time: 4-5 hr. active, 14 hours inactive (pressing), 4-12 mo. aging

Steps: Heat milk, add culture, ripen, add rennet, ripen and coagulate, cut curd, heat and stir curd, drain and stir curd, salt, press, age

Step by Step

Heat Milk: Pour the milk into the pot, and place the pot over another pot of water on the stovetop. Heat the milk until the temperature reaches 90oF (32oC).

Add Culture: Sprinkle the culture on top of milk and let set for 3-5 minutes. Using the ladle, stir gently for 2-5 minutes.

Ripen: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 90oF (32oC), and let ripen for 60 minutes.

Add Calcium Chloride: Stir in calcium chloride solution, if using, and let set for 5 minutes.

Add Rennet: Stir the milk using an up-and-down motion with the ladle. Stop stirring briefly and pour the diluted rennet over the top of the ladle. Begin stirring again for 1 minute. Hold the ladle to the top of the milk in several spots to help still the milk.

Coagulate: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 90oF (32oC), and let the curd set until a clean break is achieved, about 45 minutes.

Cut Curd: Cut curd mass into ⅜-inch (1 cm) cubes, and let rest for 5 minutes.

Heat and Stir Curd: Heat the curds very gradually, stirring gently, to 101oF (39oC) over 45 minutes. Maintain the temperature and continue stirring every few minutes for 60 minutes. Let the curds settle for 5 minutes.

Drain and Stir Curd: Pour the curds into a colander and then return them to the pot. Stir the curds, maintaining the curd temperature at 95-96oF (35 to 36oC) for 30 minutes. Position the colander over another pot or in the sink. Carefully pour the curds into the colander and let drain.

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Annatto-colored stirred curd cheddar ready for vacuum sealing and aging.

Salt: Set the colander over a pot of hot water and sprinkle with 1½ teaspoons (9 g) of the salt. Stir thoroughly and let set for 10 minutes. Add the remaining 1½ teaspoons (9 g) salt, stir again, and let the curds mellow for 20 minutes more.

Press: Line the form for the press with cheesecloth and dampen it with a bit of whey. Fill the form with the curds, pressing and packing them in by hand. When all of the curds are packed into the form, fold the cloth over the top, and place the follower on top. Place the form in the press. If your press has a screw with a pressure gauge, start with 10 pounds of pressure. If you are using the strap press, apply pressure just until you see a bit of white whey coming from the bottom of the form. Press for 15 minutes at room temperature, 68-72oF (20-22oC).

Increase the pressure to 20 pounds or tighten the strap until white whey again comes from the bottom of the form. Press for 15 minutes.

Release the pressure. Remove the cheese from the form, unwrap it, and flip it over. Rearrange the cheesecloth in the form and replace the cheese, pressing the cloth into the form along with it; the rind should be knobby, and you should still see the outline of all of the curds, but the mass shouldn’t fall apart. If the mass starts to fall apart as you handle it, leave it in the form and increase the pressure for 15 more minutes before turning.

Increase the pressure to 30 pounds or tighten the strap very firmly; there should be a lot of resistance from the cheese without a lot of white whey coming out. Press for 1 hour more.

Repeat the steps again; the rind should be closing nicely with only small outlines of the curd. Rewrap the cheese and replace it in the press. Increase the pressure to 50 pounds or tighten the strap about as tight as you can get it and press for 12 hours or overnight.

Age Vacuum Sealed: Place the cheese in the vacuum-sealable bag, seal it, and place it back in the refrigerator for 4-12 months. Check and taste the cheese weekly, making notes about the flavor and texture, if desired. You may have to vacuum more air out of the bag periodically if it loosens as the cheese shrinks.

Or for Natural Rind Aging: Follow steps on page 110 and age for 4-12 months. For aging over 6 months, recipe size should be doubled.

Troubleshooting

See Troubleshooting for lessons 14 and 15, pages 104, 115.

Recap

If possible, try to make a wheel of both the traditional cheddar and the stirred curd cheddar at about the same time. Then age them both and compare the flavor and texture at different times throughout the aging. You should notice that the texture of the traditional wheel is a bit denser and that of the stirred curd a bit more crumbly. This is because the protein network made using the stirred curd method isn’t as reshaped and texturized as the one made with the traditional cheddar method. Even though the texture of the cheeses is a bit different, when aged for similar amounts of time, their flavors should be quite similar.

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This wheel of Colby was made using goat’s milk and was aged at 55F (12C) for 30 days in a tub. The molds on the rind had no negative affect on the flavor, which was creamy and quite complex for its age.

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Now for the ultimate combination of techniques: stirring the curd and washing the curd. Colby is a bit like a stirred-curd cheddar, but its final texture and flavor are unique because the curd is also washed. The washing step is similar to the one we used when making Gouda earlier, but instead of hot water, we’ll be using cold. The resulting cheese should be reminiscent of cheddar, but with a milder flavor and more pliable, tender texture. Like Monterey Jack, Colby is an American original created in Colby, Wisconsin in the late 1880’s.

What You’ll Need

Milk: 2 gal. (8 L) whole milk

Culture: ¼ tsp. (0.4 g) MA 4000

Calcium Chloride (optional): ¼ tsp. (1.5 ml) calcium chloride diluted in ⅛ cup (30 ml) cool water

Rennet: ⅛ tsp. (1.5 ml) double-strength vegetarian rennet diluted just before use in ⅛ cool, non-chlorinated water

Salt: 2 tsp. (10 g) pure salt

Equipment: 2 pots, thermometer, ladle, colander, pot with lid, cheesecloth, tray or drainboard, mechanical or strap press and form, 1 gal. (4 L) vacuum-sealable bag and vacuum sealer

Process in a Nutshell

Time: 3½ hr. active, 12 hr. inactive, 2-4 mo. aging

Steps: Heat milk, add culture, ripen, add rennet, ripen and coagulate, cut curd, heat and stir curd, partial drain, wash, stir and drain, stir, salt, press, store and use

Step by Step

Heat Milk: Pour the milk into the pot, and place the pot over another pot of water on the stovetop. Heat the milk until the temperature reaches 88-90oF (31-32oC).

Add Culture: Sprinkle the culture on top of milk and let set for 3-5 minutes. Using the ladle, stir gently for 2-5 minutes.

Ripen: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 88-90oF (31-32oC), stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes.

Add Calcium Chloride (optional): Stir in the calcium chloride, if using, and let set for 5 minutes.

Add the Rennet: Stir the milk using an up-and-down motion with the ladle. Stop stirring briefly and pour the diluted rennet over the top of the ladle. Begin stirring again for 1 minute. Hold the ladle to the top of the milk in several spots to help still the milk.

Coagulate: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 88-90oF (31-32oC), and let the curd set until a clean break is achieved, about 45 minutes.

Cut Curd: Cut the curd mass into ⅜-inch (1 cm) cubes, and let rest for 5 minutes.

Heat and Stir Curd: Heat the curds very gradually, stirring gently, to 102oF (39oC) over 45 minutes. Maintain the temperature of the curds at 102oF (39oC) and stir for 15 minutes. Let the curds settle for 15-30 minutes.

Partial Drain: Scoop out the whey to 1 inch (2.5 cm) above the curds.

Wash Curd: Stir the curds and slowly add cold tap water (about 60oF [16oC]) until the temperature of the whey reaches 80-86oF (27-30oC). Maintain the temperature and stir for 15 minutes more.

Drain and Stir Curd: Scoop out the whey to the level of curds, and stir for 10 minutes. Position the colander over another pot and carefully pour the curds into the colander and let drain, reserve the whey. Set the colander over a pot of hot water and stir the curd with your hands for 20 minutes, maintaining the temperature of the curds at 80-86oF (27-30oC). Taste the curds; they should be sweet and mild.

Salt: Sprinkle the curds with 1 teaspoon (6 g) of the salt and stir well; the whey coming from the curds will become milky white. Cover the colander and let the curds set for 5-10 minutes. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon (6 g) salt, stir again, and let the curds mellow for 5-10 minutes more.

Press: Place the form on a tray or drainboard, line the form for the press with cheesecloth, and dampen it with a bit of whey. Fill the form with the curds, pressing and packing them in by hand. When all of the curds are packed into the form, fold the cloth over the top, and place the follower on top. Place the form in the press. If your press has a screw with a pressure gauge, start with 10 pounds of pressure. If you are using the strap press, apply pressure just until you see a bit of white whey coming from the bottom of the form. Press for 15 minutes, maintaining room temperature, 68oF-72oF (20oC-22oC), if possible.

Increase the pressure to 20 pounds or tighten the strap until white whey again comes from the bottom of the form. Press for 15 minutes.

Release the pressure and remove the follower. Remove the cheese from the form, unwrap it, and flip it over. Rearrange the cheesecloth in the form, and then replace the cheese, pressing the cloth into the form along with it; the rind should be knobby, and you should still see the outline of all of the curds, but the mass shouldn’t fall apart. If the mass starts to fall apart as you handle it, leave it in the form and increase the pressure for 15 more minutes before turning.

Replace the follower and increase the pressure to 30 pounds or tighten the strap very firmly; there should be a lot of resistance from the cheese without a lot of white whey coming out. Press for 1 hour more.

Repeat the steps again; the rind should be closing nicely with only small outlines of the curd. Rewrap the cheese and replace it in the press. Replace the follower and increase the pressure to 50 pounds or tighten the strap about as tight as you can get it and press for 12 hours or overnight.

Age Vacuum Sealed: Place the cheese in the vacuum-sealable bag, seal it, and place it back in the refrigerator for 2-3 months. Check and taste the cheese weekly, making notes about the flavor and texture, if desired. You may have to vacuum more air out of the bag periodically if it loosens as the cheese shrinks.

Or for Natural Rind Aging: Follow steps on page 110 and age for 2-3 months.

Troubleshooting

See Troubleshooting lessons 14 and 15, page 104, 115.

Recap

You might be wondering how the difference in water temperature of the washed Gouda curds and the washed Colby curds changed the cheeses. In both cases, the removal of whey and its replacement with water helped make the cheese a little more pliable. In the case of Gouda, the hot water helped shrink and cook the curds. In the Colby lesson, the warm curds actually absorbed some of the cooler water and increased the moisture inside the curds so that rather than shrinking them, the water plumps them. This leads to a cheese with a different milder texture and flavor, but one that isn’t a good candidate for long aging. Because the acid content is a little lower and the moisture content a bit higher than many other cheeses, Colby is usually made from pasteurized milk (remember it is acid that keeps the unwanted microbes from growing). I find it interesting that a cheese like Colby that is considered simple actually involves more steps than some other cheeses that age into super-complex delights.

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Pholia Farm’s Covered Bridge cheese uses the Colby recipe but includes an added step during draining and stirring the curds. A dark ale is added to the curds, giving a wonderful flavor to the aged cheese.
The beer bottle shape was embossed into the cheese by making a cutout form from a thin, plastic cutting board and the date was carved into the cheese by hand
.

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Now it’s time to try your hand at making a cheese using a different type of culture and higher temperatures than any of the other rennet-coagulated cheeses we have made so far. Most high-heat cheeses age for long periods of time and are hard in texture, very complex in flavor, and Italian in origin. The cheeses in this group are sometimes called grana, which is Italian for grain. It refers to the tiny curds that are formed during their making and the granular texture of the cheeses when they are cut. Members of this family include the exquisite Parmigiano-Reggiano and Grana Padano. The name “Parmesan” is currently used to describe a number of cheeses that are similar, but not strictly defined. I say “currently” because the Italians are hard at work hoping to protect the identity of their cheese traditions by having the name legally defined. Pecorino Romano, which is made with sheep’s instead of cow’s milk, is much different in texture, thanks to its high fat content, but otherwise similar.

For this recipe, I recommend that you use milk lower in fat than whole milk if you are trying to emulate traditional Parmesan, as it is made with cow’s milk that has had much of the fat removed. This doesn’t make the cheese dry, though, because during aging the proteins break down and create a wonderful texture. You can use any milk, but your results will be different. Hopefully by now you are not too surprised at this and possibly even enjoying the unpredictability of each recipe and type of milk.

What You’ll Need

Milk: 2 gal. (8 L) partly skimmed milk (2-2.8% fat)

Culture: ¼ tsp. (0.5 g) Thermo B

Calcium Chloride (optional): ¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) calcium chloride diluted in ¼ cup (30 ml) cool water

Rennet: ¼ tsp. (1.25 ml) double-strength vegetarian rennet diluted just before use in ¼ cup (30 ml) cool, non-chlorinated water

Salt: Heavy brine (recipe in chapter 4) and pure salt

Utensils: Pot, thermometer, ladle, colander, cheesecloth, tray, mechanical or strap press and form, 1 gal. (4 L) vacuum-sealable bag and vacuum sealer

Process in a Nutshell

Time: 2½ hr. active, 11-17 hr. inactive, 4-12 mo. aging

Steps: Heat milk, add culture, ripen, add rennet, ripen and coagulate, cut and stir curd, heat and stir curd, drain and press, salt, age, store and use

Step by Step

Heat Milk: Pour the milk into the pot, and place the pot over another pot of water on the stovetop. Heat the milk until the temperature reaches 88-90oF (31-32oC).

Add Culture: Sprinkle the culture on top of milk and let set for 3-5 minutes. Using the ladle, stir gently for 2-5 minutes.

Add Calcium Chloride (optional): Stir in the calcium chloride, if using, and let set for 5 minutes.

Add rennet: Stir the milk using an up-and-down motion with the ladle. Stop stirring briefly and pour the diluted rennet over the top of the ladle. Begin stirring again for 1 minute. Hold the ladle to the top of the milk in several spots to help still the milk.

Coagulate: Maintain the temperature of the milk at 88-90oF (31-32oC), and let the curd set until a clean break is achieved, about 30 minutes.

Cut and Stir Curd: Slowly cut the curd mass into ¼-inch (6 mm) cubes over 10 minutes while maintaining the temperature at 88-90oF (31-32oC). Maintain the temperature of the curds and stir gently for 10-15 minutes.

Heat and Stir Curd: Heat the curds very gradually, stirring gently, to 108oF (42oC) over 30 minutes. Maintain the temperature and stir for 5 minutes. Continue stirring and increase the temperature of the curds to 124oF-128oF (51oC-53oC) over 30 minutes. Let settle for 5 minutes.

Drain and Press: Place the form on a tray or drainboard, line the form for the press with cheesecloth, and dampen it with a bit of whey and line with the cheesecloth. Fill the form with the curds, pressing and packing them in by hand. When all of the curds are packed into the form, fold the cloth over the top, and place the follower on top. Place the form in the press. If your press has a screw with a pressure gauge, start with 10 pounds of pressure. If you are using the strap press (see chapter 3 Presses), apply pressure just until you see a bit of white whey coming from the bottom of the form. Press for 15 minutes. The room temperature during draining and pressing should be 68-72oF (20-22oC).

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This beautiful Parmesan-style cheese made by Ian Treuer was aged vacuum sealed for 14 months. It shows the desired grain, or grana, texture typical of a classic Italian cheese. PHOTO BY AND COURTESY OF IAN TREUER

Increase the pressure to 20 pounds or tighten the strap until white whey again comes from the bottom of the form. Press for 15 minutes.

Release the pressure. Remove the cheese from the form, unwrap it, and flip it over. Rearrange the cheesecloth in the form and replace the cheese, pressing the cloth into the form along with it; the rind should be knobby, and you should still see the outline of all of the curds, but the mass shouldn’t fall apart. If the mass starts to fall apart as you handle it, leave it in the form and increase the pressure for 15 more minutes before turning.

Increase the pressure to 30 pounds or tighten the strap very firmly; there should be a lot of resistance from the cheese without a lot of white whey coming out. Press for 1 hour more.

Repeat the steps again; the rind should be closing nicely with only small outlines of the curd. Rewrap the cheese and replace it in the press. Increase the pressure to 50 pounds or tighten the strap about as tight as you can get it and press for 12 hours or overnight.

Remove the cheese from the form, cut off a tiny piece, and taste it. It should have a very mild tang and taste milky with a hint of buttermilk. If it isn’t slightly tangy, press it for 1 hour more and taste it again.

Salt: When you have achieved the desired tang, remove the cheese from the press and place in the container with enough room around all sides for brine. Pour the brine into the container until the cheese floats. Sprinkle a thin layer of salt on top of the cheese. Cover with the lid and let soak for 10 hours. The brine and room temperature should be cool, between 50-60oF (10-15oC).

Age Vacuum Sealed: Pat the cheese dry with paper towels. Place the rack in the tub, place a mat on the rack, and set the cheese on the mat. Put the lid on the tub and place it in a cool place (below 55oF [15oC]) or in the refrigerator or a wine cooler. Flip the cheese daily until the rind dries out a bit, 7-10 days.

Place the cheese in the vacuum-sealable bag, seal it, and place it back in the refrigerator or wine cooler. Check and taste the cheese weekly, making notes about the flavor and texture, if desired. You may have to vacuum more air out of the bag periodically if it loosens as the cheese shrinks.

Age for 4-6 months for a mild cheese and 1 year or more for the most complex results.

Or for Natural Rind Aging: Follow steps on page 110. Rub with a light coat of olive oil at 3 weeks, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks of age and age for 4-6 months for a mild cheese, a year for the most complex results. For aging over 6 months, recipe size should be doubled.

Troubleshooting

Cracks in cheese during brining or aging: Because the curds in grana-style cheeses are so small and dry, it can take a lot of pressure to properly knit them back together. Also, make sure that the room doesn’t cool below the suggested temperature during pressing; warmth will help the curds to knit back together.

See also Troubleshooting in lessons 14 and 15.

Recap

Let’s first compare the amount of rennet used in this recipe to all of the others in this chapter: we used twice as much in this recipe, but the same amount of milk. This is one reason that the coagulation time was only 30 minutes instead of 45 minutes. But the main reason for the shorter coagulation has to do with the amount of protein in the milk. When you use partly skimmed milk, there is less fat in the milk. Less fat, by default, means more protein. During aging, these proteins need a few more enzymes to help them break down; the rennet provides these enzymes.

BONUS RECIPE: WHEY RICOTTA

Let’s tie things together by returning to our first cheese, ricotta, but instead making pure whey ricotta with no added milk or acid. This is truly what ricotta was meant to be: recooked (remember that is what the word ricotta means) whey that produced a curd of tender whey proteins that could be used for cooking. Whey ricotta is a rare thing today; instead, more often the whey is heated and a portion of milk is added to increase the total yield. You can do that too, but why not try it first the way it was intended?

What You’ll Need

Fresh Whey: Any amount from making any of the cheeses in this chapter

Equipment: Pot, thermometer, ladle, cheesecloth-lined sieve

Process in a Nutshell

Time: 15-20 minutes active.

Step by Step

Heat Whey: Pour the whey into the pot and place the pot over high heat. Heat the whey, stirring only occasionally (it won’t burn), until you see tiny white flecks floating to the surface; this usually happens at 175-185oF (79-85oC).

Drain: Remove the pot from the heat and let set for about 10 minutes. Position the sieve over another pot or in the sink. Using the ladle, skim as much of the curd as you can and pour it into the sieve. Skimming, instead of pouring, helps keep the delicate curd from breaking up. Let the curds drain for about 15 minutes.

Chill: Transfer the curds to a container, cover, and chill.

Store and Use: Store the ricotta in the refrigerator for up to 7 days. Use for desserts or in cooking. There isn’t much of a yield, but it is such a unique cheese and such a great example of how heat affects the milk proteins that it is a must for those learning cheesemaking.

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Adding milk to the whey to increase yield and change texture (optional).

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Whey ricotta being scooped from the surface of the hot whey.