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Post by steveinpa on May 21, 2017 18:31:21 GMT
I figured instead of glomming onto the other thread I would start this one. Thanks for the recipe in the other one! I am ordering some things from amazon and needed to come up with a few more to get free shipping. Great! I will order some rennet. Then I remembered some recipes call for a culture. A quick search for cheddar curds recipe brought me to this page. The author of that recipe says you can use buttermilk instead. since we almost always have buttermilk in the house that would be one less thing I need. Is it true and will that recipe work? |
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Post by steveinpa on May 21, 2017 18:44:08 GMT
Thank you! I may go 50/50 fresh milk. There's a farm next to where I work that sells it.
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Post by feather on May 21, 2017 18:53:39 GMT
I get the organic vegetable rennet off amazon, in the directions on the bottle you only use 1/6th of a teaspoon for 2 gallons of milk, that is triple rennet (even though it lists it as 1X). To see that information, scroll down the page to where it gives more information about the product, or look at the bottle for the directions. Or use animal rennet, or use double strength vegetable rennet, or use rennet tablets (the longest lasting if kept dry and cool). Lots of choices. Get some CaCl2 which is calcium chloride, liquid or dry crystals, if you are using pasteurized milk. Yes for the culture use 1/4 to 1/2 cup buttermilk per gallon, or same amount of kefir. Different places on the web will say 1/4 cup, others 1/2 cup. Either will probably work just fine. The recipe looks good, it should work. Ask questions and I'll pop in as well as others to help out. (we are especially good at the eating and tasting part of that duty)  OH! Also, if you want your curds to be orange, buy some annatto cheese coloring on amazon. Make sure you use distilled non chlorinated water for any part of the recipe. Cheese salt is any salt that is iodine free, you can use table salt without iodine in it, that's what I use. Good luck and we want pictures steveinpa, ! |
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Post by steveinpa on Jan 7, 2019 18:44:34 GMT
Ok, I still haven't done this but I think it will be happening very soon. My daughter has been asking about making cheese and my wife got an Instant Pot for Christmas.
That combination may finally bring it together at my house.
I'm researching the Instant Pot option since it has a Yogurt Making setting.
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Post by feather on Jan 7, 2019 19:01:19 GMT
I'm excited for you. I have no experience with instapots, so nothing from me. I used an electric roaster to get my milk to the right temperature.
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Post by steveinpa on Jan 13, 2019 18:05:05 GMT
We made this yesterday. Taste is good, but the texture isn't what I had hoped for. It's more like a cheese-flavored marshmallow. Not sure where things went wrong or even if they went wrong. More calcium maybe? They were thoroughly drained.
Instant pot worked out really well. It has a sous vide setting but the lowest I could set the temp was 104. I just let it come up to the recommended temp, then shut it off. The IP is so well insulated that it maintained temp, much like using the roaster I'm sure.
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Post by steveinpa on Jan 13, 2019 18:09:56 GMT
 After allowing the curd to set. The temp probe "hole" is clearly visible.  Cut the curds  Whey separating  Remove curds from whey. I wish I had cheesecloth for this.  Initial "lump" removed from colunder before cutting in half and draining more  Cutting the slab after several hours of draining  Ready to salt and eat! |
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Post by feather on Jan 13, 2019 18:23:13 GMT
Wow steveinpa, you did great! I don't know if you did this, but, after you drain the curds from the collander (then cut/turn over/cut/etc) if you keep them warm through this stage, they lose more whey during that time (they flatten out a bit). So keeping them at a similar temp 104 deg F during that time, with cloth or covered over a bucket of warm whey, they sink down more. I loved all the pictures, everything looks great! Did you like the taste? I usually had liked them better after 24 hours, the taste got more tangy. |
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Post by feather on Jan 13, 2019 18:26:40 GMT
steveinpa, I've an extra yard of cheese cloth. I can put it in an envelope and mail it to you. Just PM me your address and I'll send it out.
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Post by steveinpa on Jan 13, 2019 20:39:42 GMT
Wow steveinpa , you did great! I don't know if you did this, but, after you drain the curds from the collander (then cut/turn over/cut/etc) if you keep them warm through this stage, they lose more whey during that time (they flatten out a bit). So keeping them at a similar temp 104 deg F during that time, with cloth or covered over a bucket of warm whey, they sink down more. Yes. In the instructions I posted the author recommended cutting the slab in half and covering it with a ziploc full of water on the colander. 2 hours of flipping/rotating the slabs before I cut them. Thanks for the cheesecloth offer. I believe I can get it locally but I appreciate the offer. Any ideas what caused the marshmallow texture? They do taste really good. |
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Post by feather on Jan 13, 2019 20:53:42 GMT
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Post by steveinpa on Jan 14, 2019 19:56:02 GMT
After 2 days in the fridge, the texture and taste has changed just like you described. Much more like I remember. The squeak is gone but I'm ok with that.
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Post by feather on Jan 14, 2019 19:59:24 GMT
After 2 days in the fridge, the texture and taste has changed just like you described. Much more like I remember. The squeak is gone but I'm ok with that. Yay! I found if I put them in the microwave for a few seconds, they get squeeky again, at least temporarily if they are warm. Sounds like you had a success.
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