Lancashire Cheese

[lew92]

This is a cheddar-style cheese that is meant to be eaten young - anywhere from 4-12 weeks, though the longer you age it, the sharper it becomes. It is a moist cheese, so aging it beyond 12 weeks will result in it going downhill and becoming sour/bitter. If you keep any of it longer, I recommend vacuum sealing it and storing it at normal fridge temps, rather than in the cave.

Lancashire
Recipe from 200 Easy Homemade Cheese Recipes by Debra Amrein-Boyes
(My notes are in parenthesis)

14 quarts whole milk
2 quarts partly skimmed (2%) milk (I use a total of 5 gallons whole milk when sharemilking because the creamline is not great)
1/2 tsp mesophilic culture (I use 1 2/3 cup cultured buttermilk)
1/2 tsp calcium chloride (not necessary if using raw milk)
1/2 tsp liquid rennet (I use 1/8 tsp powdered calf rennet - go according to your package directions for the volume of milk)
3 tbsp pickling or kosher salt (I use 4 tbsp kosher salt)
White or cider vinegar

1) Blend milks and warm to 88* F, stirring gently. Turn off heat.

2) Sprinkle culture over surface of milk and let stand for about 5 minutes to rehydrate. Using skimmer and an up-and-down motion, gently draw culture down into milk without breaking surface of milk. Cover and let ripen for 45 minutes, maintaining the temperature at 88* F.

3) Dilute calcium chloride, if using, in 1/4 cup cool water. Add to milk using the same up-and-down motion.

4) Dilute rennet in 1/4 cup cool water. Add to milk using the same up-and-down motion to draw the rennet down into the milk until well blended. Use skimmer to stop the motion of the milk. Cover pot and let set for 50 minutes, maintaining the temperature.

5) Check for a clean break. If necessary, let set for another 5-10 minutes or until clean break is achieved. Using a long-bladed knife and skimmer, cut curd into 3/8 inch pieces, using the skimmer to lift and move the curds gently to ensure all are cut. Let curds stand for 5 minutes to firm up.

6) Stir curds for 10 minutes until they release more whey, become firmer and float freely in the whey. Let settle about 5 minutes.

7) Pour contents of pot into a cloth-lined colander. Return curds to pot and press down with your hand to knit them together. (I twist the cheesecloth around the curd to expel some more whey and to help them knit.) Put the lid back on the pot to keep the curds warm. (I run some hot water in the sink and place a weight on top of the lid to help keep the curds warm). Let stand for 15 minutes. Turn the cake of curd over and hold for 15 more minutes. (Mine tends to break - just do the best you can)

8) Cut cake of curd in half and pile one piece on top of the other in the pot. Cover and hold for another 15 minutes. The two halves will knit together into one piece.

9) Place curd on a cutting board and cut into 1-inch by 1/2 inch pieces (I cut into cubes roughly 1 x 1/2 x 1/2). Place in a bowl and toss with salt.

10) Fill prepared mold with curds. Pull cloth up neatly around curds and fold excess snugly over the top, with as few wrinkles as possible. Put on the lid. Place mold on a rack in a draining container and let drain overnight. (this last sentence is the thing I did differently the second time - I put the mold directly into the cheese press. I won't do the overnight draining again.)

11) In the morning (or right away if you like) place mold in cheese press at medium pressure (I use 20 lbs) for one hour. Remove from press and re-dress the wheel of cheese. Continue pressing at medium to firm pressure (I use 40 lbs) for six hours (I've gone as long as 8 hours overnight).

12) remove cheese from press. Unwrap and place on a cheese mat in a ripening container. Ripen at 54* to 60* F at 85 - 90% humidity for 4 to 8 weeks, depending upon your taste. Turn cheese daily for the first week, then twice weekly thereafter. If mold appears, wipe rind with a cloth dipped in vinegar. (I find that kosher salt works well to scrub mold off, then I wipe down with cider vinegar.)

Let me know if you try this cheese and what you think of it.

[skibunny]

Thanks lew92, you suggested in another thread clabber or store bought buttermilk for mesophilic and yoghurt for thermophilic. I have seen this elsewhere on the forum too, I am very interested in the idea as it is a drag always having to get hold of the cultures and keeping them fresh etc plus the cost. Much more 'self sufficient' too.
I am busy trying to clabber (store bought raw milk as no milk cows yet) according to instructions elsewhere on this forum. First try didn't work out, it was fizzy (!) as I did it with the lid on - I hadn't read all the threads - so fed it to the chickens. I have not seen buttermilk in the shops here (France) but am going to give this cheese a go as soon as I manage clabber (or if the buttermilk in the freezer turns out to be ok).

[skibunny]

Quick question - what size mold do you use for this?

[lew92]

My mold is six inches across and approximately 8 inches tall. The cheese ends up being about the same height and width.

[sweetiepie]

I made this cheese today and it is in the press. Question, do you wax this after 5 days or a week? Or since it can be eaten in a month do you not? I have a cream wax and a hard wax I could use. But if it doesn't need it, that's great too. Thanks again for the great recipes. I love the 4 gallon thing.

[lew92]

No, I just continue to age it in the ripening box until I'm not able to keep control of the mold. Then I move it into the regular cave. If it starts getting dry, I coat it with lard or butter. I've never waxed a Lancashire.

@zinnia, Lancashire develops flavor more quickly than Derby does, at least with the recipes I use.

[sweetiepie]

Jun 26, 2014 17:42:20 GMT -5 lew92 said:

No, I just continue to age it in the ripening box until I'm not able to keep control of the mold. Then I move it into the regular cave. If it starts getting dry, I coat it with lard or butter. I've never waxed a Lancashire.

@zinnia, Lancashire develops flavor more quickly than Derby does, at least with the recipes I use.

You use a ripening box and that is how you avoid bugs, (gnats, flys) and such from getting on your cheese. How much do you love your ripening box?  Is it worth getting?  Or can I smear cheese wax cream on it and call it good?

[lew92]

No, a ripening box is a box that is used within the cheese cave. I made mine with a small, lidded plastic container. I use the "egg crate" plastic grid made for fluorescent light fixtures as a riser in the bottom (to keep the cheese out of any moisture that may collect on the bottom), then a piece of plastic cross stitch grid on top of that as a cheese mat - otherwise the egg crate tends to grow into the cheese, not so good.

The ripening box has a higher humidity level and helps the cheese develop a really nice natural rind. Monitor the moisture levels, though. If moisture collects on the lid or sides of the box, remove everything and wipe the moisture out. Put everything back in and leave the lid slightly askew so a bit of the moisture escapes.

It is still necessary to use a cave - an atmosphere where you can control the temperature and humidity levels to some degree.

I think it cost me less than $10 to make the ripening box, including the 2x4 foot piece of egg crate and a 6 sheet package of plastic matting - the extras are used for other projects. I love the rind that forms on cheeses when using a ripening box - it is almost suede-like and quite thin, so I lose a lot less cheese to dryness.

[sweetiepie]

Thank you for putting up with me.

I am using a dorm frig for my cave but if I start putting containers in there I will run out of room fast. I hate to use the frig in the far away garage because when we butcher that is where we cool our meat. Butcher season is fast approaching. Might have to find another cheap frig, at the rate I am making cheese. Though with all this rain, the humidity in my basement is high and it might be cool enough until summer starts to hit. Wait we aren't having summer here, I keep forgetting.

[skibunny]

I just made this cheese. I had to scale it down somewhat as my mold and press are quite small. V excited! Looking forward to tasting it!
I hope you don't mind that I put the scaled down (and metric) version in my blog - but linked the recipe here and explained what I had done.
You can see it here laviealapetiteferme.blogspot.co.uk/2014/06/lancashire-cheese.html
I need to make some more now so that some of them get a chance to age a but more - and a cheddar and a no rinse cheese I saw somewhere from Homestead and one from a book I have and LOADS of different things...

[lew92]

sweetiepie, no worries! I also use a dorm fridge and have containers that will just fit in. I can have two containers and two other wheels of cheese in the fridge. Normally, though, I have a blend of longer and shorter aging cheeses, so the shorter aged ones get vac sealed and put in the regular fridge if I run out of room.

skibunny, no problem with putting it on your blog and making the metric conversions. The recipe I posted originally came from 200 Easy cheese recipes, but I noted my changes, wanting to honor the original. When I make cheese, I normally try to follow the recipe pretty closely the first time I make it, then after that I can get pretty sporadic. I've made a few changes that I really, really like and incorporate those into my makes from that point on.

That's how "new" cheese varieties get invented, after all!

[skibunny]

Thanks lew92, I'll get back in a while when we have tasted it

[sweetiepie]

So I have about a week of aging on the cheese. I turned it every other day and wipe off the mold with vinegar. I made two sets and have each in containers in my basement. Temp is about 60. The cheese is getting soft and slimy. When you pick it up you can put your finger into it. What have I done wrong? Does the container need to have air to it. I wipe the moisture out each time I turn it.

[aprilm]

Do you dry your cheese at room temp before putting it in the ripening box or does it to straight from press to ripening box?

[sweetiepie]

I dry at room temp for 5 days turning and drying the cheese mat and board as needed at least once a day before I put it in the container. The container is just a tupperware cake container.

[aprilm]

Thanks

[lew92]

Jul 19, 2014 22:03:05 GMT -5 sweetiepie said:

So I have about a week of aging on the cheese. I turned it every other day and wipe off the mold with vinegar. I made two sets and have each in containers in my basement. Temp is about 60. The cheese is getting soft and slimy. When you pick it up you can put your finger into it. What have I done wrong? Does the container need to have air to it. I wipe the moisture out each time I turn it.

Your temps are too high and your cheese is starting to rot. Sorry!

It really needs to be aged at about 50-52 degrees. If you con't have a place to keep it at that, you can age it in the container in your regular fridge. It will just take about twice as long to age it there, as the colder temps will slow down the work of the cultures.

Before I had a mini fridge (no freezer compartment), I aged in a cabinet in my basement over the winter months (usually about 55 degrees, so still a touch warm) and in the regular fridge from April to November.

It just makes the waiting a LOT longer!

[lew92]

Jul 20, 2014 8:32:25 GMT -5 aprilm said:

Do you dry your cheese at room temp before putting it in the ripening box or does it to straight from press to ripening box?

I dry at room temp until the underside is just barely damp when I turn it over. The length of time is all dependent upon the ambient temperature and humidity levels.

[gadjowheel]

Jun 25, 2014 7:13:07 GMT -5 skibunny said:

Thanks lew92, you suggested in another thread clabber or store bought buttermilk for mesophilic and yoghurt for thermophilic. I have seen this elsewhere on the forum too, I am very interested in the idea as it is a drag always having to get hold of the cultures and keeping them fresh etc plus the cost. Much more 'self sufficient' too.
I am busy trying to clabber (store bought raw milk as no milk cows yet) according to instructions elsewhere on this forum. First try didn't work out, it was fizzy (!) as I did it with the lid on - I hadn't read all the threads - so fed it to the chickens. I have not seen buttermilk in the shops here (France) but am going to give this cheese a go as soon as I manage clabber (or if the buttermilk in the freezer turns out to be ok).

Skibunny, when you clabber you are dealing with a really wild host of unknown mesos.  Thermo is the same, but the temps involved in thermo will tend to isolate out only the most favorable strains for your make - for me, it's Beaufort, with a make temp ramped to about 124F - after a few generations of making the thermo starter from raw milk. 

With clabber, in my experience, you need to do several generations of clabbers in a row, in order to develop a pure enough strain of your driving LAB to proceed to an actual cheese make.  For British types, the principal bacterias are the mesos Lactococcus lactis and Lactococcus cremoris (type "O" starter).  This will not produce any CO2, which is a sign of citrate metabolism (as opposed to straight lactose metabolism).  Off notes or traits - like your CO2 development - indicate something other than a useable, pure enough starter.  Eventually, if you proceeded to use this clabber in your make conditions (say, 88F starter in, cook to 102F, etc.), then the optimum starter for your make would show itself and you'd have a workable clabber for production.  Sometimes you get lucky and that can be right away, or a few generations of taking a small bit of your culture, inoculating a fresh amount of raw milk, and incubation (and, ideally, cooking to your preferred make temperatures).  Many times, though, you could be looking at upwards of twenty generations or more, to get a workable culture. 

So I'd suggest buying a pure culture to get you jump started with your milk, make your cheese, then use some of that curd to inoculate a "starter" raw milk to clabber.  The pure culture just gives you a head start on beating off undesired species/strains.  Eventually, as I mentioned above, you will get your desired culture anyway, if you hold to consistent make conditions of temp and time.

The problem with clabber - or (thermophilic) whey culture, which is what I make and use and what is used in traditional alpine cheesemaking - is that unless you're making your cheese regularly, maintaining the proper ratio of strains endemic to your preferred cheese (in your case, Lancashire), can be very difficult.  Even making a mother culture and freezing this - you change the ratios, as some strains are more cold-labile (some strains can handle cold better than others), and this can alter your culture pool. 

Anyway, just some thoughts.  Developing a good clabber can be really fun, though.  Just recommend some patience, meticulous handling (when you have a mature cheese or culture pool to work with, it tends to be a bit easier as the strains in the mix have already proven themselves to be "fighters" that can outcompete a bunch of would-be microbiological contaminants), and regular making, if you want to "count" on your existing clabber.  Much easier to do this with thermophilic cheeses!

Hope this is helpful.

Edit:  Oops. Though buttermilk is a meso culture often used in farmhouse makes, be mindful that buttermilk is basically an "O" culture type, with the addition of L. diacetylactis and Leuconostoc cremoris, two "buttery" species due to diacetyl production (as well as acetaldehyde).  These also produce CO2, again due to citrate metabolism.  Not quite the right choice for British makes, in my opinion.

[skibunny]

Thanks gadjowheel, lots of interesting information. I will have to read it several more times and google a lot of stuff
For the moment I am sticking with 'proper' starters until I have the hang of things a bit more, but I enjoy experimenting so will come back to the clabber thing. I have a sour dough starter for bread which I love even though it doesn't always go as reliably as quick yeast. It just seems much more hands on somehow.