My other favorite cheese "no rinse"

[Deleted]

This is a rich, flavorful cheese. I age it 60 to 90 days, but I made lots and lots of it last lactation and had enough that I was able to let some age for six and seven months. It just gets better and better with age.

Very simple.

I will use a 2 gallon recipe for ease of explanation.

Bring milk to room temperature or use milk straight from the cow.

You can take the cream from chilled milk first, or leave it in. I make it both ways and label it so I know how I did it.

Add four ounces of culture or one packet of Direct Set culture. (Keeping in mind the necessity of stirring your own culture until it is lump free before adding it to the milk.)

Cover and leave for one hour to two hours. I aim for one hour, but ......

Mix 1/2 tsp of rennet with 1/4 cup cool water and add to the milk.

Leave for about an hour.

Cut the curd. Leave it for 1/2 hour or longer.

Stir and cut any large curds that stir up.

For the next four to five hours, give the curds a stir everytime you think of it - aiming for every twenty minutes or so.
This is how it looks between stirrings:


Don't drain. Don't rinse. Just stir, stir, stir. Sometimes, it can get to be an hour between stirrings here. If the curds have clumped some, I break them up with the spoon.
This is how it looks when you have stirred it.


This is what the curds will look like when they are "done" and ready for the press.


When the curds are ready, drain off the whey and add 3 tablespoons of salt. Line the mold with cheesecloth and spoon in the salted curds. Press one time for 18 to 24 hours at 40 to 50 pounds. Remove from the press and air dry in the refr. for a couple days, or until dry enough to wax.

Wax and age for 60 to 90 days. (I am hoarding a few that have now gone past 12 months.)

Everything you do different will give this cheese its variations. Leaving the cream in makes a different cheese than when you take out the cream. Longer culturing time changes it some, too.

Review:

Room temp. milk.
culture
wait
rennet
wait
cut curd
wait
stir, stir, stir, stir, stir, stir...........
salt
mold
press
dry
wax

As you would imagine, not rinsing the curd (like in the other cheese) -which dilutes the whey that the curds are sitting in during the make - imparts an intensity of flavor to this cheese.
The curds sit in the same whey from the time it is cut to the time it is drained.

Hopefully, I will come back and edit this post by putting in the pictures that I have in PhotoBucket.

homestead2

[Liz]

Thanks Homestead!!

Do you always use Meso. culture, or have you tried any others?

I love the easy, no fuss cheese recipes! It has given me alot of confidence in cheesemaking.

Liz

[Deleted]

I use the thermophilic culture for the Parmesean, Swiss, Mozz. that take the higher temperatures for the make.

Because I don't make as many of those cheeses, I freeze the culture as soon as I make it, or it goes bad in the refr. before I can get it all used up.

homestead2

[Liz]

Thanks Homestead for all the great recipes and tips. I have 5 waxed cheeses now and cottage cheese in the fridge! What a wonderful feeling! I had to trim off a bit of the no rinse cheese and wow was it flavorful!

I do have a question about the cheesecloth. What is its exact purpose in the press? I seem to end up with cheese that looks like brain coral when I take it out, due to the cheesecloth getting all crumpled up. Any suggestions?

Have a great day, and when you write your cheesemaking book I want to buy a copy!

Liz

[hazelsmilker]

This is a lot like the jack cheese I make based
(more and more loosely) on RC's recipe. The
curds and whey in that recipe are heated to
100 F. Do you just leave the curds and whey
at room temperature?

Thanks for posting, I just started making cheese
again this week.

Mina

[Deleted]

Two things:

1. cheesecloth question. The curds will squeeze out the holes in your press without the cheesecloth. To keep the cheesecloth from crumpling up on the sides as it presses, I line my press with the cheesecloth and put my curds in and let it sit and settle for a few minutes, as long as fifteen minutes. (I get sidetracked, so it is often much longer.)

Then I come along and gather the edges of the cheese cloth up and pull up the sides to take out the slack before I put the follower and weights on. I always lay the excess cheesecloth as neatly on the top of the curds as I can so I don't get the dips and uneven surface on top where the cheesecloth laid all wadded up.

2. temperature. other than letting the milk that I have taken out of the refr. sit in a sink of warm water to bring it to room temp, I use no heat at any point in the making of these two cheeses ( the "washed curd" and the "no rinse".)

homestead2

[hazelsmilker]

Instead of cheesecloth, sometimes I use the cotton knit
stockings that are sold in the local brewing store as hop
bags. My mother calls them jelly bags; they were formerly
used to strain juice for jelly I think. If you can get these,
they are easier to use than cheesecloth in the press as there
is less extra stuff to fold over at the top.

Today I'm making the "no rinse"; tomorrow perhaps I'll try
the rinsed curds.

Mina

[Lesli]

Liz if you are handy with a sewing machine I guess you could make some muslin "fitted" cheese bags that might be easier to use. They would be reuseable. My sewing machine is not working properly right now and needs parts, but I think that might be a good idea myself...

[Liz]

That does sound like it would be alot better than dealing with all the cheesecloth folded up.
Our press does not have holes so I could just skip it too I guess. (drains out the bottom, cheesypress)
I am still figuring it all out! I do know I love homestead's recipes and am now willing to try experimenting with others.
Liz

[Joann]

Homestead, I really look forward to trying this cheese. Thanks for posting.

I have been searching for a recipe for havarti. You once mentioned making it. Any chance you could post instructions for it?

I have worked out a way of lining my press with recycled 6.5" milk filters. I cut off one edge and set them in wet so they overlap like fish scales. I use two or three on the top and bottom trimmed to the right size to set under the follower.. This results in a smooth cheese.

Joann

[hazelsmilker]

Joann,

I ordered Havarti starter from a company in Canada last month just so I could get
a recipe. They sent me the following. I haven't tried it yet. (I'm planning to rewrite it
in 'homier' terms.) I would be very appreciative if Homestead2 has a recipe to share!

Mina


Process guidelines for Havarti 45+
(blocks/loafs of approx. 2.5 kg)

Raw material raw milk

Standardization to 2.9 – 3.5 % fat depending on the protein content

Heating 72 – 75 C (161 – 167 F) for 16 – 30 sec. or 145 for 30 minutes

Cooling to renneting temperature: 30 – 32 C (86 – 90 F).

Inoculation 0.7 – 1 % Probat 505 bulk starter or Probat 222 (5 u / 500 Lt. 130 gal. - direct set)

Addition of CaCl2 approx. 20 gr. / 100 Lt.

Preripening to pH 6.50

Renneting 2 – 3 gr. pure calf rennet powder (Renco) or RenNet 1 gr/100 Ltr

Coagulation setting time: 15 – 18 min
Coagulation time : 30 – 40 min.
Cutting curd grain diameter: green pea to hazelnut size
(approx. 0.5 – 1 cm3)
Setting 5 – 10 min.

Stirring 20 – 30 min.

Separating draw of whey, 30 – 40 %

Stirring 10 –15 min.

Scalding (cooking) addition of water: 15 % +_ 3 % of hot water (temp. depending on amount of vat milk)
Scalding : to 38 C (100 F) , within 15 – 25 min.
Final stirring 40 – 50 min. (addition of 100 – 200 gr. of NaCl. / 100 Lt. cheese milk if dry salting is desired).
Filling into forms (hoops)

Pressing depending on equipment, e.g. 15 min. 0.3 – 0.6 bar (1 bar atmospheric pressure)
Room temp. 25 C, frequently is not pressed but just turned, thus pH of the cheese must be 5.3 +-0.15 before brine bath and 5.505 +- 0.1 after brine bath)



Brining pH before brine bath : 5.2 +- 0.1
21 +- 21 °Beume, 15 +- 3 C (59 F), pH 5,05 +- 0.1 (can be more acid than the cheese) concentrated salt solution
salting time : 24 – 54 h. depending on weight
pH after brine bath : 5.10 – 5.15
Smearing dipping or spraying red smear solution (liquid culture in 5 volumes of 3 % NaCl solution), during initial ripening smearing must be repeated twice.
Ripening The first two weeks at 15 +- 3 C, 95 – 100 % RH (relative humidity)
Cheese must be treated with red smear twice a week until a nice closed but not too thick layer of redsmear has developed.
(B. linens)
The next two – 6 weeks at 12 – 14 C, 85 – 90 % RH.
Packaging After washing and drying

Storage at 6 C
Mild type > 5 weeks
Medium > 3 month
Sharp > 6 month

Production of bulk starter:

Medium skimmilk or VIS-START MB 70 (media)

Heating at 90 – 95 C ( 194 – 203 F) for approx. 30 min.

Cooling to 22 C (72 F)

Inoculation 1 x Probat 505 Visbyvac B 1000 per 1,000 Lt. (264 gal.)

Incubation at 22 C (72 F) in 18 h. to pH 4.65 +- 0.10

Cooling to 4 – 8 C (39 – 46 F)

[Joann]

Thanks, Hazelsmilker. I'm relieved to know that I am not the only one who found the havarti recipe to be elusive. You were clever to obtain this recipe - even though it is giving me brain cramps. Let's hope Homestead has a homestead translation.
\Joann

[hazelsmilker]

Thanks Joann; when you asked I realized that most likely
there was not a home recipe easily available that I just hadn't
been able to find. Made me feel
a little less silly having the accompanying commercial starter
(enough for 264 gallons of milk!) sitting in the back frig waiting for
me to decipher the recipe.
Mina

[jean]

Oh, this reminds me of two questions I wanted to ask.

1) Should the pot of curds be covered in between stirrings? If so, with what? Pot lid, clean tea towel, .....?

2) My husband and I both love sharp cheese, the sharper the better. What will generally result in cheeses that are sharper rather than milder? Longer culturing, longer aging, what?

Thank you so much! It's so helpful to learn from someone with experience.

[Deleted]

If I am going to be out of the kitchen or house, I will place a big dish towel over the pot, but that is only for protection from any insect landing in there.

I opened a cheese made with this recipe the other day that was 17 months old and I would say it was a little sharper than some of the younger cheeses. So, maybe age was why.

homestead2

[Lannie]

Homestead, I can't thank you enough for all the cheese recipes you've shared. They beat all the other recipes I had hands down. ;D

I was curious, though, about the air drying for the hard cheese. I'm making my first actual hard cheese attempt and found out that I have an insufficient cheese press, so I guess it will be going in lasagna instead of being waxed and aged. Tastes fabulous already, though! Anyway, is the air drying in the fridge covered or uncovered? I have a big Rubbermaid container that I was going to use to put my drying cheeses in and it has a lid. I'm thinking I probably wouldn't want to seal it up completely, right? Right now I have it just sort of sloppily set over the top, but should it be off completely?

Regarding the cheese press, my hubby, Rich, made me one out of some stuff he had lying around, and although it's absolutely gorgeous, it's too small and there's not a way to put enough weight on it. I think it would be good if I wanted to form a softer cheese, like Panir or feta or something, but not a hard cheese. So he's going to make me a new one and before he knocks himself out making something else that might not work, I'd appreciate any tips on what's essential for a homemade cheese press. He was going to make me a box out of wood so I'd have a rectangular brick of finished cheese, but then I was reading that wood isn't a good thing to use because it will absorb whey over time. So now he's thinking of some PVC pipe and a tile for the base, or plexiglass.

Also, I read somewhere that holes in the side of the mold will make the cheese "brittle," whereas you'd get better texture if there were only drain holes around the outside bottom edge. Does anyone know if this is true?

I know, this is too many questions, but I'm also having trouble finding good pictures online (I'm Googly-challenged!). We don't have a lot of money, so I hate having Rich have to re-do a project that he's spent time and money on. He pretends his feelings aren't hurt, but you know...

Help??

~Lannie

[hazelsmilker]

The problem with PVC pipe is that chemicals from the PVC can leach into the cheese. These chemicals are fat soluble, so it's a lot worse to use PVC for your cheese than your water. Can you find something stainless steel that will work for a mold? I found a couple of ss steamers at thrift stores that are great for 2-3 pound cheeses. One just has holes in the bottom; the other has a few holes in the side as well. The sides need to be approximately straight so that you can turn the cheese. If you could also find some sports weights at the thrift store, all it would take would be a decent follower and a rig to stack the weights on the follower without toppling. (I sometimes use a butter dish for a follower and a gallon jar of water for the weight.) If you want a free-form rustic cheese you could wrap it really tight in a butter muslin and weigh it down with a big clean rock on a plank. Regarding the holes; I have a mold I use for my 4 to 7 pound cheeses that has lots of little holes on the sides. It hasn't been a problem; I've made some wonderful cheeses. Once you get the hang of it you'll find that cheese making is quite forgiving. Your mold for softer cheeses will be convenient to have. It's nice to press cream cheeses a bit after draining.

Here's to good eating! Mina

[Deleted]

Lannie,

I have my cheeses drying in the refrigerator uncovered. It is only for a couple days to get them dry enough to wax. I flip them once to makes sure top and bottom are dry.

I try not to let them go too long in the drying, as they can get dryer than I like.

I lay them on the bamboo mats or on a stainless steel grid that I have.

homestead2

[Lannie]

OK, uncovered. Got it, thanks!

And no PVC. Check. I'll look for one of those steamer inserts next month when we go shopping. I know I've seen the straight sided ones, just can't remember where.

I decided to use my "failed" cheese last night in lasagna. I even made my own noodles with my own eggs and some flour. Talk about lasagna from scratch! If it were summer, I would have made my own tomato sauce, too. Anyway, I slopped that half-runny cheese over the noodles and covered it with sauce, and after it came out of the oven, you couldn't tell it wasn't mozzarella! Well, it had a bit more tooth than moz would have had, but boy oh boy, was it GOOD!

Just goes to show you, there's no such thing as failure, only happy accidents. ;D

~Lannie

[lindag]

Homestead2,
Do you use heat with this recipe? Maybe that was a given; but I am a novice so I need explicit instructions as to whether you heat the curds and at what temp.
Thanks,
lindag