Homemade cheese?

[49erinnc]

Was watching Food Network last night and there was a show on cheeses. The host made his mom's cheese recipe and it looked incredibly simple. He basically brought milk + half/half to a boil, added white vinegar and then scooped out the curd. Strained it in a cheesecloth, mixed in some chopped sun dried tomatoes/fresh basil and compressed into a round container. Chilled for 8 hours and served.

Is it that simplistic to come away with a good result? And how do you get the texture to appear/feel more solid. His was formed well but you could see every individual piece of curd. Also, will there even be any true cheese flavor in fresh cheese or is aging required?

 

[IceBergSLiM]

i :heart: cheeses

good cheese typically need some aging

 

[frankgomez75]

don't wash feet for 2 weeks....
mmmmmmmmmm........ toe cheese

 

[Descartes]

I used to make simpler cheeses (cream cheese, mascarpone, fromage blanc, and other soft cheeses).

Generally speaking, the type of the milk (sheep, goat, cow), bacteria and/or enzymes used in aging (if any), the brine solution, etc. ultimately determine whether or not you get that "true cheese flavor" (and by that I'm assumine you're referring to something more along the lines of a cheddar). Aging is a lot more laborious as you generally need a lot more equipment (e.g. cheese press), patience and time (to store the cheese, brine bath, etc.).

It's a lot of fun, so I would recommend it. This is the book I used and it told me just about everything I needed to know; the rest is experience.

Good luck!

 

[Tom]

i think to get different kinds of cheese, you have to use different kinds of bacteria to start the process, than age it in various ways.

But the way you describe is probably a way to make something like ricotta or cottage cheese, or maybe mozarella.

 

[AbsolutDealage]

Yes, I have done it before, and yes, it is that easy. All cheese starts out this way (although most commercial applications will use rennin or some other coagulant instead of vinegar).

To get a firmer texture, you need to apply more weight for a longer period with better drainage than he did. That's pretty much all there is to it.

Oh, and the flavor... it's what you would call a "young cheese", in that it still contains quite a bit of moisture. Obviously, dry aging the cheese would impart an even firmer texture and more flavor, but this homemade version still tastes like you would expect.

For more info, try and download the Good Eats episode "Say Cheese!" (also listed on Tivo as "Cheese: Good Milk Gone Bad").

 

[49erinnc]

Yes, it looks like a lot of fun and something I wouldn't mind experimenting with. I tried the homemade beer route once and that was a major PITA for me, with poor results. But the cheese process seems to be a bit easier and more managable for me.

I think I'd like to just start out with the "early" cheeses as I saw on the show before aging, which would eventually be the goal.

Thanks for the book link and I'll check out the Good Eats (Alton is great!) episode.

BTW, where's the best/cheapest place to pick up cheese cloth? Can you get that at most grocery stores/Walmarts, etc.? Obviously, something I've never had to consider buying before.