I’ve mucked about with cheese making for a while with limited success. Finally I’ve cracked it with this mozzarella recipe. What I have learnt:
- Don’t use tap water, make the effort to buy bottled water.
- Don’t use supermarket milk.
- Use rennet that is in date.
- Keep trying.
Mozzarella Recipe
Serves 1 large ball
Ingredients
- 2.25 litres raw or only lightly pasteurised milk, not supermarket milk
- 1 tsp citric acid dissolved in 25ml mineral water, not tap water
- 1/2 tsp liquid rennet dissolved in 25ml mineral water
- 1-2 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Put citric acid and the milk in the large pan. Heat to 31ºC, then remove from the heat and add the rennet. Stir for 20 seconds, put on the lid and leave for 20 minutes.
- Cut the curds in 3cm squares.
- Heat up the pan to 42ºC, stirring gently.
- Turn off the heat and leave for 20 minutes.
- Drain the curds into the sieve, leave for 15 minutes.
- Scoop the curds into the glass bowl.
- Put the curd bowl into the microwave for 30 seconds.
- Put on the gloves or, using the slotted spoon, gently press the curds into a bowl shape, removing and draining the whey.
- Microwave again for 15 seconds. Repeat the squeezing, draining the whey.
- Add the salt and microwave a third time for 15 seconds.
- Now knead and stretch the curds until they form a ball, working the cheese until it has a smooth shiny surface.
The whey can be used to make ricotta or cooled down and used as plant feed.
I tried to make Brunost which is a whey based Norwegian cheese but I failed. (Literally I spent days on this boiling it down, only to get a brown puddle).
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