cutting the curd

BASIC CHEESE MAKING

FOR ONE GALLON MILK

David B. Fankhauser, Ph.D. 
Professor of Biology and Chemistry 
University of Cincinnati Clermont College 
Batavia OH 45103
finished curds
Coagulated milk is cut into 
roughly 1/2 inch cubes
22 Feb. 1982, rvsd 24 Feb. 92, 5 Aug. 98, 24 Oct. 98, 5 Dec 98, 23 Mar 99, 7 Jan 00, 3 Aug. 02

This page has been accessed Counter times since 26 July 2002.
The cut curd is warmed and stirred 
to allow it to contract, expressing the whey

If this is the first time you are making cheese, here are the major stages of cheese making:


ACTION:
PURPOSE:
1)  Inoculate, incubate the milk bacteria slightly acidify (ferment) the milk so that the rennet will act on the milk
2)  Add the rennet,  achieve a clean break rennet (a digestive enzyme) digests casein, causing it to become insoluble in water and coagulate.
3)  Cut and set the curd coagulated milk is cut into cubes and warmed to contract the curds ("curds and whey")
4)  Separate and salt the curd whey is poured off the "curds and whey," and the curds are salted to preserve them
5)  Press the curds salted curds are loaded into a press which presses out the whey and gives form to the cheese
6)  Cure the cheese, wax it cheese is dried out and bacteria act on the curds to change their taste and consistency. 
It may be waxed to prevent undesirable dehydration and excessive microbial growth.

One gallon of milk yields about one pound of cheese.  You may use any kind of milk for this recipe.  I primarily use my own fresh goats' milk, but have made it quite successfully with cow's milk from the grocery, and even better with raw cow's milk from a local farmer. Once you have master this one gallon recipe, follow the 5 gallon recipe to make a larger wheel of cheese.

INGREDIENTS TO TURN ONE GALLON OF MILK INTO ONE POUND OF CHEESE

one gallon freshest milk (the fewer bacteria present, the more predictable the cheese)
2-3 teaspoonfuls buttermilk (or 1/3rd cup yogurt )
1/4 tablet rennet   (Here is the front and back of the rennet package.)
salt
APPARATUS PROCEDURE
  1. INOCULATE THE MILK:  The evening before you plan to make cheese, warm 1 gallon of the freshest milk to 20oC (68 o F) in the sterilized pot. Thoroughly blend in the inoculum of  2-3 tsp buttermilk or 1/3rd cup yogurt as starter . Cover the inoculated milk with the sterilized lid. (The function of this inoculation with bacterial starter is to have the milk fermenting bacteria make lactic acid which lowers the pH so that the rennet will be able to act on the casein.)
  2. INCUBATE OVER NIGHT:   Let sit at room temperature (R.T.) overnight (20-22oC).
  3. WARM THE MILK:  The next morning, warm milk up to 30 oC (take care not to burn it). Meanwhile, dissolve ¼ tablet of Rennet in ¼ cup cold water .  (This pictures shows a whole tablet being added to water).
  4. ADD THE RENNET:   Add dissolved rennet to the warmed milk , stir to mix thoroughly. Cover, let sit undisturbed for approximately an hour.  Be patient.  Do not disturb the milk until it has coagulated.
  5. ACHIEVE A CLEAN BREAK:  Test for completed action of rennet ( "clean break "): Probe a clean finger into the (hopefully) gelled milk and lift. If the gel is firm enough to break cleanly as the finger is lifted, go to next step. (If the milk is gelatenous and flows across your finger , let sit until a clean break is obtained. Do not stir. This may take as long as 1-2 hours.) Be patient, do NOT disturb the milk.  (Here is a link to trouble shoot "clean break" failure .)
  6. CUT THE CURD:  Once a clean break is achieved, cut the curd with a long knife : begin at edge of pot, cut straight down to bottom. Cut repeatedly parallel to first cut, but increasing the angle of the knife until reaching other side of pot. Rotate the pot 90 degrees, cut as before . Rotate and cut two more times, yielding ½ inch cubes of curd .
  7. SETTING THE CURD (RAISE AND HOLD THE TEMPERATURE):  Place pot over a low fire, stir curd with cleaned bare hand by reaching down to bottom, gently lifting and stirring . Cut larger curds as they appear. Do not mash or squeeze. If you wish to save some soft cottage cheese, remove a portion of the curd at this step before you raise the temperature.  Continue stirring for 15 min to prevent the curds from clumping together. Heat curds to 34oC (92o F) for soft curd cheese, or as high as 39oC (102oF) for very firm cheese. The setting temperature makes a great deal of difference in the consistency of the curd/cheese.
  8. SEPARATE CURDS AND WHEY:  Stir and maintain desired temperature until curd has contracted to consistency of firm scrambled eggs . Remove from stove. The curds should sink in whey. (Ops, did they float3 ?)  Decant off when through a strainer (you may line the strainer with clean cloth if the curd is very fine grained ). Save the whey for ricotta if you like. Place curds in a large bowl .
  9. ADD SALT:   Sprinkle two tsp. salt over curds, working with hands to mix . Pour off accumulated whey. (The salt is necessary so that the cheese will not spoil as it cures. I tried it without salt and it spoiled. However, unsalted, uncured cheese may be frozen until use.)
  10. PRESS THE CHEESE :  Use sterile large white handkerchief to line a smooth-sided 4" x 5" tin can from which both ends have been removed. Place still-warm curds in the cloth , cover curd with the corners of the cloth, lie the cut-out end of the can on top, and place heavy weight to press down. Let sit for 12 hours or so.
  11. CURE THE CHEESE:  The next AM, remove from press, remove cloth, rub outside of cheese with salt and rewrap with fresh handkerchief. Place wrapped cheese on a rack in the refrigerator. Replace "bandage" daily (as long as it continues to become wet). When a dry yellowish rind forms (about one to two weeks), dip in melted wax , store in refrigerator for about a month (if you can wait that long) or longer for sharper cheese.


    12. 1  Avoid aluminum pots, the acid will dissolve them and possibly overload you with aluminum.
    2  Sterilize the pot just before use by pouring ½ inch of water in the bottom, covering, and bring to a rolling boil for at least five minutes. Pour out the water, replace sterile lid, keep sterilized pot covered until you are ready to add the milk.
    3  If the curds float, you have a gas-producing contaminant in your starter or your milk was contaminated. You need to pay closer attention to handling your milk, and/or purchase fresh starter. The bacteria which form bubbles may be a form of Escherichia. However, it does not necessarily ruin the cheese, but does make it iffy. Many CO2 formers are non-pathogenic.   Indeed, you might WANT bubbles in your finished cheese. Think about Swiss cheese... However, to be safe, age your cheese for at least two months because pathogens do not survive this extended aging. In addition, you will have a little more difficulty separating the curds from the whey if the curds float.

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