Owly055
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I've looked at recipes from numerous sources, and each follows different procedures, and often uses different quantities of ingredients. Feta brine for example ranges from 1/4 cup per quart to 1/8 cup per quart, and sometimes includes vinegar, and other times does not. Culturing and cooking temps and times for various cheeses vary wildly. I find myself building composites of recipes. I like Asher's book, but have no current access to raw milk, so I have to make adjustments by adding calcium chloride based on someone else's recipe. I use kefir for an innoculant, but my kefir culture is extremely aggressive, and of course includes themophilic and mesophilic cultures, so that changes the equation as far as aging times and temps.
It's very like brewing, but without nearly as many ingredient options, but the procedural options are plentiful.
Tomorrow I'm getting together with a lady friend to make Feta, and here is the composite recipe I put together. It doesn't exactly follow what I've done either of the two times I've made it, but I've printed it off and intend to more or less follow it. She tried my first feta and was really excited about it. I've lead her into various interesting endeavors over the years, one of which is not her primary income source. Lapidary and Silversmithing........... Neither of which I do myself, but both of which I have some knowledge and skill at. She's always ready for any adventure I throw her way. At 65, she's more full of life and enthusiasm than any of my younger friends. (I'm just a couple years younger).
H.W.
Feta: One gallon. Yield about 1 lb
¼ cup kefir
liquid rennet 1/8 tsp
calcium chloride for pasteurized milk 3ML (.6 tsp)
Heat milk to 90F
add kefir and calcium chloride.
Allow 1 hour to ripen
Add rennet, and stir for no more than one minute.
Allow to sit undisturbed for 40-60 minutes until there is a clean break
Cut curds into 1/2” cubes. Allow a few minutes between each series of cuts
Let rest for 10 minutes
Stir gently over 30-60 minutes to allow whey to separate and curds to firm to poached egg firmness.
Pour off whey and save for brining
Sprinkle and gently mix 2 tablespoons of salt into curds with your hands.
Let rest for another 10 minutes to allow more whey to come out, gently stirring to prevent clumping.
At this point you can pour curds into a cheese cloth in a colander, or ladle them into a mold.
Hang the cheese cloth bundle over a bowl or the sink, or set the mold on a drain mat.... bamboo sushi mat works well.
Allow to drain and age at room temp for 24 hours. If using a mold, flip the mold every so often, frequently at first, and less frequently later.
After 24 hours, you can cut the cheese up into slabs, and brine it Brine should be ¼ cup salt in a quart of whey, or water......... I've been using half that concentration plus and equal amount of vinegar.
Alternatively you can make an unbrined cheese like Brie at this point if your cheese is molded. The kefir should contain the mold for a white mold cheese like Brie of Camembert. To do this, the cheese should be placed in a closed plastic box, and held at about 50F for 2-3 months. During the first week, wipe the cheese with a clean cloth dampened in a light brine. (1Tablespoon of salt to 1 qt of brine) every two days for the first week. Aging will take 2-3 months at about 50F. The sealed plastic container should have a mat so the cheese is not in contact with the bottom. Being sealed, it will keep the humidity high.
It's very like brewing, but without nearly as many ingredient options, but the procedural options are plentiful.
Tomorrow I'm getting together with a lady friend to make Feta, and here is the composite recipe I put together. It doesn't exactly follow what I've done either of the two times I've made it, but I've printed it off and intend to more or less follow it. She tried my first feta and was really excited about it. I've lead her into various interesting endeavors over the years, one of which is not her primary income source. Lapidary and Silversmithing........... Neither of which I do myself, but both of which I have some knowledge and skill at. She's always ready for any adventure I throw her way. At 65, she's more full of life and enthusiasm than any of my younger friends. (I'm just a couple years younger).
H.W.
Feta: One gallon. Yield about 1 lb
¼ cup kefir
liquid rennet 1/8 tsp
calcium chloride for pasteurized milk 3ML (.6 tsp)
Heat milk to 90F
add kefir and calcium chloride.
Allow 1 hour to ripen
Add rennet, and stir for no more than one minute.
Allow to sit undisturbed for 40-60 minutes until there is a clean break
Cut curds into 1/2” cubes. Allow a few minutes between each series of cuts
Let rest for 10 minutes
Stir gently over 30-60 minutes to allow whey to separate and curds to firm to poached egg firmness.
Pour off whey and save for brining
Sprinkle and gently mix 2 tablespoons of salt into curds with your hands.
Let rest for another 10 minutes to allow more whey to come out, gently stirring to prevent clumping.
At this point you can pour curds into a cheese cloth in a colander, or ladle them into a mold.
Hang the cheese cloth bundle over a bowl or the sink, or set the mold on a drain mat.... bamboo sushi mat works well.
Allow to drain and age at room temp for 24 hours. If using a mold, flip the mold every so often, frequently at first, and less frequently later.
After 24 hours, you can cut the cheese up into slabs, and brine it Brine should be ¼ cup salt in a quart of whey, or water......... I've been using half that concentration plus and equal amount of vinegar.
Alternatively you can make an unbrined cheese like Brie at this point if your cheese is molded. The kefir should contain the mold for a white mold cheese like Brie of Camembert. To do this, the cheese should be placed in a closed plastic box, and held at about 50F for 2-3 months. During the first week, wipe the cheese with a clean cloth dampened in a light brine. (1Tablespoon of salt to 1 qt of brine) every two days for the first week. Aging will take 2-3 months at about 50F. The sealed plastic container should have a mat so the cheese is not in contact with the bottom. Being sealed, it will keep the humidity high.
