Cheesemakers In Here- Help! I Have A New Addiction

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tielfan, Jul 20, 5:42am
No you are correct, a litre will yield 100gms of cheese and therefore 10 litres a kilogram.It's about making artisnal cheeses, not a block of Mild, so you can see why some of the cheeses on the market are priced so highly.
shop-a-holic, Jul 20, 6:34am
The cheddars that I have made so far, following Mad Millie using 4 litres of whole milk:
First Curd Weigh: Do this to find out how much salt to add, which is 2% of the total weight of curds (before pressing). They were all between 900gms and 1kg.
After pressing: Frist newborn (called Chesney) weighed in at 760gms. His sibling arrived two days later at 670gms. Their new sister (liquid smoke and whole mustards seeds) weighs 730gms.
Aside from that: 4 litres of milk making haloumi, (cost $10) gave my 4 large haloumi cheeses at 200gms each which costs $9-10 per piece at Moore Wilsons. $40 worth for $10.
Same for yield for Feta.
There can be savings made, and unfortuately, not every home kitchen can cope with 10litres of milk, with Kath Mowbreys recipes. Mad Millies use 4 litres, and is managable for all. 10 days to go before I crack into Chesney :-)
shop-a-holic, Jul 20, 6:41am
Katherine Mowbreys recipes use 10 litres of milk to 10mls of Calf Rennet diluted with 10mls water.
Mad Millie recipe says 4 litres of milk to 1ml of Rennet diluted with 4mls water.

I'm wondering if this makes a difference to the density of the curds?
I have no idea!
dinky17, Jul 20, 6:44am
thanks for your input,looks to me cheesemaking is a hobby and every hobby costs money, I never bought any of those fancy cheeses...I am strictly a Tasty and Edam cheese person..lol...
valentino, Jul 20, 10:51pm
Yes, it does. The harder the cheeses required the more rennet is required.

Soft cheeses like Camenbert, Brie, even Stilton or other soft Blue Cheeses uses a lower quantity of rennet compared to the harder cheeses or the more medium harder cheeses.

Like-wise when cutting the curds, size and time of setting of rennet, the time of setting after the cutting of curds whilst still in the whey can also alter the levels of hardness.
davidt4, Jul 20, 11:53pm
Same here.4 litres of milk produces the equivalent of four large blocks of feta at about $8 each, so for $11 worth of milk I get $32 worth of feta. I used to buy Zany Zeus haloumi and feta, and my own versions so far have been easily up to their standard.We get through a lot of both so it won't take too long for the savings to coverthe initial outlay on equipment, and then the only cost will be the milk, the starters and rennet.
valentino, Jul 21, 12:19am
Oh must add,

The longer it is pressed for also increases the dryness.....

The higher the weights or pressure - the harder the cheeses will be.

Hence with cheeses like Parmesan - it is a long time and higher weight pressing to get the hardness of this cheese.

Most variations of cheeses are basically all the same method but using different levels of rennet, setting of rennet, size and time of cutting curds and time resting in the whey, preparing the moulds including method of placing into of, pressure-weights-press time then the maturingness time..... besides the cultures there is one the other item - SALT, very important to know the levels of salting - brining! but that is mainly another part of cheesemaking, at the moment - just referring to hardness and or texture.

Hopes this helps.
ashanti, Jul 21, 4:13am
I have given up making gouda and other long maturing time cheese, it is just too hard for me to control the temp and humidity, still sticking to an easy short cut cheddar that is ready in 3 weeks and my brie, feta, and mizithra, and of course mozzarella.
davidt4, Jul 21, 5:11am
Ashanti, can mizithra be made from pasteurised milk?I love those fresh white Greek and Turkish cheeses, and as you say, they are much more practical domestically than hard cheeses.
kamitchell, Jul 21, 5:52am
Oooh I love cheese too! I have been trying to make my own cheese for a while now, and my cheddars always turn our bitter!!Does anyone on here know why that would be?I make the cheddars with raw jersey cows milk.

Does anyone on here have a good feta recipe that they would share?We have a couple of goats due to kid in a few more weeks, so will soon have plenty of goats milk to play around with .Thanks!
kamitchell, Jul 21, 5:53am
Ashanti, would you share you easy cheddar recipe? A 3 week turn around sounds wonderful!!
ashanti, Jul 21, 9:46am
davidt4, yes it can be made with pasteurised milk, as long as it is not homogenised.
ashanti, Jul 21, 9:50am
easy herbed cheddar
Easy Herbed Cheddar

4 litres non homogenised milk
1 teaspoon rennet mixed with 4 tablespoons cool boiled non chlorinated water
2 tablespoons buttermilk Or 1/8 teaspoon R704 DVS culture as starter
½ tablespoon cheese salt
½ tablespoon dried herbs or masterfoods tuscan seasoning

Heat milk to 36deg Celsius add starter stir well, leave for 45 minutes
Add 1 teaspoon rennet, leave for 1 hour, then cut curd into ½ inch cubes, let rest for 10 minutes.
Slowly heat curds in sink of hot water or over double boiler, to 39 degrees over a period of about 10 minutes, stirring gently so curds don’t mat up, then, leave to rest whilst still over or in hot water for 5 minutes.
Drain curds in butter muslin over a sink of hot water, to keep curds warm, for about an hour.
Next place curds in bowl and break up into thumbnail size pieces. Mix in cheese salt and herbs, mix through well. Place in mold lined with butter muslin, press for 10 minutes at 4kg, then take out, turn over, and press for 20 minutes at 10kg.
Take out again, turn over, and press at 20kg for 16 hours.
Air dry until golden yellow colour, then wax.Cheese will be ready to eat after 3 weeks, but longer is better. Turn every day in your cheese cave.
*Note I used natural bees wax to wax with, but sadly this does not work for cheeses with a longer maturing time, as the beeswax can attract moisture in.
mitchb, Jul 22, 10:07am
hi all I have been thinking about this chessemaking lark for awhile and have just noticed that for 200 Flybuys reward points you can get a Mad Millie Italian cheese making kit.thought that I would throw that in.
zambesi2, Jul 22, 9:57pm
How much are the starter kits to buy?Is Millies the only outlet to sell them?
davidt4, Jul 23, 12:18am
Here's a link to the website.The best value seems to be the One Day Kit for $179 as this provides everything you need to make fresh cheeses and Italian cheeses.

http://www.madmillie.com/store/nz/cheesemaking-kits.html

There is a chain of brewing supplies shops that sells the kits, and many other outlets.Look in the "stockists" page for your area.
dolphin9, Jul 23, 6:26am
I did a day cheese making course to learn how to make brie.Have just made more this week at home so have 4 currently maturing, takes 5 wks.They're doing a hard cheese workshop next year so I'm keen to go along.We were told to always used paserised milk to kill bacteria, but don't use homoginised.if you want to buy the milk in the supermarket, the silver top is non-homoginised.I'm lucky living in a dairy farming community so have access to milk from the farm, but still pasterise it before I use it.
buzzy110, Aug 17, 5:55am
Another convert here. I made a batch of haloumi which is just fantastic. I store mine in vacuum packs. First I slice to size, wrap in glad and freeze for a few hours then seal in a vacuum bag.

Today I also made my very first batch of cultured butter. It is glorious.

I've been lucky enough to find an excellent source of Jersey cow milk and cream. I feel so blessed and cannot wait to spread my wings with different types of cheese.

I just now need to find some decent recipes for using up the cultured buttermilk that is left over from the butter making.
ruby19, Aug 17, 6:31am
I agree, the haloumi, is fantastic, and you can get a bit of riccotta out of the whey. So much more satisfying when you know you have made it, and family and friends are amazed at quality :-)
Buzzy I have found if kept in a salt brine it keeps very well, mind you we probably eat in in about a week. Must whip another batch, and give the feta a go.
brajama, Aug 18, 7:32am
.Cool, Thanks heaps Mitchb.Have just ordered one.
seaturtle, Aug 18, 6:51pm
Has any one had a go at using other milks like sheep or goat or even soy to make cheese at home!
Questions that I have if you have are
can you use the boxed long life goat milk , what soya milk to use
what cheeses did you make and how did they turn out
thanks in advance
jed, Aug 21, 12:21am
Yay, have just purchased a kit with my Flybuy Points.Can't wait to get started.Where do you store the cheese while it is maturing!
davidt4, Aug 21, 12:46am
Jed, I suggest that you start off with the simple fresh cheeses such as feta, haloumi and mozzarella, and move on to matured cheeses once you get comfortable with the processes involved.

To mature cheeses you need controlled temperature and humidity - a cheese safe is ideal, or a fridge that has been modified to operate at the correct temperature (not as cold as a normal fridge).

It's a very exciting pastime; do report on your results.

It's useful to read as much as you can about the cheese-making process, as there are all sorts of variables.For example, the Mad Millie instructions all involve heating the milk in a microwave, but I don't do this.Instead I heat the milk very gently in a pan submerged in simmering water.
goatchickens, Aug 23, 9:02pm
The Mad Millie kit is ok, but you really don't need a kit or anything fancy at all to make cheese at home.I've been making goat and cow's milk cheese for going on 14 years now, and back when I started there was nothing anywhere, just bits and pieces I picked up from books, and the occasional internet posting.The Fankhauser site someone linked above is invaluable, and he uses just basics around his home to make all his cheeses.The only 'special' things you need are a good, immersible thermometer and the cheese cultures and bacteria for some cheeses.And even then, you can make your own cultures at home as well (instructions on the Fankhauser site).You can make all your own gear as well, from very basic stuff.Not exactly flash, but definitely works!

Quick Mozz -- stir 1.5 teas citric acid (dilute in 1/4 cup cool water) into 4 liters room temp milk.Heat to 31C.Add 2 tsp junket rennet (dilute in 1/4 cup cool water), stir in.Heat further to 38-40C.Remove from heat.Curds should pull away from sides of pot at this stage.THey should look like really thick yoghurt, and the whey should be clear, not milky (if it is, heat a few more minutes).

Take curds out of pot with a slotted spoon (you don't want any of the whey), into a microwave-safe bowl (I use a big 8 cup glass measuring bowl).Microwave on high for a minute.Wearing clean washing up gloves (you will burn your hands if you don't!), knead and gently stretch the curds, and drain the whey that comes out.Nuke for 30 seconds more, and repeat last step.Nuke one more time for 30 seconds more, and knead again, and at this stage you can add some salt and knead it in if you wish.I put in about 1/2 - 1 tsp sea salt.You can pull apart and form small balls and eat warm, or cool quickly in ice water, and store in the fridge in the leftover chilled whey.
kscott3, Aug 29, 5:10am
To make the $39 soft cheese or Italian cheese from thekit . do you have to get the basic equipment set !