Farmhouse cheese
This recipe comes from Katherine Mowbray’s Cheesemaking at Home. I highly recommend getting your hands on a copy.
BASIC RULES OF ENGAGEMENT IN CHEESE-MAKING:
• Sterilise everything constantly. We use boiling water.
• Temperatures are not creative measurements – get yourself a good thermometer.
• Invest in some moulds, a metal bucket that fits inside a big pot as a water bath (for us this is a spare milking bucket) and some muslin.
This recipe uses added culture which you can find at most bulk food places. Natural cheesemaking doesn’t, but that’s a story for another day.
INGREDIENTS:
10 litres milk ⅛ tsp R704 culture. This is available at most whole food stores/Bin Inns 10ml rennet. These are enzymes produced in the stomachs of ruminant mammals. Available at whole food stores or Bin Inns. (Can be substituted for 5ml vegetable coagulant) 1.5 tbsp fine salt Olive Oil Flavours such as bay leaf, chilli, garlic
METHOD:
Day 1:
1 Heat 10 litres of milk to 32°C in a water bath.
2 Add R704 culture.
3 Add 10ml rennet diluted in 10ml of boiled cooled water.
4 Leave to set in the warm water bath for about 45 minutes until firm.
5 Cut the curd with a long knife into cubes (backwards and forwards and across).
6 Leave for five minutes then gradually heat to between 35°C and 38°C. Keep a close eye on the temperature here, this should be a slow process that takes about 30 minutes. Stir gently until the curd becomes firm and elastic.
7 Leave again for five minutes.
8 Drain by placing a sterilised cheesecloth or muslin (you can use chux cloth as well) over a rectangle frame or mould.
Using a sterilised sieve, ladle the curd onto the cloth.
9 Fold the cloth over the top and then add weights (we use sterilised cans). Press for 20 to 30 minutes until the curd knits together.
10 After removing the weights, sprinkle salt over all the surfaces and leave covered with the cheesecloth overnight. We do this out of the fridge but in a cool place.
Day 2:
1 Cut the cheese into ten pieces. Sprinkle with salt and rub in, especially on cut surfaces. To increase acidity, leave at room temperature on a draining board, covered in a clean cloth.
Day 3:
1 Cut into cubes and store in oil in jars. Make sure the cheese is completely covered. You can add flavourings such as peppercorns, bay leaves, or chillies. We store it in the chiller or in a cool place like a cellar. Eat it straight away or after a few months when the flavourings have had a chance to imbue the cheese. •