HOMEMADE SIMPLE CHEESE

HOMEMADE SIMPLE CHEESE

you need

1 gallon of whole milk

1/2 cup vinegar (can use white or apple cider in this recipe I am using white)

salt

Dutch Oven or stainless Pot with tight lid.

Cheese Cloth and a thin clean kitchen towel

wooden spoon

Weight

Pour 1 gallon of whole milk into your large dutch oven or stainless pot.

Warm the milk over medium high heat until it reaches around 190 F (or a gentle simmer of bubbles right before boiling)

Take off heat and immediately pour in 1/2 cup vinegar. Don’t stir or mash your curds down.

Cover with your lid and let it set and rest for 15 minutes.

take lid off and you should see the curds, don’t stir them. You should see a clear separation of Curds from the Green Whey

Have yourself a bowl with a large colander inside it, lay a thin kitchen towel over the colander then I place a second strainer and lay two pieces of cheese cloth over going the opposite direction.

Bring your pot and carefully and slowly pour your curds and whey into the strainers you have set up, directly over the cheesecloth.

your curds should set up away from the whey.

let it drain about 15-20 minutes.

Now turn on faucet with cold water and run your pan of curds under the water quickly just to rinse a bit of the vinegar taste off the curds.. don’t leave it under there. just a swipe through.

now gather each end of the cheesecloth and twist, add in a wooden spoon and continue to twist the spoon and it will get very tight and will squeeze out more of the whey without straining yourself. do this several times.

open cheesecloth and season your cheese, I am adding salt about 1 1/2 tsp.

mix in with your fingers lightly then twist back up in your cheesecloth get some more moisture out.

shape round or square, keep in the cheesecloth but fold top knot over like wrapping the cheese, to keep wrinkle free

you can set it on a plate or in a pot

then set something very heavy on top ..

Soft Crumbly Cheese like ricotta you press 15-20 minutes

Firm Sliceable Cheese you press for 1- 2 hours

Extra Firm Cheese you press for 3 hours.

Press your cheese at room temperature at first, not in the fridge because cold temps will restrict the moisture drainage.

(you can move your press to inside fridge after 3 hours if you want it harder but don’t leave out on counter any longer because it can grow bacteria)

Once finished pressing you can take off cheesecloth and put in a airtight container wrapped tight in plastic wrap

leave in fridge at least 2 hours before slicing or cutting. This last step helps it to rest and retain shape so it don’t crumble as much.

you can slice it crumble it or fry it. Fresh cheese lasts in fridge for up to a week.