cookingmama
Assistant Cook
- Joined
- Dec 18, 2009
- Messages
- 7
Recently, I've been watching videos on youtube about how to make homemade cheese (many have called it "farmer's cheese" - it's meant to be consumed immediately or very soon after making...not aged).
I finally made my first batch tonight - the recipe was 1/2 gal. pasture-raised, raw cows milk, 2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar, plus salt and herbs for seasoning.
I followed the directions - cooking the milk just to about 190f and then adding the vinegar, stirring until the curds separated and then straining in a colander with cheesecloth. The taste is pretty bland, which I guess I expected, since I did not add cultures, but...the curds seem quite tough. I've never tried this before, so I have no experience to draw on, but I expected something much softer like ricotta or cottage cheese.
any tips? is the toughness of the curds a sign of overcooking or some other user error, or is this just normal?
I have the cheese hanging in cheese cloth suspended from a rack in my refrigerator. I plan on letting it sit overnight and then having cheese and crackers tomorrow. Hopefully it's not inedible.
I finally made my first batch tonight - the recipe was 1/2 gal. pasture-raised, raw cows milk, 2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar, plus salt and herbs for seasoning.
I followed the directions - cooking the milk just to about 190f and then adding the vinegar, stirring until the curds separated and then straining in a colander with cheesecloth. The taste is pretty bland, which I guess I expected, since I did not add cultures, but...the curds seem quite tough. I've never tried this before, so I have no experience to draw on, but I expected something much softer like ricotta or cottage cheese.
any tips? is the toughness of the curds a sign of overcooking or some other user error, or is this just normal?
I have the cheese hanging in cheese cloth suspended from a rack in my refrigerator. I plan on letting it sit overnight and then having cheese and crackers tomorrow. Hopefully it's not inedible.