Wiki: Body Defects, Rubbery

Rubbery is a term describing a cheeses ability to stretch and return to shape, i.e. the bendability of a young Gouda cheese. This is different from plasticity which is the cheese’s ability to stretch but not return to shape, i.e common with warm mozzarella. Body poor rubbery defects are primarily an issue for Washed Curd type cheeses such as Gouda and Edam. This article discusses a description and causes and solutions organized by root cause.

Description

  • Texture of finished cheese is too rubbery.

Rennet

Causes

  • Excessive amount of rennet used in coagulation phase.

Solutions

  • Current batch, none.
  • For future makes, reduce amount of rennet to correct amount.

Coagulation Temperature

Causes

  • Overheating during making stage.

Solutions

  • Apply correct temperature control during coagulation phase of make.

Improper Washing

Causes

  • If washed curd type cheese, incorrect amount of whey removal and replacement by warm water or incorrect amount of stirring or time during washing.

Solutions

  • Current batch, none.
  • For future washed curd type cheese batches, adjust amount of whey removal and replacement by warm water up or down or amount of stirring or time during washing to obtain more or less rubbery final cheese.

Wiki: Body Defects, Plasticity

Body poor plasticity (stretchability) defects are primarily an issue for Pasta Filata (pulled) type cheeses such as Mozzarella and Washed Curd type cheeses such as Gouda and Edam. This article discusses a description and causes and solutions organized by root cause.

Description

  • Cheese will not stretch, has low plasticity.

Incorrect pH

Causes

  • Acidity level was not within 5.0-5.2 range.

Solutions

  • For current make, if acidity level is too low (pH > 5.2), then if direct acidifying, add more acid (i.e. acetic or citric), if acidifying via lactic acid producing starter culture, then ripen the curd longer.
  • For future makes, if acidity level was too high (pH < 5.0), then if direct acidifying, reduce amount of acid, if acidifying via starter culture then shorten the ripening time of the curd.

Wiki: Body Defects, Moist

Body excessive moisture defects of cheese are common and can be associated with most cheese types. This article provides a description and some common causes and solutions organized by root cause.

Description

  • Texture of body of cheese is too moist and thus too soft.

Rennet

Causes

  • Too little rennet used and thus too much whey retained in the curds.

Solutions

  • For current batch, try to dehydrate by lowering storage environment humidity. Note, too quick dehydration can result in surface cracking.
  • For future batches, use appropriate amount of rennet.

Improper Cut Curds Stage

Causes

  • Curds cut into too large pieces or stirred too little or for too short a time or at too low a temperature resulting in excessive whey retained in the final curds.
  • Cut curds warmed too rapidly which initially cause rapid expulsion of whey from surface of cut curds but then results in the dehydrated layer inhibiting further expulsion of whey from interior of the cut curd piece.

Solutions

  • Cut curds into size, and/or stir more often and for longer time, and/or at temperature dictated by the cheese making recipe/method.
  • Warm cut curds slower at rate dictated by the cheese making recipe/method.

pH Too High

Causes

  • Acidity level in cheese is not high enough

Solutions

  • For current batch, ripen longer.
  • For future makes, use more starter.

Poor Pressing

Causes

  • For pressed cheeses, inadequate pressing (pressure and/or time and/or temperature) resulting in excess moisture held in body of cheese. Note that the intent of pressing is to remove voids between the cut curds, ensure a good knit of the cut curds and to form a dehydrated layer of curds at the cheeses surface to act as a tough rind, it is not to expel excess whey, that is done in the curd forming stage.
  • Some formed cheeses are not pressed when made commercially or by artisans, however if large, they are actually pressed using their own weight. For example commercial Stilton cylinders are typically 8 kg / 17 lbs and are formed by turning the cut curds in large hoops where the cheeses own weight acts to lightly press the cheese. Scaled down such cheeses to smaller makes requires light pressing to arrive at the optimal moisture content.

Solutions

  • For current batch, try to dehydrate by lowering storage environment humidity. Note, too quick dehydration can result in surface cracking.
  • For future pressed cheese makes, use amount of pressure and/or time and/or temperature determined in cheese making recipe/method.
  • For future normally pressed by own weight type cheeses, apply light pressing dependant on batch size.

Poor Aging Environment

Causes

  • If formed cheese, aging environment’s humidity is too high resulting in excessive moisture retention in cheese.

Solutions

  • If formed cheese, reduce aging environment’s humidity to enable more dehydration of cheese.

Wiki: Body Defects, Mechanical Holes

Swollen and barrel shapped yeast contaminated Cheddar.

Body mechanical holes defects of cheese are normally associated with rennet coagulated pressed cheeses can appear in other cheese types. Some cheeses (like Swiss) intentionally develop fairly evenly spaced round-spherical holes commonly called eyes. Most unwanted mechanical openings are irregular shaped and randomly distributed. This article is not for intentional eyes but for unwanted mechanical openings and includes a description and causes and solutions organized by root cause.

Description

  • Body of cheese has unwanted irregular shaped and randomly distributed mechanical holes. These may shrink or disappear if a cheese is partially dehydrated during aging as the cheese shrinks in size.

Yeast Contamination

Swollen and barrel shapped yeast contaminated Cheddar.
Swollen and barrel shapped yeast contaminated Cheddar.

Cause

  • Yeast contamination of curds during cheese making phase causing the production of carbon dioxide gas within the cheese resulting in yeasty smell, unwanted holes, cheese feeling “spongey”, and in extreme cases the cheese swelling significantly. While the resultant cheese may be edible, it will generally have unwanted texture or flavour.

Solution

  • There is no solution for current batch of cheese.
  • The solution for future cheese making is better sanitation, remove sources of yeast (do not make bread at same time as making curds and forming cheese).

Coloform Contamination

Cause

  • Coliform is a bacteria found in feces that has contaminated the milk and thus the cheese curd. It normally results in random somewhat roundish holes in the cheese body (such as from uneven pressing) and in a bad sourish smell.

Solution

  • There is no solution for current batch of cheese.
  • The solution for future cheese making is better sanitation.

BAB Contamination

  • ‘Late Blowing’ or excessive eye formation is a defect caused by the growth of butyric acid bacteria (BAB), mainly Clostridium tyrobutyricum, normally after 4-6 weeks of ripening. The defect can vary from slight gas formation and slightly larger eyes than normal with almost no perceivable off-taste, to very intensive gas production resulting in a higher number of large eyes, cheeses torn open and a clearly perceivable taste of butyric acid.
  • Brine-salted cheeses such as washed curd cheeses are particularly sensitive to `late blowing’ due to the time it takes the salt to diffuse from the exterior to the middle and resulting in a sufficiently high salt concentration to inhibit germination of Cl. tyrobutyricum spores.

Poor Pressing

Natural rind 4 pound Gouda inadequatly pressed resulting in mechanical holes.
Natural rind 4 pound Gouda inadequatly pressed resulting in mechanical holes.

Cause

  • During pressing stage of cheese making, temperature was too high or pressure was too low or time was too short resulting in poor removal of holes between curds. Normally occurs on harder curd cheeses.

Solution

  • Press at temperature or pressure or duration as per recipe/method for cheese type.

Wiki: Body Defects, Dry

Excessively dry bodies of cheese are normally associated with rennet coagulated pressed cheeses although it happen on other cheese types. This article provides a description, causes and solutions organized by root problem to unwanted dry bodies of cheeses.

Description

  • Texture of cheese is too dry from low moisture content and thus excessively hard or tough.

Rennet

Cause

  • Too much rennet used resulting in excessive whey expelled from curds.

Solution

  • Reduce amount of rennet used.

Curd Cutting

Cause

  • Curds cut into too small pieces resulting in excessive whey expelled from curds.

Solution

  • Cut curds into larger size.

Curd Stirring

Cause

  • Cut curds stirred excessively or for too long or at too high a temperature resulting in excessive whey removed form curds.

Solution

  • Reduce amount of stirring of cut curds or reduce time or reduce temperature.

pH Too Low

Cause

  • Cheese is too acidic.

Solution

  • Ripen for less time or add less starter culture.

Poor Environment

Cause

  • If natural rind, ripening/aging environment’s humidity is too low.

Solution

  • Increase humidity during aging, or semi seal rind by oiling or seal rind by vacuum bagging or waxing.

Wiki: Body Defects, Cracks

Body crack defects of cheese are normally associated with rennet coagulated pressed cheeses although they can happen on other cheese types. This article provides a description and cause for cracks to appear in the body of cheeses.

Description

  • Body, interior of cheese has unwanted cracks.

Causes

  • Temperature during aging was too high causing air in internal fissures to expand resulting in cracks in final cheese.