Author Topic: Curds turned to liquid?!  (Read 3055 times)

relaxis

  • Guest
Curds turned to liquid?!
« on: December 05, 2012, 07:29:38 PM »
Hi, I'm new on the forums, but am desperate for a solution.

I bought some lactoferm freeze dried cheese culture, added it to milk and added rennet. I then put it in my cheese incubator for 20 hours and I got a good seperation of curd and whey, but when i put the pot in the drain position and left it for 6 hours, the curd turned out to be like philadelphia. I added salt and chilli to it in a seperate bowl thinking that it just needed pressing, but mixing it all, it just turned into a liquid!

I've put it into a cheesecloth folded over about 4 times and put it back into the draining pot to see if it just needs draining some more, but I really have no idea what is going on here!

Thanks.

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #1 on: December 05, 2012, 07:34:56 PM »
What cheese are you making?

relaxis

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #2 on: December 05, 2012, 08:05:51 PM »
lol sorry, cheddar.

bbracken677

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #3 on: December 05, 2012, 08:11:02 PM »
What recipe?   From your original post that doesn't sound anything like cheddar.

relaxis

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #4 on: December 05, 2012, 08:13:06 PM »
Well, it's half and half of 2 recipes. One from a friend and the other from the book that the cheese incubator came with.

In any case, the idea is to end up with a hard cheese - I'll be happy if I get even that result!

bbracken677

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #5 on: December 05, 2012, 08:32:42 PM »
You should search the forum for cheddar recipes...
Until you are making successful cheeses I would lay off the additives (chili). Just a suggestion.


Sailor Con Queso

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #6 on: December 05, 2012, 08:51:13 PM »
That is NOT a cheddar recipe.

margaretsmall

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #7 on: December 05, 2012, 08:52:12 PM »
Could you tell us what the cheese incubator is like? It sounds a bit like a yogurt maker; you won't be able to make  cheddar in something like this, only cream cheese.
Margaret

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #8 on: December 05, 2012, 09:01:40 PM »
Please find a cheddar recipe that looks good to you (many on here) and post it, and then try to make it, and then post your results. What you made is not cheddar, as everyone has said.


margaretsmall

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #10 on: December 05, 2012, 09:37:10 PM »
A nifty device, but it wont make cheddar I'm sorry to say. It's for fromage blanc which can be aged for a short time to make a somewhat firmer cheese (as the instructions say) but cheddar and most other cheeses need a different process. As for the fact that it turned to liquid, I know when I make yogurt it's quite set in the pot, but when I turn it into another container it becomes much softer. So stirring in the additives might be the reason yours became liquified. Don't give up - your gadget will be useful for making soft cheese and yogurt and mother cultures when you get into the 'real' cheesemaking.
Margaret

iratherfly

  • Guest
Re: Curds turned to liquid?!
« Reply #11 on: December 05, 2012, 10:06:13 PM »
I agree, this is really a yogurt maker with fromage blanc moulds and cultures. To that end though... your description sounds like a good fromage blanc which is delicious spread on crackers or with herbs, or served with fruits or made into dips. You won't be able to make cheddar in this however. That's an entirely different process that requires rennet, far more milk, very short ripening (nothing even close to 20 hours), cutting and stacking of drained curd and then pressing it.  You may be able to hack some goat cheeses (including the ones you can age) with this nifty device though.  Did you get it in France?  Where are you located?