Author Topic: camembert opened up, no slip skin!  (Read 5791 times)

meyerandray

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camembert opened up, no slip skin!
« on: April 20, 2013, 07:44:23 AM »
I have 4 camembert that are currently wrapped in foil in their own container in the fridge at 4 degrees, and when I turned them this morning, I noticed that if I squeeze the sides, there is a little room between the skin and the inside, I think this is the beginning of slip skin.  I know that a lot of the changes need to be made during the make, but any last-second advice on how I can salvage these little guys?  They were made on the 5th, in the cave until Monday the 15th morning.  They have been in the fridge for 5 days.  Help us please :)
« Last Edit: April 25, 2013, 07:45:17 AM by meyerandray »

Offline Tiarella

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Re: camembert starting to get slip skin, emergency intervention needed!
« Reply #1 on: April 20, 2013, 10:35:51 AM »
Hi Celine!  Sorry that the make isn't heading towards your exact desired outcome.  Sounds to me that slipskin is already in full force.  It doesn't mean the cheese won't be incredibly tasty though.  I think next time it might help to have cooler temps, pat down the PC to slow it down and I bet there's a couple of other shifts that people with more experience could share.  Take photos and post when you open them.

Good luck!  Hope your need for spring weather is being met over there.  We're finally getting it here.   :)
Kathrin

bbracken677

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Re: camembert starting to get slip skin, emergency intervention needed!
« Reply #2 on: April 20, 2013, 01:03:47 PM »
I find it very odd that slipskin is occurring at 4C (39F) since slipskin is normally associated with much higher temps.

You say you have them wrapped in foil...may I ask what kind of foil?  Cams should be able to breathe, specially during the ripening phase. Normally I just leave mine in the container with the top cracked as needed to maintain RH of 95ish %, at 10C.

It may be possible, if you are using aluminum foil, that they are unable to breather properly and are building up ammonia inside the foil wrapping which may exacerbate the situation. Although at 4C it would seem to me that ripening would be taking place at a very slow pace....

Tomer1

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Re: camembert starting to get slip skin, emergency intervention needed!
« Reply #3 on: April 20, 2013, 04:19:24 PM »
Did you put it in the cool fridge stright after PC coverage or ?  if many days later its possible that slip skin has already begon developing and eventually the rind seperated.

meyerandray

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Re: camembert starting to get slip skin, emergency intervention needed!
« Reply #4 on: April 20, 2013, 06:54:17 PM »
Unfortunately we had a bad storm and WiFi is down, and I can't upload a little video I made of me squeezing a form. I don't think this started before being moved to the colder fridge, I wrapped and put in the regular fridge as soon as (well a half day later) I had a full coverage of pc. I am not positive it is slip skin, I could be paranoid because of all of the horror stories I have read on here, but when I squeeze the sides, I can see a small raise, wave-like near the edge. Is there anything I can do at this point? The foil I have used is regular aluminium foil, should I use wax paper instead? I am worried that if I leave it unwrapped like bbracken suggested that my slip skin problem may be accelerated.

bbracken677

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Re: camembert starting to get slip skin, emergency intervention needed!
« Reply #5 on: April 20, 2013, 10:49:37 PM »
That may not be slip skin at all, but rather the natural development of the paste. The cheese ripens from the outside in.

I have always found my cams to develop in such a way that the outside edge corners are tougher and raise up as you describe as it ripens.  You may very well be perfectly fine.

meyerandray

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Re: camembert starting to get slip skin, emergency intervention needed!
« Reply #6 on: April 21, 2013, 07:46:41 AM »
Music to my ears! I'll definitely keep you posted, I can't wait to taste them!Celine

meyerandray

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pc4CHsRWJgE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Here is a link to the video, does this look like good old  natural development?
When should I open these guys up? 4-6 weeks from make day, or 4-6 weeks from when they went in the cold fridge?

bbracken677

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you may possibly have some, but it is not bad, from what I could see....

How does it feel in the center of the cam?  Almost ready?

I would place them in a plastic container instead of the foil wrap to allow them to "breathe" a little. If they can sit on something porous to allow some air movement under and around them would be optimal.  Maintain RH at 95ish % and temp as close to 50F as possible. If you are in a regular fridge then likely you will get the closest temp in the lowest location.

meyerandray

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Ok, I unwrapped them. In the center they don't feel ready at all.  I have them up on these plastic raised grates, which don't let as much air circulate as I would like, but I am still in search of something better.  I can't find any of those rigid, holey plastic mats you all seem to have :( 
I am a little worried that my humidity in the tupperware is slightly too high, I dry it everyday, and only have slight beading on the side of the plastic container that is closest to the back of the fridge, but I just get the feeling that a couple of % less would be ideal.  I'll keep an eye on it and hopefully they won't be a liquid mess in the middle!!  On a brighter note, I cut open a crottin tonight that is DELICIOUS!!  But that I will write about in my crottin post...
Thanks for the advice, I'm keeping my hopes up :)
Celine

meyerandray

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Re: camembert opened up, no slip skin!
« Reply #10 on: April 25, 2013, 07:49:26 AM »
I opened one up, an although I think they will be better in a week or so, I was thrilled to se no slip skin. It tastes like a brie, not a camembert, but I'll take what I can!

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Re: camembert opened up, no slip skin!
« Reply #11 on: April 25, 2013, 11:24:02 AM »
Congratulations!  I think it's turned into a Brie because cams are a different height/width ratio.  I've read that you need a taller, skinnier form for the cam development.  Nice cheese!  hope you like Brie.   :D. it's one of my favorites and there's a New England creamery that makes a "Camembrie" that was my favorite cheese before I started making my own.  it is a Brie size ratio with a stronger Cam flavor mixed in. 

Offline Boofer

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Re: camembert opened up, no slip skin!
« Reply #12 on: April 25, 2013, 02:04:37 PM »
Wow, good-looking Brie! Have a cheese.  :)

-Boofer-
Let's ferment something!
Bread, beer, wine, cheese...it's all good.

meyerandray

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Re: camembert opened up, no slip skin!
« Reply #13 on: April 25, 2013, 05:54:58 PM »
Thanks for the cheese Boofer!  We brought it to our friend's where we went for a BBQ today (national holiday today) and everyone really liked it, although I don't think everyone knew that I had made it-but that just added to my satisfaction, the fact that it could be mistaken for a purhased product!  The cheese from Boofer is just the cherry on top.
The flavor was not exclusively brie, it was a little bit sharper, but I wouldn't compare it to a camembert.  The texture is right on, which makes me think that the other three will have to be consumed pretty quickly?  My husband's aunt and uncle are coming from South Africa to visit on the 14th of May, and I really wanted to have a nice, varied, homemade cheese plate for them to taste, but will it last that much longer?
Celine
PS anyone know what the difference between a camembert and a brie are during the make?

bbracken677

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Re: camembert opened up, no slip skin!
« Reply #14 on: April 25, 2013, 06:27:22 PM »
The difference between a cam and brie in make is basically the mold....the form factor. A cam is smaller around (about 4 inches I think? I havent measured mine and it has been a while since I bought them) whereas a brie is about 7 inches or 7.5 around (?).   

I find my best ripened cams are about 1" to 1.25 in thickness.  I think a brie is about the same. I know there are some cams that are thicker, but they are not as "gooey" or as soft as I prefer.

"The process used to make Brie is unsurprisingly very similar to that used for Camembert. Aside from geography, a key difference is that Brie is traditionally made in larger wheels, ranging from about 1 to 6 pounds (500g to 3kg) in weight, 9 to 15 inches in diameter and 1 to 1.5 inches in thickness, Due to consumer demands, it can be found in 8-ounce disks."

"Camembert curd is customarily shaped in disks of 4.5 inches in diameter, 1.5 inches thick, about 8 ounces (250g) in weight. "