Author Topic: Hard Mozz  (Read 1398 times)

kieralacy

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Hard Mozz
« on: June 15, 2013, 01:13:29 AM »
Hello,
I have a few questions about mozzarella. I have been making mozz for a little over a year now and I have noticed that if I use calcium chloride in my brine, which you are supposed to do for retaining the calcium in the cheese, it makes it really hard. I am wondering if maybe I am not understanding something about this process. So here is the recipe I use to make my cheese and everything I do so if there is anything that pops out to you all that might be making my cheese hard please let me know. It tastes fine but just hard.

 I have my own Jersey cows so I get milk all the time and cream all of it everyday.

So I take 2 gal. "skim" milk
Heat to  90 degrees
Add 1/4 teaspoon Thermo starter culture let sit for 30 min
Add 1/4 teaspoon Animal Rennet with 1/4 cup cool water, let sit 1 hr 15 min. or until solid but soft curd forms.
Cut curd into pea size curds.
Slowly heat curd to 100 degrees, usually takes me about 20 min. Stiring every few minutes to keep curd from matting.
Let sit for 5 mins.
Drain out whey, put stainless steal double boiler top section with curd into a 100 degree warm water bath.
Drain every 20 mins for 2 1/2 hrs or until PH reads 5.2 or 5.3
Stretch curd by dunking in 170 water. Stretch until shinny and smooth.
Make a brine before had that is 1 gal water boiled then add 2 pounds Kosher salt and desolve. Add 1 tbs Calcium Chloride.
Let sit in brine for 1 hr.

Well that is it. But for whatever reason it is really hard on the outside and salty but then the inside is nice without any salt.
Please help me!! It is driving me crazy. The only other option is not to us the chloride which I have done and it is nice but I want to keep the calcium in the cheese if I can!
thanks

MrsKK

  • Guest
Re: Hard Mozz
« Reply #1 on: June 20, 2013, 07:39:47 PM »
I use salted whey to stretch my mozzarella in - it gets the salt into the cheese and I don't have to soak in brine.  You might try doing that.  I use about a cup of kosher salt to a gallon of whey heated to 170.  When the cheese is shiny and smooth, I put it in cold tap water for just a few minutes to firm it up, then take it out to dry before putting it in a container for refrigeration.

Good luck!

kieralacy

  • Guest
Re: Hard Mozz
« Reply #2 on: June 29, 2013, 10:54:17 PM »
I will have to try that, I really like my salt.... I know I know not great.... but I can't help it. So I will try that next time I make it!! Thanks!

MrsKK

  • Guest
Re: Hard Mozz
« Reply #3 on: July 03, 2013, 06:45:43 PM »
I like salt, too.  Try to be moderate, but it isn't easy!  Let me know how that works for you if you try it.