Author Topic: Waht am I doing wrong?  (Read 2963 times)

DisfunctionalHomestead

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Waht am I doing wrong?
« on: September 30, 2013, 10:00:53 PM »
Hi! So I've attempted to make cheese 3 times with store bought milk. Everytime I get an EXTREMELY week curd! Like if I touch it it disolves. I have used 3 different brands of whole mlik. Non UP as stated on the label. The last time I used calcium chloride, and fresh animal rennet. It took 24 hours to form a cued at all, and like I said, its barely a curd at all. Am I lacking info for a good diagnosis? Or am I just missing something here?

linuxboy

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #1 on: September 30, 2013, 10:25:44 PM »
It's most likely your milk. Can you buy farm milk at all? Raw or gently pasteurized?

DisfunctionalHomestead

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #2 on: September 30, 2013, 10:30:07 PM »
I can get raw milk for $10.50 a gallon (which is why I haven't used it). If thats what it takes, then I  will get some. I make everything from scratch, so I really want to get skilled at making cheese. $20 for a pound of cheddar is a bit ridiculous, but that is my next step :) Any recomendations on store bought milk? Or should I just buy the good stuff? Thank you for your response!

linuxboy

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #3 on: September 30, 2013, 11:21:57 PM »
If you have tried them all and none work, then you have to switch. Try using rennet at the higher end of the suggested range and calcium chloride at the higher end, but it won't do that much.

You could also stick to cheeses that work with store milk, like fresh semi-lactics and blues.

DisfunctionalHomestead

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #4 on: September 30, 2013, 11:31:54 PM »
Thanks for the advice. I think I'm going to try the raw milk. If I fail again then I know its something else I'm doing.

Offline steffb503

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #5 on: October 01, 2013, 10:13:28 AM »
Maybe if you posted the recipe some one might see something in there that is wrong.

Offline Boofer

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Re: What am I doing wrong?
« Reply #6 on: October 01, 2013, 01:11:00 PM »
$20 for a pound of cheddar is a bit ridiculous
Typically, one gallon of milk will yield 1 pound of cheese (alpines excluded). So it would be closer to $10 per pound.  ;)

I have access to raw milk from three creameries in my local health food store. Two sell for $9.99/gallon and the third sells for $11.99/gallon. I can buy creamline milk at another retailer and it sells for around $3.69/half gallon, or around $7.40/gallon. A gallon of decent quality milk at my local supermarket sells for about $3.50/gallon.

It is a pleasure using either the raw or creamline separately, or mixed. The higher cost of the milk is offset by the improved quality of the final product. I spend a fair amount of time making, washing, rubbing, and tending to the cheeses I make. I want to stack the deck a little in my favor to ensure a superlative outcome to a cheese affinage that might stretch out beyond 12 months. There's a lot going on in aging cheese and I want to give it the best possible opportunity to succeed gloriously.

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Offline Tiarella

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #7 on: October 01, 2013, 03:05:54 PM »
I see you are in Eastern MA.  You can check the NOFA (New England Organic Farmers Association) website or milk sources.  You can also check for milk sources on www.cheesemaking.com. There is a link somewhere there and they are in Massachusetts also.  (cultures are much cheaper elsewhere though)

george

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #8 on: October 02, 2013, 10:39:54 AM »
Or rawmilk.com - since it's legal in Massachusetts on-farm.

Wendy

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #9 on: October 02, 2013, 05:54:31 PM »
If it happens again, try another rennet.  I had a bad batch of animal rennet,  It took a few times to pin point the problem.  And the rennet was brand new!

Offline steffb503

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #10 on: October 03, 2013, 10:54:43 AM »
You do not say what cultures or how much of those cultures or at what temp you are adding cultures.

dthelmers

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #11 on: October 04, 2013, 04:12:14 PM »
Hi! So I've attempted to make cheese 3 times with store bought milk. Everytime I get an EXTREMELY week curd! Like if I touch it it disolves. I have used 3 different brands of whole mlik. Non UP as stated on the label. The last time I used calcium chloride, and fresh animal rennet. It took 24 hours to form a cued at all, and like I said, its barely a curd at all. Am I lacking info for a good diagnosis? Or am I just missing something here?
What culture did you use? Even the worst store milk sets a curd for me within 45 minutes, it just shatters if you touch it. Test your rennet.

Offline H-K-J

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Re: Waht am I doing wrong?
« Reply #12 on: October 04, 2013, 04:34:04 PM »
Try this link it shows you how to test your rennet
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