Author Topic: Dog cheese ...  (Read 1344 times)

Reflector

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Dog cheese ...
« on: August 16, 2014, 09:48:54 AM »
.... because only my boxer ended up enjoying the outcome of this little experiment. The three cheeses shown were made from the same raw milk, which was split into two vats. The small cylinder and the brick are from the first vat and are effectively washed curd, while the big cylinder was made simultaneously but separately and is akin to a  hard stirred curd cheddar. Except for the starter cultures, no adjuncts were added artificially. Both the brick and the small cylinder were made, brined and afterwards treated like open Petri dishes to see what would happen. The brick was washed by hand (literally) with a seawater-strength brine. The small cylinder was poked full of holes, and then left to its own devices, except for turning every day. The large cheddarry cylinder is still aging, but the two wild ones got slaughtered last week. Both were creamy, with some interesting flavours and a supple body. Unfortunately, they were both also undeniably bitter, and much more than is bearable. I am interested to see if the large cylinder will have the same defect, which could point to the milk. But if I had to be honest, the real reason is probably the vast assortment of fauna and flora that roamed the rinds.
« Last Edit: August 16, 2014, 07:02:45 PM by Reflector »

JeffHamm

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Re: Dog cheese ...
« Reply #1 on: August 16, 2014, 06:12:04 PM »
Interesting experiments.  I've never found wild moulds produce a tasty rind, although I have found wild rinds to produce a tasty paste.  So, while I'm not surprised the pierced cheese might have been less than desirable (as the wild mould gets into the paste), I'm surprised the brick was bitter as the paste looks very good.  MrsKK has said she uses a full dose of added culture even with her raw milk as the cheese turns out bitter otherwise due to her cow's natural flora.  So, could be the same here (as you suspect).  Still, a cheese for your adventure.

- Jeff

Reflector

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Re: Dog cheese ...
« Reply #2 on: August 16, 2014, 07:00:52 PM »
The brick shaped one did develop that pungent odor associated with B. linens after about 2 weeks of brine washing, so I was glad that it can be picked up from the wild without too much trouble.  I let it stink up the place for about another two weeks, and then allowed the rind to dry out for a few days, which seemed to tame its spirit a bit.  It may be worth repeating the exercise by starting off with a clean, pasturised slate. Thank you for the cheese, Jeff. 

ETA: Just chopped the bigger stirred curd cheddar that was made from a portion of the same milk. It turned out fine, with no hint of bitterness, and it did service at lunchtime as a topping for bolognaise. So it looks like it was the make rather than the milk that caused the bitterness . Either this raw milk does not take kindly to a washed curd method, or the wild flora was too much for it. I have made a gouda before from milk obtained from the same farm that turned out OK, but with a very slight bitter aftertaste. So maybe it was a combination of both. Either way, my next washed rind attempt will be based on a high acid recipe, or I'll pasturize the milk first.
« Last Edit: August 17, 2014, 03:26:24 PM by Reflector »

JeffHamm

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Re: Dog cheese ...
« Reply #3 on: August 19, 2014, 07:49:17 AM »
Nice looking cheddar!  Glad it turned out ok.  Hmmm, for the brick cheese, was the bitterness only in the rind?  Did you try just the paste?

The bitterness could be a result of amonia developing (from the moulds, etc).  It pays to air these out for a bit (30 minutes to an hour) each day.  I store them in an inverted ripening box, with the lid as the floor and the box sitting on top like a cake case.  When I crack the lid a bit to keep humidity down, amonia is heavier than the air so it drains out rather than collect in the box. 

- Jeff

Reflector

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Re: Dog cheese ...
« Reply #4 on: August 20, 2014, 02:20:24 PM »
... was the bitterness only in the rind?  Did you try just the paste?
I tried only the paste, as it seemed less of a health risk. So I can only confirm that the paste was bitter from the center up to and including the squishy part under the rind.

Quote
I store them in an inverted ripening box
As did I, but I've only removed the lid (or rather the "dome") to wash the cheese for a short while at a time, certainly not 30min. Thanks for the tip. The round moldy cheese actually  had much more of an ammonia issue than the brick, but even that dissipated in the end. Still, if ammonia causes proteolysis into bitter peptides, then maybe the damage was already done.

I'll add ammonia to my list of possible causes.