Author Topic: Rennet - Animal Vs Microbial Vs Fermentation?  (Read 8818 times)

biondanonima

  • Guest
Rennet - Animal Vs Microbial Vs Fermentation?
« on: May 19, 2009, 04:22:53 PM »
Hi Everyone,

Am getting ready to order some supplies for my first adventures in cheesemaking and was wondering if anyone could tell me what the differences between animal and vegetable rennet might be.  I'm not concerned about the ingredients themselves, rather the effect of the rennet on milk and in the final product.  I'm planning on using liquid and ordering from cheesemaking.com, unless someone has a better source!  Thanks in advance!

zenith1

  • Guest
Re: Rennet - Animal Vs Microbial Vs Fermentation?
« Reply #1 on: May 19, 2009, 09:04:32 PM »
Either type will work for you. The benefit of using a liquid over a tablet is in the measuring of the amounts used. It is hard to get for instance 1/4 of a tablet if that is what the recipe would call for, where as you can very accuratlly measure 1/8 of a teaspoon(or what ever small amount) that you need. I have read here on the forum about a bitter flavor possibly being introduced to the cheese if too much liquid rennet is used. I have not had that experience(not yet anyway). You can also check out Leener's, The Dairy Connection, Glengarry, and The Cheesemaker for you supplies. I have used them all with no problems, and of course you mentioned New England Cheesemaking where I also started buying supplies. Good Luck  ;D

Cheese Head

  • Guest
Re: Rennet - Animal Vs Microbial Vs Fermentation?
« Reply #2 on: May 19, 2009, 11:34:09 PM »
Hi Bion

I built some info on rennet here, I need to do a better job. There is a very good info page on Wikipedia here on your question. Also there is some stuff in our library. I believe from what I've read that the animal based rennet is the stronger of the two.

Zenith1 has listed some excellent online stores, our full list of stores is here.

If you are going to order some online, also think about a standard Meso Starter, some CaCl2 if using pasteurized milk, and Lipase if you want to make Feta or some of the Italian cheeses.

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: Rennet - Animal Vs Microbial Vs Fermentation?
« Reply #3 on: May 20, 2009, 12:45:29 AM »
Hi,

Some good links posted already. I just want to highlight the key difference for you, which is that animal-sourced rennet has additional compounds, the biggest of which is pepsin. In terms of effect on coagulant strength, that depends on the rennet you buy. I have a post somewhere here on rennet that talks about standard coagulant strengths. That is, both animal and other types of rennet work equally well in coagulating.

Where the difference with pepsin and other compounds come in is in proteolysis and final result after aging. Technically, there are subtle differences in measurements such as SN between the two types of rennet. However, the rennet choice by itself does not influence final flavor, texture, and overall quality as much as milk and process. To give an example, about 90% of the commercial cheese produced is made with GMO rennet, and yet the differences are staggering in cheddar cheese alone among all the manufacturers.

I don't think your choice of animal vs other types will make much difference. I would focus on the choices of culture, additives, and process.

biondanonima

  • Guest
Re: Rennet - Animal Vs Microbial Vs Fermentation?
« Reply #4 on: May 20, 2009, 07:20:55 PM »
Wow, thanks everyone!  I went ahead and ordered the liquid animal rennet.  There was a brief rundown on the differences on the New England Cheese site, and although they said it probably wouldn't make much difference, they also said they used animal exclusively.  I also ordered some citric acid, CaCl and the starter culture for mozzarella, so I can do it the short way and the long way.  Depending on how it works out, I'll probably order lipase and a few other cultures next, although I can get goat milk at my neighborhood grocery (one of the benefits of living in the most ethnically diverse neighborhood I know of).  Now I'm just waiting for my stuff to come and a free weekend for cheese making!

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: Rennet - Animal Vs Microbial Vs Fermentation?
« Reply #5 on: May 20, 2009, 07:51:02 PM »
Sounds like you're all set! Good luck and let us know how it turns out :).

MrsKK

  • Guest
Re: Rennet - Animal Vs Microbial Vs Fermentation?
« Reply #6 on: May 21, 2009, 12:52:35 PM »
Hoegger Goat Supply (http://hoeggergoatsupply.com/xcart/home.php) also has some really good cheesemaking supplies.

I particularly like their plyban cheesecloth, which is reusable and the curd doesn't stick to it.  They have excellent customer service and quick delivery, too.

Keep us posted on your results!