Next kefir cheese: Rubblebert

[olikli]

I live on the Munich Rubble Plain (yes, this really exists), so I thought this name was appropriate.

It's really just your basic rennet curd made from creamline milk and a dollop of homemade kefir. Inoculation and curd cooking at 35 degrees C, cut to 2 cm cubes, drained in the mould, dry salted to 2%. Two days at 15 degress to develop geo, then in plastic box a 8 degrees in the fridge with daily flipping. Total ripening time was about 4 weeks.

I decided to cut it today because it started to get runny on the edges. The centre is still firm. It's borderline slip-skin but there is no separation yet. The taste is still fairly mild. Maybe it will develop a bit over the next week. I'm still not sure how to improve the texture, hoping for suggestions, but I don't have temperature control.

[awakephd]

Something I learned from others on this forum, especially Mal -- once the PC is well established (i.e., after a week to 10 days), I do the remainder of the ripening in the cold fridge rather than in the cheese cave. There have been some arguments against this cold-ripening, but I find that it leads to a lovely development of texture and intense flavor. YMMV ...

[olikli]

So what temperature would you recommend? In Farheniet my chhese fridge is about 46 to 48.

[Stinky]

So what temperature would you recommend? In Farheniet my chhese fridge is about 46 to 48.

Can you get your fridge higher? That's fine for cheeses like camembert, but for hard, aged cheeses, that's on the cold side. It'll still ripen, just much more slowly.

[awakephd]

Hmm ... not sure I was clear. I don't mean changing the temp on your "cave," but rather moving the cheese to the kitchen refrigerator. I think the "ideal" temperature for a kitchen refrigerator is around 35°F / 1.6°C or so. As Stinky says, ideal temp for a cheese cave is probably closer to 54-55° F / 12-13° C; though different cheeses call for slightly different temperatures, this range seems to work well for me as a general-purpose cheese cave.

[olikli]

So what temperature would you recommend? In Farheniet my chhese fridge is about 46 to 48.

Can you get your fridge higher? That's fine for cheeses like camembert, but for hard, aged cheeses, that's on the cold side. It'll still ripen, just much more slowly.

It's a shared fridge that is running on the highest possible setting, and I can't modify it. During the cold season my basement that I also use for curing sausage has a temperature of 11 to 14 degrees depending on the current weather. I will try to make a tomme as my first hard cheese soon, so I will keep that there as long as temperature permits.

[olikli]

Hmm ... not sure I was clear. I don't mean changing the temp on your "cave," but rather moving the cheese to the kitchen refrigerator. I think the "ideal" temperature for a kitchen refrigerator is around 35°F / 1.6°C or so. As Stinky says, ideal temp for a cheese cave is probably closer to 54-55° F / 12-13° C; though different cheeses call for slightly different temperatures, this range seems to work well for me as a general-purpose cheese cave.

Not sure if I got you here. Even if the "ideal" cheese cave temperature is 12 to 13 C you would recommend to ripen it at a much lower temperature? Or do you mean to only move it now in its current state? What would be the optimum temperatures for a camembert-style cheese to begin with since apparently the temperature was too high for my cheese?

[awakephd]

Yeah, this is getting a bit confusing. The only cheese that I ripen at a lower temperature is my camemberts; every other variety I ripen at the "ideal cave temperature" of around 12-13°C. Specifically, this is my usual affinage for camemberts:

• Make cheese, flip every 30 minutes several times, then drain overnight at room temperature.
• Add salt to one side of cheese, let sit at room temperature for 12 hours. Flip and add salt to other side, let sit for 12 hours.
• Move to a ripening box inside my cheese cave, temperature around 12-13°C, for approximately 1 week, or until the cheese is well covered with PC.
  
  • The cheese sits on plastic mesh on top of an "eggcrate" support to allow maximum oxygen and drainage.
  • The cheese, mesh, and eggcrate sit in a plastic container with the lid loosely in place to retain high humidity. (Note: can also turn the plastic container upside down, with the cheese sitting on the mesh/eggcrate/lid and the container sitting loosely over it.)
  • Daily the cheese is removed and the condensation wiped out of the container using paper towels. The cheese is flipped and replaced in the container and put back in the cave.
• Once the cheese is well-covered with PC, move the cheese to the cold fridge (1-2°C) for approximately 5-6 weeks or until well softened all the way to the center.
  
  • The cheese can remain in the ripening box during this phase; continue wiping out condensation and flipping the cheese every other day.
  • Alternately, the cheese can be wrapped in ripening paper for this phase; flip the cheese every other day.
• Optionally, move a cheese that is nearly ready back to the cave for a few days for final ripening, and/or let sit at room temp for a day or so for final ripening. The warmer the cheese, the more runny the interior will be.

Again, I developed this protocol from reading Mal's posts about his "Malembert" cheeses. From what was said in another thread, this may not be the proper procedure for commercially produced cheese; according to one post there is somewhat greater risk associated with the lower temperature ripening. However, it sure has given outstanding results for me. I think the slower ripening (from the lower temperature) does at least two things: 1) ripens more evenly, reducing the risk of slip skin and/or excessive ammonia, and 2) allows greater flavor development.

Note that my protocol is not quite identical to Mal's; it is what has worked out well for me. Since you don't have the option of two refrigerators, you'll have to find the best option for you. One word of caution: as I understand it, if you are storing other foods besides cheese in your fridge at 8°C (46-48°F), you are increasing your risks. For safety, you should get that temperature down to 4°C (40°F) or lower. Which will not be so great for ripening cheeses other than camemberts ...

[Kern]

Something I learned from others on this forum, especially Mal -- once the PC is well established (i.e., after a week to 10 days), I do the remainder of the ripening in the cold fridge rather than in the cheese cave. There have been some arguments against this cold-ripening, but I find that it leads to a lovely development of texture and intense flavor. YMMV ...

Right on.  Putting a white bloomy cheese in a 38F cold fridge slows down the the pH rise from the PC and Geo thus keeping the paste firm and allows the enzymes in the paste to develop the flavors that make these cheeses great tasting.  At higher temps (cave @ 55F) the PC and Geo will act much faster and the paste will have little time to develop flavor prior to becoming totally liquid.  Think of the cold fridge as a time machine:  It slows down one process and allows the other to proceed apace so that they meet at the proper time.  Where's the argument?

[olikli]

Thanks for the help. I will try that next time.