Rennet=success! Citric acid coagulation=failure!

[shilchie]

I raise goats, and am just starting to make cheese regularly.  Making curd with rennet seems to work great!  The 30-minute mozzarella and the feta I've made are excellent. 

I've tried making ricotta and now paneer and I just get itty bitty mushy curds.  It plugs up the butter muslin, and I end up with maybe a cup of mush, like a too fine and too wet ricotta (I'm sure it would work as a creamy ricotta if I could find a way to get all of it out of the whey).

I've made paneer before (maybe 10 years ago?) with purchased cow's milk, and that worked easily.

Does anyone have any idea where to start trying to solve this?  Ph, milk, temperature, other?  I'm assuming it's not something inherent with goat's milk that prevents this kind of cheese from working?

[SOSEATTLE]

What is your recipe? Detailed information on how you are making the ricotta and paneer would help maybe.


Susan

[Seattle Slim]

When I make ricotta from whole milk I bring the milk to 165 (slowly), add the acid solution, bring the temperature up to 195, take it off the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes. Then ladle into forms. This creates a flaky ricotta. To avoid small curds make the ricotta in a double boiler. When you stir in the acid, stir it in gently and just enough to mix it into the milk. Then stop stirring! Once the curd starts to form, don't disturb it (easier to do in a double boiler). And don't let the ricotta boil. Hope that helps.

[Fritz]

For cow whey,185F seems to be my magic number for ricotta (otherwise you get the dry-crumbly type ricotta... Not good) it is a very fine curd and best made from the leftover whey from hard cheeses such as cheddar or Parmesan.....and within one hour or so after making the cheese from which the whey came from.
One can add a few cups of milk at the end of heating to increase yield, making sure the whole batch reaches the magic 185F again.
It does take a long time to go through the butter muslin ... I leave mine easily overnight... Consolidate and stir the curds while draining in the muslin cloth from time to time to promote better texture and even drainage. Pushing the curd down from the cloth walls helps too.

I have no clue if any of the above applies to goats milk ... Sorry

[Sailor Con Queso]

When I make ricotta from whole milk I bring the milk to 165 (slowly), add the acid solution, bring the temperature up to 195, take it off the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes.

165 is too low. Do not add the acid (vinegar) until you have reached 195. Then take it off of the heat.

[Bernardsmith]

Is there a sweet spot in terms of the pH that we should aim for and if there is, is  that sweet spot to be reached when the curds are collected or is it to be found in the whey that cooks the curds?