Author Topic: Mould under bandage  (Read 1313 times)

Offline Lloyd

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Mould under bandage
« on: June 28, 2016, 05:25:51 PM »
I've made three farmhouse cheddars so far, and each of them I've bandaged with cheesecloth and lard.  Each of them have developed mould under the bandage, after two to three weeks. I'm not unduly worried about this (but please tell me if I should be), but would like to work out why, as I thought bandaging would have prevented it, due to lack of oxygen.

Am I right to be using a single layer of cheese cloth, and lard at room temperature? Could it be that I'm not using enough lard?  Some articles I have read suggest heating the lard, which I have not tried.  I have also read about bandaging and then repressing, to ensure good contact between bandage and cheese, but if I leave the cheese to dry out for a few days before bandaging, it will no longer fit in the mould, due to slumping slightly.  How else do you ensure good contact between cheese and bandage with no air pockets?

Any thoughts/suggestions welcome.

wattlebloke

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Re: Mould under bandage
« Reply #1 on: June 29, 2016, 12:46:08 AM »
For my Farmhouse Cheddars I've been using melted butter, with 2 thicknesses of open weave muslin. I soak the muslin in the butter, then smooth it on. Its messy, but at least seems to give good contact. I have them in a 12 degree C fridge...if it was much warmer I think the butter might get a bit soft.

Offline Fritz

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Re: Mould under bandage
« Reply #2 on: June 29, 2016, 06:23:05 AM »
I can only hope you seen some good you tubes about 'how to bandage' properly... I'm sure your issue stems from a small detail you may be missing, such as more than one layer of cloth... Here is a how-to bandage info and video ... I'm sure there are more. Hope it helps...
http://thepromiselandfarm.com/part-8-how-to-prepare-hard-cheese-for-aging/
Cloth bandaging is best learned by watching it being done ... Enjoy and good luck

Offline Lloyd

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Re: Mould under bandage
« Reply #3 on: June 29, 2016, 06:12:42 PM »
Thanks for the comments. I suspect my mistake is not using a double layer of cheese cloth, and not warming the lard first.

That said, closer examination this evening shows that the mould is in the bandage, and not on the cheese as I had originally thought, so perhaps I've not done too bad a job after all.  As with all things cheese, time will tell.

Offline Fritz

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Re: Mould under bandage
« Reply #4 on: June 30, 2016, 02:58:40 PM »
Yup, that's where it's supposed to be ... Good job :)

Offline Lloyd

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Re: Mould under bandage
« Reply #5 on: June 30, 2016, 06:21:49 PM »
Turns out all was well.  One small spot of mould in a slight dimple.  Pictures on this thread if you are interested: http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,15639.0.html