Von Helman's Generational Lactic Cheese

[Von Helman]

I just signed up to this forum and wanted to introduce myself post some cheese making information and ask some questions.  If this post is in the wrong area please move it.

I live on a very rural farm and we make cheese every day, however not being a rocket scientist or a cheese coinsure I am at a loss as to what type of cheese it would be classified as.  Also forgive me if I don’t get all the cheese terminology down right

We simply call it fresh cow’s cheese because all we do is take the milk from the daily milking bring it inside add the chemical to for bacteria and let it sit for an entire day to curdle and then seperate the whey, grind / mill, it and then mold it.  We then let it sit in the refrigerator.  That’s it. 

The process we use is nothing fancy but I have created a photo step by step instruction to show how we do it.   If anyone can help me with the classification of this simple cheese I would appreciate it greatly, also if anyone has can look at our set up and make any suggestions to the other types of cheeses we can make with some instructions I would really appreciate it.

I will have to post this thread in two parts as it’s very long and there is a picture limit to each new thread.

Here is part 1 of 2 parts.
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Fresh Cheese making

Here is our fresh cow cheese process that we make almost daily.  There are many different types of cheese that can be made; here is one of the easiest and fastest ones to make. 

First start with the fresh cow’s milk, this is fresh from the daily milking within the hour.  We take the milk from the small buckets and pour it into these larger 5 gallon buckets, with the cows we have we can fill 2 ½ of these five gallons buckets each day.  Then we use the milk from the previous day thats curdled. 



When the milk sits it begins curdling, this is when you mix it a little by hand.  You have to do it by hand to be able to feel the consistency of the curd.



After you’re assured of the consistency and you have stirred the curd off the bottom by mixing it you begin staining the liquid whey





After you have separated as much liquid as possible this is what the curd look like




What we have done to make it easier is was to sew a small bag of fabric that in the shape of pouch and when used will act as a filter




By hanging the pouch over the rim of the bucket and using the handle to hold it in place you can easily begin putting the curd in the pouch




Once the curd is in the bag you use the actual bag as a strainer. 



Then you mash the bag and extract the excess liquid




When the mashing is complete you simply drain the excess liquid (whey) into a bucket






Once the whey is completely strained out you simply place the curd mix on the grinder plate




Here is s close up shot



This is our “Modern” electric grinder that makes things easy, and these models are very affordable. 



Ok, Ok I know what you’re thinking; what if there isn’t any electricity…

When there is no electricity you will have to have the “Back up” manual hand grinder, which we have two.  Believe it or not this particular hang grinder is only about 5 years old, but is in rough shape from almost daily use. 

[Von Helman]

Part 2 of 2

Back to the cheese making

Here the cheese is in on the loading plate ready to be grinded



The simply load it into the hopper and begin grinding away




 

Once you have run through the grinder you add a little salt to it. 


Then you mash together the mix again mixing the salt into it evenly




Now here is where ingenuity comes into play. Needing a round mold to shape the cheese we cut a piece of new PVC pipe.  Wash it really well before using it and after each use and it makes for a great mold that the cheese doesn’t adhere to. 


Then using the mold push the mix into the mold and in a circular motion continue to pack it in tightly until you can’t pack any more.



Then after the mold is full and compacted place it on a table where you then take a piece of fabric and press over the top to give it one last press.  This is done to make the top really smooth and make it more presentable. 




Then remove the cheese from the PVC mold and place it on a plastic tray.  When the tray is full cover it with a cloth and place it in the refrigerator


Presto you’re finished for today! 

This cheese below was made yesterday so this is what one day old fresh cheese looks like. 



Your family will probably not consume this much cheese on daily basis so you can sell the remaining cheese to neighbors and others and make some money on the side, or use the cheese to barter with.

Again if anyone can help me identify this cheese and help suggest other cheese I can make with this simple farm set up I would greatly appreciate it

[Cheese Head]

Von Helman

Welcome, great post/pictures ! And great looking simple cheeses! That hand grinder has gotten some use over the years!

I am not knowledgeable enough to characterize your cheese, but others here are. Give your post a few days to get some good responses.

OK, it’s milled, salted, and lightly pressed. Meanwhile, quick questions that should help:
1) You have great looking curd set, when you say you add chenmical to it to get it to curdle, what sort of chemical and do you add anything else?
2) Do you age or eat fresh in the first few days?

Again, great pictures and post!

[Von Helman]

Thanks for the warm welcome,

I think after reading things here the cheese we make is called a non rennet cheese and has many different names depending on what part of the world you live in. 

I made a mistake regarding the chemicals being added as it’s not a chemical to separate the curd.

The milk sits out a whole day and this separating is natural occurring.   

The chemical that is added is a type of bacteria killer or something but I will have to ask exactly what the chemical purpose is for and its name.

The cheese is eaten fresh within the first day after making it

[Von Helman]

This is getting confusing now that I read that the cheese I make is also considered “soft simple types of cheese” so I am going to have to try to figure it out and read more, but since this is my first day here I guess I can’t learn it all in a few hours.

[Cheese Head]

Von Helman, there are 1000's of different cheeses made around the world and to group them into Types or Categories is very hard, some don't fit well.

The Types that are described in this forum are where we've evolved to over the last 1.7 years since it was started, I expect in the next year they will evolve/change again .

[Von Helman]

Thanks John for the encouraging words and information, it can be overwhelming for a simple farm boy.

I am going to spend some time reading over everything tomorrow about all the different types of cheeses and stuff, I might even send you a private message with a zillion new questions. 

I have never made any real “pressed” cheeses and am interested in making a mold in the shape of an elongated rectangular bar for making a good quality soft cheese that can be easily cut when smaller amounts are requested by customers.   I own a small grocery store (and when I say small I mean small) but I want to set up a (small) commercial cheese production system so I can start selling different types of cheeses in the store that are made on site.

[FRANCOIS]

Rennet was my first question when reading through, but you've answered that.  Basically you are making a fresh lactic cheese.  These are made all over the world and are very common.  They typically have spices, fruit etc. added to them as the flavor is quite mild alone. 

Can I ask why you are milling your curd?  Really if you just mix in salt and press into your mols you will get a pretty similar cheese.  Since it's not being aged I'm not sure why you are trying to remove so much whey.

You could also try mold ripening this cheese if you got some cultures, sort of like brie or camembert.

You could also try brining this cheese (ala feta) or storing in oil. 
Good luck.

[DeejayDebi]

Very interesting pictures. I too would like to know what is added to the milk.

[Von Helman]

I had to Google “Rennet” to learn what the meaning of this really is.   So our cheese is in fact a rennet cheese so this thread is posted in the wrong section and should be moves to soft rennet cheeses.

The chemical that we add to the milk is from a European company and on the bottle it says “Enzymes-coagulant-microorganisms” (which is rennet)

I am trying to research the company and the product on the internet at this time but the reason it is used is to help separate the crud or at least aide it with a chemical process.  You don’t add but a few drops so not sure how much help the few drops really are.

Again this can be too much for a simple “slow” farm boy to understand but I am trying…   

FRANCOIS

To answer your question, the only real reason to mill the curd is to get it in smaller even pieces, and this makes it easier to pack in the mold.  The smaller milled cheese also makes the cheese more even in consistency when doing it this way. 

Removing the additional whey makes the cheese dryer and I assume makes it more firm for a fresh cheese. 

To quote you,

“You could also try mold ripening this cheese if you got some cultures, sort of like brie or camembert”

When you start talking like this I get lost. Ha!  Where do you get cultures?  And mold ripening would be referring to let actual mold grow on it?  I know nothing about mold except the kind that grows in the shower if you don’t clean it. 

DeejayDebi

Thanks for the comment about the pictures being interested, I always get asked if it’s a real wood burning stove in the background and we use it. Yes to both of those questions.   I think I have answered the question as to what is in the cheese, salt and the rennet, nothing more. 

[DeejayDebi]

Your are a very innovative lady. How did you learn this process? This is usually the sort of thing one learns from a mother or grandmother. Just curious I was a farm girl growing up - I wish I still were.

I love the stove and the wooden bowl. I wonder if making a long log in a PVC pipe would be less work for you? Then you could slice it into sizes as you wish.

[Von Helman]

Ok let me try to answer all the questions,

As I posted the actual cheese making process and not from the actual beginning

We have 17 dairy cows, and as I mentioned they produce on average 10 gallons of fresh milk per day. 
We have to keep the calves separated and away from their mothers or we won’t have any milk in the AM. We trade and sell some of the raw milk and only use and process only one of the 5 gallon buckets per day.

When the milk arrives to the kitchen we strain and clean it, because during the milking process there is always some foreign object that gets into the milk like some straw dust or something of that nature.

I attached a picture of the simple strainer we use and we simply pour all the milk through this a little at a time to get it all cleaned.  There are Nat’s, dirt, and other debris that unavoidably get into the milk. 


Once the milk is strained and cleaned then we put it inside the refrigerator where we have removed the lower shelf so a large bucket can fit inside.

We let it sit over night and let the cream come to the top.  In the morning we then separate the cream leaving the milk. 

Taking the milk we them warm it up on the stove and stir. At this time you add the rennet chemical. 
After it has been warmed we simply set it in the chair next to the wood burning stove where the warm temperature of the room allows it to curdle within an hour. 

From there this is where this picture process begins that I have posted above.   

As for salt, only a couple of tablespoons

This yields about eight ( cheeses this size

Your other question was what is done with all the Whey after separating it out. 

We simply put it in another 5 gallon bucket and that bucket along with all the table scraps or anything else from the day that a pig will eat is then taken each morning to the pig pen where we have a slop trough and pour it in and feed it to the pigs.   

This is instant FREE food that we use for the pigs, when the pigs are fattened we sell them for money.

[Von Helman]

Your are a very innovative lady. How did you learn this process? This is usually the sort of thing one learns from a mother or grandmother. Just curious I was a farm girl growing up - I wish I still were.

I love the stove and the wooden bowl. I wonder if making a long log in a PVC pipe would be less work for you? Then you could slice it into sizes as you wish.

Thanks but actually I am a country boy working the camera while “Granny” is the lady making the cheese. 
The stove is actually our newer model we purchased about five years ago NEW, and it only looks old because of the regular use.

Well the tube idea is why I am here to learn other ways of doing it, But even so will continue making this type of cheese and doing it the same way as it’s easier to sell and they all are the same size not to mention the customers who buy are accustom to this particular cheese and its size. 

[DeejayDebi]

Ah sorry you did say you were a country boy - I got confused looking at the pictures again.

Cute piggies - I love piggies! They are so smart.

[Cheese Head]

Von Helman, great additional pictures and info.

When I first started learning about cheese making it was all "Greek" to me, I had no clue what a rennet or other stuff was, it all came with time. For me it was an even harder learning curve as 1) I didn't have a Granny who had been making cheese for years and 2) I didn't have this forum - anyone to ask, just a book. FYI there is a cheese glossary here.

Basically, your cheese making can be as simple or very complicated. I often think of it like a tree. You start with milk, but then each thing you add or each small process step you take leads to a different branch. And the cheese makers before us over the last 2000-5000 years have figured out 1000's of these different paths to 1000's of different cheeses. Actually I and others on this forum figure out new branches ending in new cheeses all the time, some not so good .

Also, Francois is a Professional Cheese Maker currently in New Zealand, and his time is short and valuable, and thus yes sometimes his posts are short and concentrated. I sometimes have to read them several times and research them on internet to fully understand what he's saying. Basically for us newbies he is on a higher plain-level like the Dalai Lama or Confucius .

OK, to your cheese and initial questions:

1) I agree, your additive "Enzymes-coagulant-microorganisms" is a rennet, if you have the brand or any other labelling we could try and find out more for you. To others, while normally separate, is it possible that their additive could actually be a combination rennet and mesophilic starter culture, or can they coexist in concentrated form?

2) Rennet is super concentrated stuff, so yes only a few drops diluted in water before adding to milk are required and yes they are very helpful in cheese making and forming the curd to help release the whey. There is some info here on rennet and here on starter cultures. Can you ask Granny how many drops she adds to each gallon of milk? If it is many drops - teaspoon then I agree it is more a rennet type cheese, if it is few drops per gallon then it is more a semi-lactic cheese. There is a good thread here by members clherestian and Alex on their semi-lactic cheeses. In Alex's first picture, you can see his plain and then ash coated semi-lactic cheeses, in his second you can see his ash coated with nuts or dried fruits inside, an example of what Francoise mentioned in his post above. In his third it looks like nuts and a special mold he's added and grown on the surface, probably Penicillium candidum.

3) On milling, you've been doing it for years and works well for you and your customers are used to it so yes I'd keep doing that for your current type of cheese.

4) On molds, the idea of adding molds to cheese at first seems strange, but the molds we add are good molds that create nice scent, taste, texture and appearance and are not harmful to humans. These molds can fall into 3 groups, first are starter cultures to acidify the milk, second are secondary cultures to add flavor and texture, and the third are molds which we add to give a surface - rind covering. The first trick is to concentrate or isolate these bacteria, in the past our predecessors brewed all sorts of concoctions, similar to in beer or wine making to do that. Now these molds have been isolated and concentrated by the big cheese culture type companies and are sold in a huge range of culture products. For starter cultures used to acidify milk, there are two basic types, low temperature mesophlic and high temperature thermophilic. Yep scientific terms that are hard to say. Instead of manufactured concentrated "pure" cultures, popular substitutes are buttermilk and yogurt. Some members like Alex only use these, they don't buy these manufactured starter cultures. The second trick for all these cultures is to grow and reproduce them in a controlled method so that other bacteria don't take over and the wanted bacteria don't multiply out of control and you get the cheese your want. That is a whole separate subject.

In conclusion:

• To learn how to make cheese, it is best to stick to one cheese type and perfect it (like you two have done) rather than bouncing from one type to another like I have done.
• Once you have a cheese type perfected, it is always good to take small change steps to see what you get. I like Francoise's recommendations of adding spices or (semi-dried) fruits or like Alex nuts. Or storing in brine (like feta) or storing in oil.
• I would leave new cultures or surface molds to future.
• If you want, you can buy manufactured cultures and molds from on-line cheese making supply stores.

FYI, there is a post here for people new to cheese making.

Lastly, this is almost the longest post I've written so I'm stopping here and hope it helps. To others, please correct me on anything above that is wrong and please add your opinions etc as mine is just one persons.

John