Author Topic: Submerging Havarti in Water...  (Read 10477 times)

Baby Chee

  • Guest
Submerging Havarti in Water...
« on: September 09, 2009, 01:20:37 AM »
I've been preparing to make Havarti tomorrow.

The instructions I am using from here talk about submerging the havarti in 6.0 pH water before brining...

http://www.cheesemaking.com/store/pg/208-Havarti.html

However, I notice the people here have no such steps in their Havartis.  Is there any good reason to submerge??
And how do you submerge without damage?  I'll try it, but am afraid of breaking the cheese.  Got the 6.0pH water ready to roll.

Any help?  Advice?  Insights to the use of water pre brine?

On such a soft cheese, it seems like it could break the cheese apart.

(EDIT--sorry, I'm not sure if this should go below in specific procedures sub-forum.  I'm not sure what water submerging even classifies as.)

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #1 on: September 09, 2009, 01:39:12 AM »
I don't do it. I just brine it, let it air dry about 3 days, put it in the fridge for a month washing every other day, oil it and vacpack it.

Te only bad havarti I ever had was the one I dropped that rolled across the floor and fell into the kitty litter box. It was real bad!  :-\

Baby Chee

  • Guest
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #2 on: September 09, 2009, 01:42:35 AM »
haha OH NO!  That's the worst!  Sounds like a worst case scenario.  uhg.  I don't even want to contemplate that.

Though it might just be a spicier form of salting.  ;)

I might drop the water trick if I can't find any reasonable reply from experience.  Or I might do one in water and the other not and see how they compare.

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #3 on: September 09, 2009, 01:45:44 AM »
I've never even tried it. I don't think John did it last week either. O rmaybe the week before last ...  ???

Baby Chee

  • Guest
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #4 on: September 09, 2009, 01:49:57 AM »
Nah, I went through all Havarti making threads.  Nothing. 

The New England Cheesemaker woman recommends it alone, as far as I can find.

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #5 on: September 09, 2009, 02:19:23 AM »
John did a comparison of recipes here last week. Might give you some ideas.

Cheese Head

  • Guest
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #6 on: September 09, 2009, 02:39:20 AM »
Baby Chee, there are 5 Havarti Recipes compared here, none had that step, could be an interesting A-B comparison test . . .

Baby Chee

  • Guest
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #7 on: September 09, 2009, 02:42:53 AM »
Yep, I looked all those over to see what was going on with submerged water pre-brine.

I will do one havarti tomorrow and another the next day.  I'll try the two methods and compare the cheeses when tasted.

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #8 on: September 10, 2009, 01:01:24 AM »
Maybe she does that instead of washing the curds? I'll have to go read it again slowly.

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #9 on: September 10, 2009, 01:17:40 AM »
Nope she does wash the curds ... Maybe so it will wash away the whey for some reason. Looks like it's still in the mold as well.

Tea

  • Guest
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #10 on: November 29, 2009, 06:30:29 PM »
I want to follow up on this thread.  Baby Chee did you ever try this recipe.

I made a havarti yesterday and after washing the curds with hot water, half the whey was poured off, and cool water added to lower the curd temp.  It was then hooped and pressed under it's own weight for 2 hours flipping regularly.  Then is was put into cold water for three hours, then into brine for 4 hours.  It is now in the drying process, and with the temps like they are at the moment I an tossing up whether I will give it one day or two, before putting in the cave.   I am still deciding whether too wax or natural rind.
The recipe said that the texture of the cheese should be open.  So I was wondering whether anyone else had done this?

Baby Chee

  • Guest
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #11 on: November 29, 2009, 07:02:56 PM »
YEP!

I did this one indeed.... but....


I opened this cheese WAY early.  It was the first cheese I decided to open after I began making cheeses and had 60 or 8 in the caves.  So it turned out awful.  Kinda.  It was un-matured and super salty, but I loved eating it with tomatoes from the garden.

Sorry I couldn't give a real report on the real cheese.
Keep me posted on how yours turns out, because I might try this again.

Tea

  • Guest
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #12 on: November 30, 2009, 07:55:27 PM »
I transfered this into the cave after only 24 hours, and the temps here hit 38C today.  Turned again last night, and the texture at the moment is soft and springy, but firm and holding together well.  Certainly not what I expected after moulding cold curds, and pressing under it's own weight.  So we wait.....

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #13 on: December 01, 2009, 01:51:46 AM »
I have to say this has me more than curious. I can't find any other refrence to water soaking a cheese before you brine. I will keep looking.

Maybe I will just email her? I check both versions of her book and can't find a recipe for Havarti.


Just send off an email hopefully I will get an answer.

Tea

  • Guest
Re: Submerging Havarti in Water...
« Reply #14 on: December 01, 2009, 04:14:18 AM »
Mine is a recipe from Neil and Carol Willman's cheese book.
Said that it was similar to a Gouda in that it had washed curds, but from there, it is completely different.  First 1/3 of the whey was removed and the curd heated to 38C using 2 ltr of 60C water.  Then after another hour, 1/2 of the whey was removed and cold was replaced until curds were 28C.  Then moulded, then placed in a water bath at 8-10C then brined in a cold brine.
Most unusual, and I really didn't expect the curds to knit, I thought I was going to have to press them in the end, but I didn't and so far they are holding together well.  Flips without any feeling that it is going to fall apart, so this is as much a surprise to me as to you.
SO we will both watch and see what happens.  Still can't download photo's yet, but will update with them as soon as I can.