Author Topic: Riha's Port Salut #2  (Read 6495 times)

riha

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Riha's Port Salut #2
« on: November 06, 2009, 02:21:41 PM »
As I mentioned in another thread my first attempt at port salut failed. In several ways. I have learned something since then so here we go again.

INGREDENTS

9 liters milk (not homogenized or pasteurized)
3/16 tsp Br. Linens
1/4 tsp Mesophilic starter, Danisco Choozit MA4001
9 ml liquid rennet

3 liters 12% brine at 18C

PROCEDURE

I tried to follow the recipe by Kosikowski that I described in the previous thread.

  • 10.45 Pasteurizing. Heated the milk to 73C on my stove and cooled it down to 32C in a water bath.
  • 12.15 Added culture, br. linens, and the rennet.
  • Replaced in 33C water bath.
  • Made the brine.
  • 12.35 Checked for clean break, not yet. Just yogurt-like mass.
  • 13.35 Clean break. Cut into 1cm pieces (only vertical) and stirred. Let it stand for 20 minutes.
  • 13.55 Begin heating. The curds had cooled to 31C.
  • 14.20 Pour out extra whey. Didn't leave 2 inches since that was pretty much what I started with. Stirred 5 minutes.
  • 14.25 Poured out the rest of the whey and replaced it with 12% brine at 20C. Stirred occasionally.
  • 14.45 Moved the curds to the hoop. Curd temperature at this point 26,6C.
  • 15.05 First turning
  • 15.25 Second turning
  • 16.05 Third turning
  • waiting...

NOTES
  • It takes ages to pasteurize milk. Almost 90 minutes.
  • One does not change four tires in the time it takes for milk to coagulate. Had to try...
  • The hoop size (18cm diameter 15cm height) seemed good.
  • I need a clip for my thermometer. Fishing it out of the cheese is probably not good for my cheese.

Everything looks good so far. In the next 24 hours we will see how well the cheese will hold together with no pressing at all. Then there is just the hoping-for-the-right-kind-of-mold.

Pics: Heating the curds after cutting, Half of the whey drained, All of the whey drained, Curds in 12% brine.

riha

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #1 on: November 06, 2009, 02:23:08 PM »
More pics: The hoop, Cheese after first turning, After second turning.

Added pic: After 24 hours in hoop.
« Last Edit: November 12, 2009, 12:52:17 AM by riha »

riha

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #2 on: November 06, 2009, 02:23:39 PM »
More pics.

After 3 weeks, washed and dried.
Waxed.
« Last Edit: November 28, 2009, 09:20:22 PM by riha »

Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #3 on: November 06, 2009, 02:57:59 PM »
It is looking very good so far Riha.

Tea

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #4 on: November 07, 2009, 08:05:07 PM »
Looking good so far.  Keep us updated.

Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #5 on: November 08, 2009, 04:34:39 AM »
Riha I am looking at your mold and it looks adjustable. Is it?

riha

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #6 on: November 08, 2009, 08:11:58 PM »
OK, not going so well. After 24 hours of draining the cheese was obviously too soft. It started deforming in couple of minutes after taking it from the hoop. I also tasted a bit and noticed that it is very salty so I decided against salting it in brine after forming like the recipe tells.

Instead I left it in the hoop for another 24 hours. After 48 hours it was still dripping wet. Now it's on my table. Very moist, rather soft. I hope it'll hold together.

I'm going to put it into a plastic box I use to maintain desired humidity, but I don't yet know where to place it. My basement is rather cold at the moment, about 5-6C. The other option would be in front of my balcony door, which would be closer to the desired temperature, but with greater variations of temperature. Any suggestions? Which would be better for the red mold to develop?

My hoop is indeed adjustable. It is actually just a strip of PE plastic that I cut from a plastic  bucket. It has no holes since the previous one I tried to drill, cracked several times while drilling. I'm considering melting holes to it... At the moment the "adjusting" means I tape it to the desired diameter with electric tape. I use similar hoops with leipäjuusto.

Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #7 on: November 08, 2009, 08:34:12 PM »
Sorry to here things are not going well. Maybe it will dry our some.

I like the adjustable form.

vogironface

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #8 on: November 09, 2009, 05:54:07 AM »
Riha,

Plastic can sometimes be a problem to drill.  I have found that a step drill like this makes the process more successful.  This works especially well on hard and brittle plastics.

Good Luck

FRANCOIS

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #9 on: November 11, 2009, 09:19:17 PM »
We make a port salute type cheese at our factory and I would point out a few things.

You added the culture and rennet together, as one would do with a soft cheese.  PS should be chalky and highly acidic when young.  I suggest adding the culture and waiting for a 0.1 pH drop at least before renneting.

Your texture problem was then compinded by stirring 12% brine in with the curd.   I'm not sure what the purpose of this is, but it will essentially retard microbial activity further and give you less acid development. 

I would also quesiton the temperature at hooping and the cool water added...that temperature seems very low for a descent knit.  If you have develpoked sufficient acidity and body of the curd you would have gotten poor knitting with this recipe.

Hope that helps somewhat.

riha

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #10 on: November 12, 2009, 01:00:07 AM »
Thanks for the feedback Francois. All those points were actually things that I wondered myself when reading the recipe myself. I have no idea why they are like that and frankly seem rather odd to me too. It's nice to know I'm not alone with my doubts.

This recipe is from Kosikowski's book "Cheese and Fermented Milk Foods" that I grabbed from http://heinennellie.blogspot.com/search/label/Port%20du%20Salut

Unfortunately I still don't have a pH meter so I could measure the drop in acidity. It's in the toget list after so many other items.

The structure is very open. At least when looking at the surface. I added a picture that was taken after 24 hours of drying in room temp. It didn't change much in the second 24 hours just got a little dryer.

Now it's in the plastic box waiting for the red mold to appear. It seems to be doing fine, some redness is already visible in the little holes in the sides. I keep it moist/wet from the surface and turn it daily.

At the moment my first concern would be to get the red mold growing, since the previous didn't start. I was suspecting bad mold. After that I can improve the structure. I think I'll try my other recipe next.

riha

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #11 on: November 14, 2009, 09:06:36 PM »
Well, apparently failed again. I think I will give up on this red mold stuff.

After a week in humid box there is very little signs of red mold growth. Instead, white and blue are beginning to bloom. The humidity's been about correct, but it changes since it's a small box. The temperature's been quite well on the mark.

Don't really know what to do with this.


riha

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #12 on: November 28, 2009, 09:20:33 PM »
Well, here be updates. Since I'm bad at giving up.

I took care of the mold problem with brute force. I cut out the mold spots. Then washed with vinegar, then with saturated brine, plus I salted the spots with blue mold. That did take care of the problem.

Br. Linens were rather slow to grow, so it's been sitting three weeks developing mold. This is partly to my inability to keep track of time. Anyhow, just took it out a few days ago, washed it under running water and let it dry two days, room temp and around 50% humidity. Now I have just waxed it. I'm planning to store it for 2 more weeks before cutting.

Pics updated :)

Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Riha's Port Salut #2
« Reply #13 on: November 29, 2009, 03:43:44 AM »
Sometimes a bit of time and patience will make what appears to be a bad cheese very eddible. Maybe not exactly wat we wanted but at least eddible.