Fresh mozzarella

[vogironface]

I have bee wanting to make a fresh mozzarella for a while now but I don't want one like the 30 minute version.  What I would like is the kind you use in Capri salad.  It usually comes floating in whey, is mild in flavor, very moist, and is not like the string cheese type I usually make.  Does anyone have a recipe for this that involves cows milk?

[Tea]

Are you talking about boconccini?  They are balls of mozz family that are stored in a weak brine solution, very milky mild taste.
If this is what you are looking for, I have a recipe somewhere that I can share.

[DeejayDebi]

I have had good luck with Peter Dixson recipes:

http://www.dairyfoodsconsulting.com/recipes_fresh_mozzarella.shtml

http://www.dairyfoodsconsulting.com/recipes_Direct_Acidified_Fresh_Mozzarella.shtml

And this one for Bocconcini:

Bocconcini
Like small balls of mozzarella

Ingredients:
4.5  gallons milk
1/2 teaspoon Thermophilic Type C Culture
1/2 teaspoon Double strength rennet

Procedure:
Bring milk to a setting temp of 104°F, add starter and mix in well.   Add rennet and also mix in well.  Allow to set for around 50-60mins.  Ph 6.5 - 6.6

Cut curds into 1 inch cubes and stand for 30 mins before stirring.

Stir very gently over the next 60 mins.  The stirring will determine the softness of the cheese. Over stirring = will produce overly firm cheese.

Drain off the whey.  pH  6.1 - 6.2

Keep curd at 104°F to cause it to fuse together.  Turn the curd every 15 mins to keep is warm, draining the whey at the same time.

After about 1 hour test the curd to see whether it is ready for stretching by placing a piece in 160°F water.  When curd is warm, take out and work with fingures, stretching the cheese.  It is is brittle and breaks, it is not ready. pH  5.0-5.4

When curd is ready, cut into thin strips and place into hot water 160°F.  Work the curd stretching it until all the curd has been worked.  Over working the curd will toughen it, as will over hot water.

Shape the cheese by squeezing between your thumb and forefinger and pinch off ball of cheese formed.

Place in ice cold boiled water to set.  A little salt can be added, but  the salt should not be tasted in the final product.

This cheese can be eaten immediately or stored up to a week in the fridge.  It can also be marinated in a herbed oil bath.

Ben - Be patient with your cheese. Give it time to warm complely before trying to manipulate the curds - this will save you much frustration!

[vogironface]

Wow, you guys are great.  I never knew they called this cheese Bocconcini.  I always thought that was a name for the size of the little mozzarella balls.  The photo below is what I buy, there are 3 tubs, each of the same product with 3 different names.  One of them is Bocconcini.  I think this is exactly what I want.  Debi, if your recipe is different than the one tea posted I would love to see it as well.

Thanks folks!!

[DeejayDebi]

I am not sure Ben I can't find one posted by Tea. Is it in another thread somewhere?

[justsocat]

Hello, Ben!
I use a compilation of recipes of 30 min mozz and bocconcini. I acidate a milk first with citric acid and than follow the recipe shared by Debi.
What I want to say that all three over stirring, over cooking and over working toughen it a lot. And in a case of raw milk that three "overs" lead additionally to yellow color of you mozz.
Bocconcini I make  you can see here http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,2394.0.html
and "over" one here http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,2324.0.html
I still experiment a lot with mozz and if you have any questions, may be I've got answers

[vogironface]

Debi,
Sorry, I was reading above and in my mind your post ran into the one tea posted before you.  I now see that it was you, not tea that posted the recipe.  Can't wait to try it.  Thanks for posting it.

Pavel,
While I could not read anything on the link you gave me the photos looked great.  I am sure I will have questions on this one as I try to learn how to make it.  I look forward for your help with it.  Thank you.

[Tea]

Here is the recipe that I posted sometime back.  I have tried it, but as I had no way of measuring the pH it did not turn out.  Now that I have my pH meter, and last weekends batch of mozz turned out, this is a recipe that I want to revisit.  I was reading somewhere that for hand kneading the final pH should be closer to 5 than 5.4, which will work better for machine kneading.

(Deleted recipe)


Just checked Deb's recipe and it seems exactly the same. 

[vogironface]

Pavel,
In Debi's recipe above one of the steps is stated below.  If I use citric acid this step is probably unnecessary because it will already be at the target PH.  IS this basically the only change you make when you combine the 30 min recipe with the one Debi gave? 

After about 1 hour test the curd to see whether it is ready for stretching by placing a piece in 160°F water.  When curd is warm, take out and work with fingers, stretching the cheese.  It is is brittle and breaks, it is not ready. pH  5.0-5.4

[DeejayDebi]

That is similar to the window pane test. The curds need to be able to stretch if they don't it's not ready.

[justsocat]

Ben,
you are right. Adding citric acid gives you target pH right after you've mixed it in. So it's no need to wait pH lowering. Do you want to know a secret? I don't use pH meter. May be I'm silly but as hundreds years ago cheesemakers didn't  have it so I'm trying to go on without it too And though pH measuring gives a good support to controll the proses, it's not what all cheesemaking is about.
So I add solution of 10 g citric acid in 100 ml of water to 5,5 l of raw milk. If milk is cold I heat it before it start to curdle. If temp of milk is close to room one, it starts to curdle immediately and at that point I add rennet, wait for clean break and than cut the curd.

[vogironface]

OK Pavel.  So if the milk begins to curdle almost immediately then the milk was not warm enough?  Do you heat to 88 degrees Fahrenheit like Debi before adding acid and rennet?  I made this tonight and above a good curd I had a layer of curdled milk.  It seemed like it curdled to quickly for the rennet to do it's part.  Has yours ever done that?

[justsocat]

If the milk begins to curdle almost immediately so it IS warm enough and its temp is right 88 F or so. If milk curdle and it's temp is still too low I just add rennet and place it into double boiler with temp several degrees higher than 88. If the temp is lower a clean break doesn't appear or it takes too much time.

[MrsKK]

I don't use a pH meter, either.  When I make cultured mozz (as opposed to the 30-minute, citric acid recipe), I have to allow my rinsed curds to sit at room temperature anywhere from 12-18 hours before they will "spin" when dipped in 185* water - so basically the same method that Ben uses.

[mosborn]

Pavel wrote: "May be I'm silly but as hundreds years ago cheesemakers didn't  have it so I'm trying to go on without it too "

I don't think that's silly - or if it is, it's silly in the best of ways.  I think I can appreciate that approach.

Heck, if all I wanted was cheese, I could buy it.