Author Topic: Out of control  (Read 5441 times)

TroyG

  • Guest
Out of control
« on: April 01, 2010, 12:38:47 PM »
So if I got really crazy and purchased the Hanna HI 84429 I would have an all in one unit correct? Advantages / disadvantages to owning this unit?

http://www.hannainst.com/usa/prods2.cfm?id=007001&ProdCode=HI%2084429

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #1 on: April 01, 2010, 01:32:09 PM »
Eh, Troy, if you want to spend some money on lab equipment, you're better off doing your own pathogen and SCC labs for milk and cheese. Because those get expensive if you keep paying for them. IMHO, pH is more useful for cheese. TA is useful for milk because you can test fresh milk, and if it's not within expected range, you know something is off about it. TA will swing wildly especially as you approach a whey draining point, which is the most important step because it influences the final cheese more than most other factors. pH, on the other hand, will follow an expected curve for the culture. You can get used to cheesemaking using TA, but I think pH is easier. Less confusing. You can also titrate manually with a pH meter. I wrote a how-to doc on TA in Gurkan's thread.

So with that in mind, this provides no real practical advantage for you over a simpler and cheaper setup.  In your shoes, I would get just the very base model extech and some solution, without fancy addons, and learn to use it. Then when you are comfortable with using pH and when your brain associates the appearance and texture of curd with specific pH markers, get another meter if you really need it.

TroyG

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #2 on: April 01, 2010, 01:46:57 PM »
Thanks for the response. You are probably right....Man you are like my wife.  :o

I am going to go ahead and order the Extech 110 today before I try and do something else crazy! With it I need to order the below? Anything else?


Extech PH103    PH BUFFER SOLUTIONS, 20PK INCLUDES PH 4,7,10,RINSE         
Extech EX006    WEIGHTED BASE WITH 5 CUPS         
Extech PH113    SOLUTION, REFERENCE REFIL (EXT-9126-E) FOR PH110 

Sailor Con Queso

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #3 on: April 01, 2010, 02:03:26 PM »
There are cheaper buffer solutions that come in larger bottles instead of those anoying little packets.

Just use a couple of shot glasses to put the solution in.

You don't need the reference refill for quite some time.

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #4 on: April 01, 2010, 02:04:56 PM »
No, that should be more than enough, although I would get large bottles of buffer solutions (actually, I mix my own). Later on, you may want to get a very soft toothbrush for cleaning the probe tip. You can soak it in a weak rennet solution to break up the cheese solids if they cake on.

TroyG

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #5 on: April 01, 2010, 02:58:59 PM »
Thanks Sailor. I went with 16 oz bottles......Thanks again Linuxboy

Everything has been ordered.....

I will be making another batch of cheese this weekend and I will be trying to gather PH numbers so I can create my own playbook. Something I follow every time that has the step broken down with all the information I need in one place.

I have some PH numbers from the book I have, but if you guys know good numbers for Goat Milk Farmhouse Cheddar, please pass them on. :)

Sailor Con Queso

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #6 on: April 01, 2010, 04:43:50 PM »
What book do you have with pH numbers?

TroyG

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #7 on: April 01, 2010, 05:14:15 PM »
I have The Cheesemaker’s Manual, by Margaret Morris

I have a few others, but haven't found any PH numbers in them.

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #8 on: April 01, 2010, 07:09:31 PM »
What culture are you using? Cheddar is one of the most widely made cheeses in the world, so there's a range for what's acceptable. Some I like better than others, and some ranges I combine with the culture choice.

Farmhouse meaning stirred curd or milled?

homeacremom

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #9 on: April 01, 2010, 11:31:38 PM »
Quote
I wrote a how-to doc on TA in Gurkan's thread.


In case someone else wants to reference the mentioned doc...
http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,2586.0.html

TroyG

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #10 on: April 02, 2010, 03:24:45 AM »
Linuxboy,

I have been using a mother culture, but I ordered new cultures from Dairy Connections, so I will be getting MA11 and MA4001.

I have been making it like Ricki has it in her book (breaking the curd into walnut size pieces), but will probably modify this once I go through Margaret's book. Please feel free to comment on this process if you think there is a better way for me to do it. 

Thanks again!

linuxboy

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #11 on: April 02, 2010, 03:52:16 AM »
I am a big fan of milled curd. But this is just to my tastes, other people prefer a stirred curd. I don't recall Ricki's recipe, but Margaret's industrial-scale recipe seemed good to me. She also has a helpful table there for targeting salt content based on milkfat, and using the .95 pf ratio (eg. summer milk) for an optimum cheddar style.

Maybe I should post a thread about cheddar making and troubleshooting? We already had one on the pH values, but that was more theoretical than practical. It seems to be a popular cheese. Maybe when I have time. Easier to answer questions this month than take on another initiative.

If you post your process as you understand and practice it, I can comment on it. Ricki's recipes tend to leave some room for personal interpretation.

TroyG

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #12 on: April 04, 2010, 02:36:08 PM »
Let me know if I should start a new thread with this. Here is the process I went through...I decided to go ahead and do regular cheddar instead of farmhouse. I was also running two 4 gallon batches at the same time staggering them about 8 minutes apart.

Let me know what I should change and where should I be checking PH and for what number. THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4 Gallon Batch (Will be doing 22 gallons batches once the vat arrives and packing into 10 pound kodova molds)
Heat Goat Milk to 87 degrees
Add 7 oz Mother Culture (New cultures will be here Monday from Dairy Connection so I will use MA 11)
Ripen for 45 min
Add 1/8 tsp Annatto
Add just over ¼ tsp double strength vegetable rennet diluted in ¼ cup water
Check Flocculation at 10 min….Bowel does not spin. Multiplier x3 so 30 min cut curd
Cut curds 1/2 inch (will do 3/8 when I have the vat)
Heat curds to 100 degrees over 40 mins
Hold curds at 100 degrees for 30 mins
Drain into colander
Put 1/3 whey back into pot and place colander over whey on top of pot flipping slaps every 15 min for 45 mins (again with the vat I will just move the curds to the back of the vat when I have it and stack them on each other rotating every 20 mins over 60 min.)
Cut slaps into French fries 2-4 inches long
3/4 tbl salt mix in well
20 pounds 30 mins
Flip 20 pounds 30 mins
Flip 50 pounds 12 hours
Flip 50 pounds 12 hours
Remove from mold and air dry 2-3 days

TroyG

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #13 on: April 04, 2010, 02:38:09 PM »
Pictures of the cheese...........

Will it turn orange color all over or did I not mix in the Annotto well enough?






TroyG

  • Guest
Re: Out of control
« Reply #14 on: April 04, 2010, 02:41:27 PM »
Pictures of the press I put together. I got the pressing places off eBay for 10 bucks each! Not bad for stainless steel plates if you as me.

I drilled holes and put the rods through to keep the top plate from jumping off which it did at first. I then place my desired weight on top of the plate and away we go.

Sorry I did not take a picture with my molds in the press.....Hit my head and forgot.