why is my Mozzarella rubbery?

[Anaotchan]

I'm new to this forum, and new to cheese-making, so hi everyone!

I've tried finding the answer to my question elsewhere, but no luck - I hope I'm not repeating  a question 15 people have already asked.

I tried my hand at mozzarella for the first time this week - two attempts, with two different recipes (the first time with the 'fast' citric acid method, the second time with Fankhauser's longer method). I got the exact same result both time: a pretty-looking ball of mozzarella, but hard and rubbery. It's still edible, but not especially tasty.

So, any idea about what I may be doing wrong? I read that mozzarella can become rubbery if it's knead for too long, but on my second attempt I was careful not to do that, and the result was the same. 

(I also nuked it the first time, and tried the more traditional 'immersion in 55-60°C water' the second time - obviously, same rubbery result)

Thanks for your suggestions!

[linuxboy]

What was the pH? The soft mozz needs to be on the low end, close to 5.0. Also, what size did you cut the curds, and what was your flocculation time and set time before cutting? And temp at cutting?

Five factors need to come together for moist mozz: correct curd size/multiplier (2", 15 min heal, then cut to 1/2", 3x floc), fat content (3% min), low cook temp (appropriate for culture type), adequate acid (5.0-5.1), and gentle handling (pull instead of knead).  One or more of these is off if it is rubbery.

[Anaotchan]

Thank you for your very informative answer!

I'll answer your questions with what I did for the longer method, because the results seemed marginally better.

I have no idea about the pH. I used buttermilk and yoghurt (and rennet) to make the curds, waited 45 minutes until I got a clean break, cut the curd in small squares (I'd say under 1/2 inch diameter), let them sit for 15 minutes, drained the whey, and then let the curd sit at room temperature overnight. Then I cut the curd in pieces about 1/2 inch diameter again, and started heating them with water. Basically I followed exactly Fankhauser's method, including his directions about temperature, as far as I can tell... (http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/Cheese/Mozzarella/MOZZARELLA_jn0.HTM)

Anyway thank you very much for spelling out the 5 magic factors needed for moist mozzarella - that's what I wanted to know, I'll try and fix things with that knowledge! And probably get my hands on some pH paper, as it seems to be the only thing I couldn't really control.

PS just one thing I don't understand in your answer: what do you mean by "3x floc"?

[linuxboy]

Your make process seems OK overall. Maybe cut into slightly larger curds, use higher fat milk, and try to let the acidity develop so that it's softer.

For floc, see our discussion here: http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,1880.0.html

[Anaotchan]

yep, I used a 2% milk, so that could also be it.

thanks for the link!

[MrsKK]

I have raw milk from my own cow and I always skim as much of the cream off it as possible when I make mozzarella because any extra seems to just come out when I heat and stretch the curd anyway.  So I don't think the 2% milk is the issue.

I use a method very similar to Fankhausers, developed from his method and a couple of others I've read, so that now it works out just right for me.  When I was first making mozz, I did knead it and also ended up with rubbery cheese.  As I got more familiar with the technique, I quit kneading and went to stretching and had much better results.

You may also want to try allowing your curd to age a bit longer.  My most recent batch overlapped with a lot of activity in my life - at the end of the day that I was supposed to stretch it, I cut the curd into chunks about 2 inches across, put it in an ice cream pail and stuck it in the fridge.  It was two mornings later before I was able to stretch the curd and this is the best batch I've ever made.  I got nearly three feet of stretch out of the curd and the flavor is fantastic.  Much more developed than any other mozzarella I've made in the past.

Since the stretch is so much better this time, my guess is that my previous batches haven't been acidified enough, even though they spun well when using Fankhauser's directions for testing if the curd is ready.

Don't give up on mozz just yet!

[tnsven]

You know, Karen, I used to lose cream when I made mozzarella too. I started with the Fiasco Farm recipe, which is a citric/tradition hybrid recipe. I found that the citric acid created too much acidity too fast and I lost a lot of cream. Now I just use the thermo culture, cook the curds to a slightly higher temp (96 or so instead of 90) and I don't lose cream.

[DeejayDebi]

Anaotchan try lowering the temperature at stretching time just a bit I go to about 170 it keeps the curds softer and not as rubbery. 2% wouldn't make it rubbery just not as creamy.

[chezsweg]

why is my chez moldy hon hon hon? someone help my fromage SOS