Ok ...I'm mule-headed and refuse to give up on something when it doesn't work. I know that friendly and helpful people suggested that I start with a simpler cheese, e.g. the white cheeses or gouda etc, but it bugs me that Ricki Carroll's 30-Minute Mozzarella won't work for me. My latest effort is described below, and troubleshooting or other hints/helps are welcome. For a refresher, noting that I am very very new and haven't tried anything but Moz yet, here's what has happened so far:
1. Bought 2 gallons of cream line pasteurized-only whole milk from the local natural foods store. This milk was shipped into Alaska and I never checked expiration dates. First effort was 1-gallon and the 30-Minute Moz and a) the milk did not curd anywhere near as nicely as all the online videos and pictures show (I think they are from a mythical cheese heaven somewhere in the cosmos), but it did produce a reasonable Moz that we made prosciutto rolls out of. Second gallon was used a few days later and was a cultured one ...result was a hard rubber ball not fit for a dawg ...threw it in the trash. I decided to stick with the 30-Minute version until a) I found a good milk supply and b) I had more experience.
2. Tried pasteurized-homogenized milk from the local Alaskan dairy. While it didn't say so, the milk appeared to be ultra-pasteurized based on the curd mess that resulted and the milky whey ...ended up draining it in a cheese cloth bag like ricotta, added salt and herbs, then used as a bagel schmear...
3. Tried some Lucerne pasteurized-homogenized whole milk from Carr's/Safeway and while not an entire failure, didn't produce a stretchy moz either. Details below.
I wonder if my rennet is any good? Why? Well, several types of milk tried and similar results on most runs. I figure the citric acid is a constant and doesn't age. The only factor left is rennet ..noting that I have used very good temperature control on all trials, not heating too fast, stirring too much (based on videos by Ricki and others) etcetera. My Ricki Carroll rennet test on fresh 1% milk took about 10 minutes to produce an 'ok' curd when it should've been good in 5 and the curds firmer...
This is the typical curd that I get after letting the rennet work. Even on the cream line milk. It's never like you see in the pictures ...all creamy, smooth, firm enough to get a clean break. Waiting longer doesn't help...
Curds after cutting (tonight). I cut them to 3/4" rather than 1/2" as instructed ...thought I might get a softer moz out of it. Notice how the curd is still not firm and smooth, and is yogurty and a bit ragged along the cuts. It is surrounded by clear whey though (an improvement over the UHP stuff), but wants to spin around in the pot while I'm trying to cut it ...not like the vids at all.
pH papers ...sigh. Need a pH meter! The bottom left is pure yellow from the brand new fresh milk, a pH of about 6.0 according to the chart. The top end of the same strip is nearly the same color but has the slightest bit of orange mottling ...just a teensy bit. This is all that changed after adding the citric acid. Did I mention that a pH meter would be nice? After cooking the curd at 105 F and stirring for 2-1/2 minutes, the pH was lower ...more orange, but not as orange as the 4.0 on the chart. Maybe halfway between 6.0 and 4.0? Maybe I should mention a pH meter would be a mighty handy device to own... sigh.
The curds after cooking at 105 F. They are firmer, but broke up easily into what you see here. They did shrink as expected and the whey is yellowish and clear. I thought, "Hmmm ...maybe this will work?"
No such luck. The recipe, with a 1000W microwave, calls for a total of 2 minutes and 10 seconds of heating, interspersed with 'folding' the cheese into itself to distribute heat evenly. The cheese above was heated for 5-1/2 minutes, more than twice as long, and never did get stretchy. You can see the texture ...not smooth, not shiny, no stretch at all. I flattened it out and rolled it with prosciutto anyway...
So what's going on? Several types of milk tried, same mushy curds every time... I'm going to buy some liquid rennet and try again. And after the end of the year (we're traveling), I'm ordering a pH meter...
Thanks,
Brian