First Mozzarella resulting in edible cheese!

[Scarlet Runner]

Having tried 30-min Mozz 3x with not a lot of success, I tried out a Lactic Cultured Mozz.  Still no pH meter, though, so felt a bit like I was flying blind. But all the details in this recipe helped me get a better sense of what was going on, and hey- I got to eat cheese when I was done!

Briefly:

Heated 2 gallons milk + 2 cup cream to 90F.
Add DVI 1/4 tsp Meso + 1/8 tsp Thermo (cheated a bit on Meso- maybe 3/16 tsp Meso?).  Ripen 90 min.
Add  CaCl2.
Add 1/4 tablet rennet.
Floc time = 16 min x 3 = set for 48 minutes. All this time temp = 90F.
Cut curd 2", heal 15 min. Cut curds 1/2" (sloppy  ), heal 10 min. Stir.
Place curds in pot in hot water bath to raise to 104F while occasionally stirring. Let set 15 min at 104F.
Drain curds, store overnight in fridge.
Eventually, heat salted whey to 185, cut curd mass into chunks, stretch the chunks.

After leaving curds in the fridge overnight, I tested for stretch/spin in the morning: nothing.  I waited around all day until finally by 5pm the next day I got a little spin (1-2") and just called it good.  The resulting little balls were tasty and firm.  Not very much "stick-togetherness", so I ended up with a lotta little balls instead of one or two big ones. I'm guessing that my acidity was still developing and I needed to wait longer before the final pulling in heated whey... next time!

Successes: I got my floc time down- probably a little too slow now- to 14 minutes (from 6)!  And, I got to eat cheese!
To do next time: Don't refrigerate curds overnight- leave at room temp next time. Get a pH meter.   
And below: Curd chunks, ugly balls, real cheese!!, and lasagna with home made ricotta and mozz!!

[linuxboy]

Looking great! If you want some improvement ideas:

- Your moisture level seems somewhat low, you can improve that by healing longer, cutting the curds larger, and stirring less vigorously.
- Your acid level could be higher, it will lead to a softer cheese.

Overall, you're well on your way! Hope the next makes go well. Let me know if you have questions.

[MrsKK]

Ah, you are getting there!  When I was reading your method, I was thinking to suggest that you ripen the curd at room temperature - but you already figured that one out on your own.  Great job!

Keep at it, you are well on your way to excellent mozz.

[Scarlet Runner]

Thanks linuxboy and MrsKK- I feel like I'm so much closer to a great Mozz after trying a true cultured Mozz and having studied both your recipes.

If you want some improvement ideas:

Are you kidding?  ALWAYS want improvement ideas!!
-Moisture is still low-agreed.  Your thoughts make sense, since I am pretty sure I stirred a little too...ahem... thoroughly. And, my curd cutting was sloppy. Gotta work on that.
-Thanks for your confirmation on acid probably low- the details given in your recipe alerted me that this was probably what was going on, but by 5pm, I just couldn't wait any longer!

MrsKK- Thanks for posting your recipe as well, as this is exactly what gave me the clue to try letting the curds sit at room temp next time, to help acidity develop faster. And I am curious to try, over my next few experiments, how DVI vs. yogurt/buttermilk starters affect the final cheese. Anyway- what a great learning experience to come back to a Mozz recipe with success.  Who the heck recommends Mozz as a beginner recipe...!!!

[MrsKK]

"Who the heck recommends Mozz as a beginner recipe...!!! "

Nobody that's ever made it, that's for sure!

[Scarlet Runner]

Lactic Cultured Mozz Number Two

Goals: to have a moister, stretchier cheese that melts.

Recipe: Same recipe, but 1 gallon whole milk this time (no cream), new CaCl2 solution (homemade), and no cheating on amount of DVI powder (meso and thermo, per recipe).

Make: (differences from last time in BOLD):

Heat to 90F.
Add DVI 1/4 tsp Meso + 1/8 tsp Thermo.  Ripen 90 min. I shortened in anticipation of leaving curds at RT overnite and didn't want to over acidify. Bad call, as it turns out. 
Add  CaCl2. (Homemade solution; new dosage rate that should be industry standard now- think I was too low before).
Add 1/4 tablet rennet.
Floc time = 6 min x 3 = set for 18 minutes. temp = 90F. Note to self: buy liquid rennet, throw tabs away! Too hard to measure tabs, plus other reasons.
Cut curd 2", heal 15 min. Cut curds 1/2" heal 10 min. Stir. Excellent curd set- new CaCl2 or too much rennet..?
Place curds in pot in hot water bath to raise to 104F while occasionally stirring. Let set 15 min at 104F.  Stirred less overall this time to try and reduce moisture.
Drain curds, store overnight at room temp- ~65F.
After 21 HOURS, heat salted whey to 185, cut curd mass into chunks, stretch the chunks.  Pretty good stretch this time- still probably not quite acidic enough though.

Successes: one smoother ball of mozz, texture a bit - grainy?- with good flavor, some smooth/satiny look.  And, it melts!  Oh, and all the curd chunks stuck together this time (when stretching in whey) so I got to stretch the whole mass at once instead of in a million little balls that took forever- major improvement.

To do next time: Guess I'll hold the curds at ~100F overnite to speed acid development instead of room temp. Maybe ripen longer- 90 min. Obviously, less rennet- floc time too fast.

Question: When "cooking" the curds after cutting/healing: Am I supposed to raise the curd temp to 104F immediately, or is that supposed to happen slowly during the 35 minute cook time.  Thanks!

[HarryB]

Thanks for the show and tell Scarlet Runner. The pictures help considerably with the description. I also seem to have the slow acid development and sometimes it has been so slow that I have missed the stretch point.
MrsKK and Sailor seem to have nailed it so that they are able to stretch the following morning and it would be interesting to know what the little trick is to make that happen. I have tried both MrsKK and Sailor recipes but end up stretching in the afternoon or even into the next evening ( which is not really overnight if it is 24 hours plus later).
I plan to try the Linuxboy recipe that he posted in reply to Ben's post "We should just quit with the Mozzarella". If it goes any quicker I will post the result.

Really good and helpful post. Thank you

[Sailor Con Queso]

After making the curds, if you stick them straight into the frig, you slow down all activity. Then the next morning the whole thing has to warm up to room temp to wake up the bacteria. So the trick is to let the cheese curds acidify some before putting it into the frig overnight. I usually shoot for a pH of around 6.0. If the pH is still dropping too slowly in the morning (or if I'm in a hurry), I pop mine (covered) in the dehydrator (or any warm place) at 90F until I get the pH to drop to 5.3-5.4. The bacteria are more active at a warmer temp, but I don't go over 95F. Once the bacteria are warm, awake, and active, things can progress really quickly. The pH drop can sneak up on you and go too low if you're not careful.

Of course, all this is easier to monitor with a pH meter, but you can also test samples for stretchability every so often.

[MrsKK]

I don't put my curds into the fridge at all, unless I'm planning on waiting more than 24 hours to stretch it.  But that is at room temps of 60-75 degrees Fahrenheit.  100 degrees is way too hot and I think you would chance a really nasty cross-contamination, plus overacidification of your curd.

In reality, it is usually closer to 24 hours before I stretch the curd, rather than just overnight.

[BigCheese]

I was dismayed to wake this morning and find my mozz curds had gotten to 4.9 in the fridge overnight. Boo.

[MrsKK]

With the recipe I use, the curds get washed, which I think helps to control how quickly the curds acidify.

Sorry to hear about yours, Nitai.  If you haven't tossed them yet, try melting it gently in a saucepan - I had some overacidified mozz curds that made a really nice cheese sauce when they were melted.

[BigCheese]

Definitely didnt toss it. It was not that much overacidified, I stretched it and it looks pretty good when all is said in done. In fact, I am about to go make white pizza with fresh ground wheat, fromage blanc base, and broccoli and sun-dried tomatoes from the garden. No loss here

[Scarlet Runner]

Hummm... good discussion.

Harry, you and I seem to be in the same boat- slow acid development. I thought holding the curds overnight at room temp instead of refrigerating (like I did the first time) would help, but I'm not sure it sped things up much.

Sailor and MrsKK- thanks for the temperature recommendations, you both agree 100F too hot.

Nitai- you are blessed with the opposite problem I guess!!  Glad you got to enjoy your cheese. It's way more satisfying than 30 min. Mozz anyway!!

After further tasting, my Mozz clearly has too much rennet (slightly bitter) and definitely does not have quite the right texture. I feel certain I'm not overacidified, so all I can conclude is not enough acid.  I'll try to speed acid development next time by: 1. ripening with DVI longer and 2. maybe hold curds at room temp overnight, but then hold in a bowl on top of 90F germination mat the next morning until the curds pass the stretch test- instead of holding at room temp, which maybe in my house is too cold.

Thanks all for your helpful contributions...

[BigCheese]

You could try cheddaring them as well.

[susanky]

If using the citric adic method, can one simply add a little more (maybe 1 1/2 tsp rather than 1 1/4 per gallon) to increase moisture in the final cheese?  If increased acidity equals increased moisture in the cheese this seems like a reasonable adjustment. 
Susan