This is great info from iratherfly

[arkc]

 iratherfly
Old Cheese

Posts: 885
Cheeses: 46
[Thumbs Up] Cheese, milk's leap toward immortality (Clifton F)

Re: (No subject)
« Sent to: arkc on: Yesterday at 03:31:44 PM »
« You have forwarded or responded to this message. » QuoteReplyDeleteI would make it anyway, or use the milk to make something else such as a semi lactic.

I am not a fan of pH meter. I think people overuse them. I described them here before like driving with a GPS in a new town instead of looking out the window and learning the roads first.  I do like them for measuring stages to assure safety control points and product consistency from batch to batch (especially in commercial production). I still think that it is best to use instincts: smell, taste, look and feel. Adjust the heat, use a knife to check for acidity, use a spinning bowl to measure flocculation, adjust curd cutting size to make up for too long/short renneting, etc.  You can always use the pH meter later. For now just try one make the way it is. you will find that you throw away far less milk and perhaps even discover new flavors and ways to adjust the product to your liking because you step out of optimal range.  Document each batch so that later you can go back to it.

Rule of thumb when looking at recipes: Use the optimal point or maximum time - whichever comes first.  "6.45pH at 60-90 min." is like saying "begin checking in about 60 minutes for 6.45pH. Use 6.45pH or 90 min. - whichever comes first"

[linuxboy]

a pH meter or TA is really most useful for product formulation and quality control. Once you understand the core dynamics and parameters of a style and understand the way your starter works, they're not too useful, or not as useful to me as my senses. The truth is that there is a range of acidity valid for a style, and they make essentially the same cheese. If you use meters as a primary indicator, it's very helpful when starting out and when you have no mentor to show you the ropes because exact indicators may serve as a sort of replacement for mentoring. If you can at all find a mentor to convey the sensory attributes to look for, that to me is the best way to learn.

[arkc]

Great Wedding and photos!!

I have been making cheeses for almost 3 years now just using other people's recipes.
Margaret Morris and Jim Wallace for e.g..   But I decided a couple of months ago that
I would like to be able to formulate my own recipes.  But to do that, you must
understand the 'whys' and 'wherefores' of the medium.  I am only starting to understand.

I have been working from my own recipes in most other cooking mediums for many
years.  My sourdough recipes e.g. are drastically different than most.  That is because
I understand this world. Specific locations for sourdoughs are incredibly different from
one another and the indigenous yeasts, etc. react differently

Iratherfly's blurb for me was good because I have just started using a PH meter and
Jersey milk.  My regular recipes are now worth nothing because of the new milk.  so
I was trying to 'lean' on a Ph meter.  Last Wed my new Ex tech 110 decided to take a
nap and I had to pitch $40 worth of milk.

The info I gleaned from his post was like a wake up call....I don't need recipes for breads,
noodles, Croissants, custards, etc. because I have always relied on my own senses.
He was just reminding me of what I already know to be true...You must do your own
testing to learn.

Thanks for your reply. 

annie

p.s. There is a photo of your wife's beautiful Carolina Herrera creation online.

[linuxboy]

That's wonderful. Best of luck and hope you make some great cheese

[iratherfly]

Oooh, I just discovered this thread now!