Pressing under whey

[rosawoodsii]

I have a recipe or two that calls for pressing under whey.  I have visions of my cheese press immersed in whey and it just doesn't register.  OTOH, I can't imagine pressing at 25 or 30 lbs without a press.

How is it done?

[Tomer1]

Pressing under whey is just a "pre press" to consolidate the curds into a single mass and once that happends you move it to your press.

The way I do it is to drain the whey to a heated pot which is narrower,
Catch all the curds in a colander ,take my mold which has been pre warmed and sterilized in boiling water,
Put the curds in bit by bit (the whey needs to drain from the mold to make space for more curds,I press it lightly using the follower to get things moving faster but be cerful not to push too hard and squize the curds out of the mold's holes),
Add the follower and put a wight on top (A 2-5kg water bottle does the trick) , Idealy the whey should be the at the level of the mold.

Usually it doesnt take long for the curds to turn into a single mass and then you move it to your press.  The recipe should note times.

[Cheese Head]

rosa, as Tomer1 says it's just pre-pressing in whey with light weights, it is a common standard step for Washed Curd type cheeses, if you look through that board you should be able to find several pictures of peoples methods, here's my last batch another set of records and pictures here.

[linuxboy]

At home, it's easy to do this:

plop all your curds into the cloth-lined mold, put the follower on top. Take a pot and fill it with warm whey. The pot must be big enough on diameter to fit the mold (buy one if you don't have one big enough). Then put the mold in the pot and press the follower with your hands. Flip wheel, repeat, flip wheel, repeat, flip wheel, repeat, then put a gallon of water or a basic weight on top for 4-5 mins. Then you're done.

[rosawoodsii]

This sounds doable.  So even though the recipe says 25 lbs under whey, I can probably lessen the weight to whatever I have on hand, get a solid mass, and then put it in my press at 25 lbs, is that right?

[linuxboy]

even though the recipe says 25 lbs under whey,

Arbitrary, anecdotal number not based on analysis of rheological properties and openness of cheese paste given various weights. Meaning, yes, you can use less.

and then put it in my press at 25 lbs, is that right?

Yes, or less or more, depending on the form factor, temp of room, and temp of curds.