Hi,
I'm thinking of making a montasio tomorrow. The only recipe I have for it is the Rickie Carrol one. Although I've not had any disasters following hers, I do know that the makes described here are usually improvements over what is found in the books. Also, she doesn't include floc times, etc.
Here's a quick run through what I have now:
1) heat milk to 31.1 C (88F)
2) add starter (2.5 oz prepared thermo, 1 oz prepared meso)
3) ripen 60 minutes
4) add rennet
5) cut after 30 minutes into 1/2 cm cubes (1/4 inch) - Note, since floc targets are 10-15 minutes, we're talking a floc multiplier of 2-2.5; which makes sense for this type of cheese
6) Raise temp to 38.9 C (102 F) at a rate of approx 1 C (2 F) every 5 minutes. Stir to prevent matting
7) maintain 38.9 C for 60 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent matting
8) drain whey to curd level.
9) add hot water (temp not specified) until temp raised to 43.3 C (110 F)
10) maintain 43.3 C (110 F) for 10 minutes
11) quickly transfer curds to cloth lined mold
12) press at 2.3 kg (5 lbs) for 15 minutes
13) remove, flip, and re-dress, then back in the mold to press at 2.3 kg (5 lbs) for 30 minutes
14) remove, flip, and re-dress, then back in the mold to press at 4.5 kg (10 lbs) for 12 hours
15) place in saturated bine for 6 hours
Then age between 12.8 and 15.5 C (55-60 F) at 85 humidity. The book says for 2 months, but I would think this needs more than that (6 months for table cheese, and 1 year for grating?)
What I'm planning on doing:
I'm figuring a floc multiplier of 2.25-2.5.
I'll need some CaCl as well since I have store bought milk (but that's a pretty standard addition, 1/2 tsp, diluted in egg cup of water, added just before culture).
At step 5, I can either cut with a knife quite small, or use a whisk (as implied in the book). A whisk tends to make much smaller curds though (i.e. rice sized) - but is the difference critical in this case?
At step 9, I'll probably add water at 50 C (122 F) to raise the temperature.
Anyway, if anyone has any suggested tweaks to the above, or if anyone has a recipe that is quite different but that they highly recommend for Montasio, please let me know.
- Jeff