Author Topic: Re-Press or is it too late?  (Read 2960 times)

Turgid

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Re-Press or is it too late?
« on: April 09, 2012, 03:18:03 PM »
Tried my first cheddar this past friday!  The first batch never came to clean break, even after 3-4 hours.  Gave it a shot anyway and ended with about 2/3 cup of curd from 2-gals of whole milk.  Had a few bites and dumped it.    :(

I suspected weak Junket rennet so second batch on saturday I increased from half tab to two whole tabs.  Took 2 hours to get to clean break and even then it was barely passable.  The rest of the process went well and the pic below is the result. 

Obviously not smooth and probably under pressed.  Since I'm just starting out I'm using some homemade items until I can get a proper mold and press.  This is out of a 4" PVC pipe from Home Depot with some holes drilled.  The most weight I could balance on it was 30 lbs for 24 hours.  Tried 40 lbs but it would push the curd out the bottom of the pipe.

Its been air drying since sunday AM.  If I were to come up with a better press, could I press this cheese more?  Or has the knitting window closed.  When I turn it the bottom is wet and the bamboo mat has a wet circle on it.  Not sure what to do with this one...

zenith1

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #1 on: April 09, 2012, 03:57:33 PM »
Turgid-welcome to the forum. I suspect that your achieving a clean break in a reasonable amount of time is due to the Junket. It is notoriously hard to use and find just the right amount. You should try and find some liquid rennet and follow the advice you will find here on the forum for the spinning bowl technique. You will find it easier to have reproducible and consistant results. You can get the rennet from a variety of online sources that you will find referenced on the forum. I am afraid that it is too late to try and press that wheel again. a far as the wheel being wet on the bottom-that is normal and you just have to keep turning and mopping up excess moisture until you don't get it any more and that is the point that you can proceed with your aging.

Tomer1

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #2 on: April 09, 2012, 04:13:26 PM »
You may want to seal it in hot water.

Turgid

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #3 on: April 09, 2012, 05:13:15 PM »
Thank you for the welcome and the advice!  I'm definitely going to get some liquid rennet, I've read about the inconsistencies of Junket.  Is there any difference in animal vs vegetable? 

Tomer - That's a good idea.  Basically I dip it in hot water so the outside starts to "melt" a little and then just smooth it over with my hands?

I put the wheel in my 55 degree wine fridge this morning before work.  For some reason I started worrying about a fly finding his way into the house and parking some bad stuff on it.

Tomer1

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #4 on: April 09, 2012, 06:10:03 PM »
Yep, I think you need the water at about 66c for 1 minute. 

"When ready, these go into a curd mill which reduces them to smaller cubes. Then salt is added, then stirred on the cooler for 20 minutes. Then the curd is put into moulds which are lined with cloths. Then they are pressed in a hydraulic press overnight.
Next day each cheese is put into dip tank of hot water to seal any holes and then put back in the press. The following day they are taken out and larded and cloths are put on, which forms the rind. lf not enough lard is put on they will dry out and crack in the store.
"

Offline Boofer

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #5 on: April 09, 2012, 07:20:17 PM »
Turgid, are you following a recipe? If so, have you used the prescribed quantity of culture for the proper ripening time? Not having sufficient acidity/ripening can lead to poor coagulation. For future reference, keeping the curds warm while pressing helps to knit the curd and create a smooth rind. This can be achieved by "pressing in the pot" and/or using a seed germination mat (tip o' the hat to Sailor!).

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Turgid

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #6 on: April 10, 2012, 11:38:47 AM »
Well, I did the hot water bath last night and it looks exactly the same when I was done.  Let it sit in 150F water for 2 mins.  Took it out and tried to smooth it but it wasn't doing anything.  the outside felt elastic and if I tried to rub & fill in crevices it would just roll off tiny balls of cheese. 

It's back in the cave now.  Should I just vinegar it and then wax it up?

Boofer - Yes I used this recipe:   http://www.deejayssmokepit.net/CheeseDownloads_files/CheddarCheeseRecipe.pdf

Used Mesophilic packets C101 from cheesemaking.com, one packet into 2 gallons 90F milk for an hour.  Over the course of the hour it dropped down to maybe 86F.

I think my press setup was not sufficient so I'm working on a better one for next time.  And I have a really small room in the basement where I can set up a table and space heater and keep it in the 80s in there.   8)

Turgid

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #7 on: April 10, 2012, 11:43:02 AM »
Since this cheese has all the crevices could I turn it into a blue?  Just a thought...

Caseus

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #8 on: April 10, 2012, 08:43:52 PM »
I would just air dry until it formed a dry surface rind, then wax it, and age it.  But then, I'm a noob, so I am certain I am not your best source of info. 

I have waxed my first two cheeses by heating the wax to 248 degrees, then put on a couple of coats (dipped), then let wax cool to about 170 and dip twice more.  The first two coats at high temperature will be thin, but I've read that it will kill some of the mold.  I don't know if that's a fact, but it sounded good.  Then the two dips at 170 give the cheese a thick coat.

Offline Boofer

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #9 on: April 10, 2012, 11:43:33 PM »
I would just air dry until it formed a dry surface rind, then wax it, and age it.  But then, I'm a noob, so I am certain I am not your best source of info. 

I have waxed my first two cheeses by heating the wax to 248 degrees, then put on a couple of coats (dipped), then let wax cool to about 170 and dip twice more.  The first two coats at high temperature will be thin, but I've read that it will kill some of the mold.  I don't know if that's a fact, but it sounded good.  Then the two dips at 170 give the cheese a thick coat.
Good direction.

Press on and start another cheese, learning from this one.   ;)

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Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #10 on: April 11, 2012, 02:41:48 AM »
You might find pressing a hard cheese easier if you put it in a pot or bucket to hold the heat in it while you press. I have made that recipe 100's of times over the years only pressing with about 16 pounds of weight stacked on top of the cheese molds.

Turgid

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #11 on: April 11, 2012, 11:49:13 AM »
Yeah I think that was probably the major issue, the curds cooled by the time I got them into the mould.  And from that point on it was pretty cool in the house.  Maybe low 70s and then 60's overnight.

Gonna wax it up tonight and make some more!    ;D

Offline DeejayDebi

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #12 on: April 11, 2012, 11:01:59 PM »
It can be pretty tough in a cold kitchen that's why I use a bucket or whatever that thing is it also ctahces the whey so it does drip everywhere and make a sticky mess to clean up by morning.

Teethingbiscuit

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #13 on: June 05, 2012, 02:18:11 AM »
New to the art myself but the warm curd seems appropriate.  Question about you having cheese cloth in the press.  Your cheese has the pie crust look on the top where the curds went beside the press plunger.  Not a big deal the slip by, but cloth could keep the curd from squeezing out the bottom as well. 
How is the next cheese?
Teeth

Turgid

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Re: Re-Press or is it too late?
« Reply #14 on: June 15, 2012, 07:07:16 PM »
@Teeth - the next one is a blue that's on day-60 today!  Its looking great and can't wait to slice into it at 90 days.  You can see pics of it in the Blue cheese section of these forums.    :)