Author Topic: Slumping, After Pressing - Causes  (Read 2870 times)

Margo McIntosh

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Slumping, After Pressing - Causes
« on: July 18, 2012, 11:07:08 AM »
This is the first time I've made havarti and used a different recipe than usual which had 1/4 cup of salt added to the curds.  Also the first time to use my new press.  I've been using a bread board and some dumb bells to weight my gouda and cheddar and that has worked well for the past year.  I decided I wanted to have better equipment so bought a press and am having a hard time figuring out the press weights in it.  What happened is that the cheese made with 3 gallons of milk looked awesome when it came out but this morning it has slumped on the bottom and the height is half what it was yesterday.  It's very wet as well.  It's sitting on a cheese mat right now dripping and I'm wondering what to do with it.  I added dill to this as well and didn't boil it or anything.  Didn't know I needed to until I read a post on here this morning.  What I think I did wrong was in the pressing since the temp seemed to go smoothly and so did the curd cutting although I may have had some curds that were slightly larger than the recipe called for.  I didn't worry about it because I often have that when I make gouda or cheddar and it works out fine.  The question is, how to get this new cheese to dry when it's oozing whey so heavily still.  Is it just a matter of leaving it on the counter longer or should I just eat it fresh and try again?  I'd love to age this one.  It looks like a flying saucer about 3" tall with a wider bottom than top at this point.

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Re: Slumping, After Pressing - Causes
« Reply #1 on: July 18, 2012, 01:30:38 PM »
Hi Margo. When you say this is the first time you've made Havarti and a different recipe was used...I'm confused.  ???

Did you cook the curds? Sounds like they are retaining far too much moisture such that they weren't processed to shrink the curds and shed some whey.

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Margo McIntosh

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Re: Slumping, After Pressing - Causes
« Reply #2 on: July 18, 2012, 10:55:32 PM »
I meant that I used a recipe I didn't use before.  Sorry about that!  Yes I think that I must have not gotten enough whey out in the beginning.  I just did a blog post about this havarti experience at http://balanceyourapple.com/2012/07/18/dill-havarti-episode/.  There is a picture of the flying saucer at the end of that post.  It is drying on the counter right now so might still be salvageable.  I wondered if part of the problem is that I am using a cheese press for the first time and I can't seem to figure out what the pound pressure is.

Margo McIntosh

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Re: Slumping, After Pressing - Causes
« Reply #3 on: July 18, 2012, 10:56:37 PM »
Sorry forgot to answer the other question.  Yes I did cook the curds.  The recipe I have had them come up to 100 degrees and get held there.

FRANCOIS

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Re: Slumping, After Pressing - Causes
« Reply #4 on: July 19, 2012, 12:14:58 AM »
In a nutshell, your pH is too high.  You didn't cook the curds enough or press hard enough.  The curds sticking together badly is a dead give away that the pH hasn't dropped enough at hoop up.  Compounding that you soaked in a room temperature brine after only 6 hours in the press.  This pretty much arrested any further lactic acid production.  Curd is hardest at 5.6-5.8 pH, once you start going higher and lower than that it looses body quickly.

Margo McIntosh

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Re: Slumping, After Pressing - Causes
« Reply #5 on: July 19, 2012, 10:49:20 AM »
Thank you Francois.  So I am right then in thinking that I should have pressed a lot longer than the recipe called for?  My recipe for gouda presses overnight and then goes directly into the salt brine.  I wondered why the recipe said only 6 hours but then I was trying havarti for the first time and thought it might be different.  Good lesson for me.  The flying saucer of a cheese is drying on the counter.  It is likely to be still wet inside though.  Do you think there is any chance it will age gracefully even for a few weeks to develop some flavour?  I don't think I'll wax it.