This recipe has been adapted from a professional source. I had to make some "conversions" in technique and quantities to better suit myself. Changes include methodology regarding such things as cheddaring...I wont be making too many 9 inch blocks of curds :) . With regards to ingredients, they use 2 metho strains L. Lactis and L. Cremoris...for my purposes I will likely use Kazu or MM100.
If I have omitted something, or am unclear in some aspect, please let me know. I will be making some cheddar during the upcoming week and will be fine-tuning this recipe to become my permanent cheddar recipe.
Cheddar
Standards: 39% moisture, 30% fat.
Ingredients
2 gallons whole milk
Cream as needed
¼ tsp. MM100 or Kazu
3/8 tsp. CaCl2 if using pasteurized-homogenized milk
¼ tsp. single strength veal rennet
1.2 oz. salt for raw milk, .8 oz. for HP milk
Procedure
1. Standardize milk to P/F = 0.91, pasteurize and cool to 88F before adding starter.
2. Add MM100 or Kazu starter. Ripen until acidity increases by 0.01% or until pH decreases by 0.05 units (about 1 h.).
3. Measure 70 ml cheese colour per 1,000 kg milk (optional). Dilute the colour with 10 volumes of water and add the mixture to the milk
4. Measure ¼ tsp. single strength veal rennet. Dilute the rennet with 1/4 cup of water and add the mixture to the milk.
5. Cut, using 3/8 inch (95 mm) knives when curd is firm. Agitate gently.
6. Start cooking 15 min after cutting. Increase temperature 102F during 30 minutes. Heat slowly at first - no more than 2F every 5 min.
7. Hold at 102F until pH is 6.1 (about 75 min from the time the temperature reaches 102F or 2 h from the time of cutting). If the acidity is increasing too quickly, the temperature may be raised slightly (maximum 104F) to retard the culture.
8. When curd pH is 6.0-6.1 (whey pH 6.2-6.3) remove the whey. After the bulk of the whey is removed stir out the curd two or three times to facilitate maximum whey drainage.
9. Drain curds in cloth/colander, applying pressure to form curd mass in pot, maintaining some warmth. Turn the block every 15 min until the pH is 5.4-5.3, pouring off whey as needed (about 2 h after dipping).
10. Mill the curds into ½ inch x 2 inch pieces. Stir the cheese curds every ten min or so until the cut edges become round and smooth (about 30 min after milling).
11. Distribute the salt uniformly over the curd and mix well. The final salt content of the cheese should be about 1.7%. Calculate the required amount of salt as follows:
(a) Estimate cheese yield as: Yield = (% fat + % protein) k where k is a factor dependent on cheese moisture. K values corresponding to 35, 36, 37, 38 and 39% moisture are 1.40, 1.42, 1.44, 1.46 and 1.48, respectively.
(b) The required amount of salt is 2.5% of the estimated yield. This value is higher than the final 1.7% content because considerable whey drainage occurs after salting.
12. After the salt is well absorbed and the flow of whey has stopped, the curd is ready for hooping.
13. Press overnight at 10-20 psi. Start with low pressure (2-5 psi) and gradually increase to 10-20 psi.
14. Vacuum pack the cheese blocks and age at 50F for curing. Cold curing (41-46F) produces the best cheese but ripening is slow. Warm cured cheese (50-60F) develops flavour rapidly but quality control is more difficult.
(edited: step 9)
(edited: step 13)
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