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GENERAL CHEESE MAKING BOARDS (Specific Cheese Making in Boards above) => INGREDIENTS - Everything Else => Topic started by: artguy on January 12, 2014, 03:59:41 PM

Title: Adding Herbs to Feta
Post by: artguy on January 12, 2014, 03:59:41 PM

I have been making feta for a couple of weeks now and have had some great success with this entry level cheese.  I have 2 questions

#1  What is the process for adding in some sun dried tomatoes and herbs amongst the curds?

#2  When I brine the cheese comes out all slimy and takes for ever to dry out.  Is this normal?

Thanks!

Title: Re: Adding Herbs to Feta
Post by: JennyJad on January 18, 2014, 11:14:12 PM

I've never added sun-dried tomatoes, but my two most popular herb-flavored fetas are Garlic & Dill and Herbs de Provence... everyone loves them, especially me, ha!

As for slimy feta brine, are you using a water-based brine?  If so, add some calcium chloride to the water, otherwise the calcium leaks out of the feta and causes sliminess, if not completely dissolved.  Not sure what the answer is if you're using a whey-based brine.  : ???

Title: Re: Adding Herbs to Feta
Post by: Soni on March 02, 2014, 09:58:16 PM

Try pressing the cheese before you brine it and/or cutting it in cubes and salting them all around every day for three days before you immerse them in the brine.
Also, I do not know this for sure, but I imagine that if proper sanitary conditions are not met, the brine itself can become slimy with bacteria growth.

I also found this searching the : http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,12226.msg94334.html#msg94334 (http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,12226.msg94334.html#msg94334)