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CHEESE TYPE BOARDS (for Cheese Lovers and Cheese Makers) => RENNET COAGULATED - Hard Other => Topic started by: Myrrh on June 13, 2012, 06:02:39 AM

Title: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: Myrrh on June 13, 2012, 06:02:39 AM
Anyone have one they have tried and are happy with? I have 6 gallons of fresh nubian goat milk, a new mould with basket weave pattern, and several requests for manchego from friends and family. I've seen a few recipes out there, but I couldn't find much discussion on how they turned out. Hopefully some of you knowledgeable folk can save the day as you always do. Thanks in advance!
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: linuxboy on June 13, 2012, 11:34:47 AM
My tomme, if you start at 86F and go up to 96-98F, and add a little lipase, makes a classic manchego. You can also manipulate the flavor toward more intense cheesy ones earlier by using thermo blends as adjuncts, like we chatted about.
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: Myrrh on June 13, 2012, 02:43:49 PM
Very cool! Maybe MM100 + Thermo B for more complex flavor development earlier?  Last final finishes at noon, and then I get to make cheese! Thanks for your help as always!
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: linuxboy on June 13, 2012, 03:20:40 PM
It's one of the reasons I love tomme :). You could do thermo B, that'd be fine. If you do, brine earlier. That blend with delbrueckii ssp bulgaricus and MM will overacidify otherwise. So cut back just a tad on the culture, and when you hit right at 5.3-5.4, brine. Classic manchego isn't like that because it can go to 5.2.

With that blend, I would:
heat to 72F, add culture, lipase, keep heating to 86F
delta .1 before rennet add
rennet amt as usual, target time to floc 12-14 mins
multiplier per aging profile you want according to moisture. when in doubt, try 3x
cut, heal depending on how fragile curd is
1/4"-3/8" curd... per moisture target
stir to start syneresis.. for a good 15 mins, curd is delicate, so takes time. need to shrink the curd prior to cook
(modification from classic Manchego per our discussion about Nubian-specific changes): do a 8-10% wash with 105-110F water
cook over 30-45 mins to 96-98, should get you somewhere to pH 6.4
mat/prepress
drain
keep in warm (at least 65F) room until 5.4
brine

edit: if you don't want to do a wash, then do a higher delta before rennetting and drain at 6.3. Need to break down those huge caseins, otherwise texture suffers. You're actually making something a little closer to a Garrotxa because of the milk variation.
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: Myrrh on June 14, 2012, 03:31:28 PM
Ok, manchego complete. I used 6 gallons of goat and 1 gallon cow. I hit the pH markers until pressing, but then left in in the press overnight and it got way too low (pH 4.9). Soooooo where do you think that leaves me? I'm guessing I will get a much crumblier texture and maybe some bitterness if I age it overlong? I'm thinking next time I should either start it in the morning (which is unlikely since that is the only time of day I can things done outside before it gets too hot), or maybe wash in straight water for a while after my 30 minutes in dilute whey to prevent over-acidification?

1/4 tsp each of MM100, thermo B, and lipase at 75 degrees pH 6.6
86 which took about 30 min
Added 1.5 tsp rennet and CaCl after an hour pH 6.5
15min flocc, went with 3x flocc
Cut curds to 1/4 inch, rested 10 min, stirred 10 min
removed 2 gallons whey
added 2 gallons water at 100 degrees to reach a final temp of 96
Waited 30 min to pH 6.4
pressed under whey for an hour flipping a few times
put in my manchego mould and pressed leaving overnight
pH 4.9 in the morning
Cheese weighed in at 7 pounds (with a pretty basket weave pattern). I will brine it for ~24 hours
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: linuxboy on June 14, 2012, 03:37:45 PM
That's one of the tougher aspects, timing it all to coincide. I doubt you will have bitterness. Your sliceability will likely be a tad worse, depending on moisture. Don't think it will be crumbly, not if you hit the drain pH, and not if you did the wash. Honestly, it looks like a great make overall. Age it out, will be tasty.

I would keep the make the same, use a tad less culture, and keep at a lower temp overnight, if possible. Draws out the curve by an extra 2-4 hours, and that's all you need.
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: Boofer on June 15, 2012, 03:11:35 AM
Wouldn't this be over the top in lipase? 6 gallons goat milk plus added lipase....  ???

-Boofer-
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: linuxboy on June 15, 2012, 03:45:13 AM
No, just because it's goat milk, doesn't mean the flavor will be goaty. In a 90-day manchego from all Nubian milk, it shouldn't.

Also, can create different FFA profile and later products by using different lipases. Sheep lipase, for example, goes well in a goat milk manchego type.
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: Myrrh on June 23, 2012, 08:11:40 PM
I'm getting ready to give the Manchego another try. I will add a bit less culture, and am considering lowering the AC for the night. I feel pretty guilty running the house AC for my cheese, but hey, priorities right?
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: linuxboy on June 23, 2012, 08:53:07 PM
Maybe create a microclimate... shaded area, or dark corner or a few ice packs underneath the cheese in a contained area?

Also I think your last manchego had a ~30 wash, which is more like a gouda. Maybe try something closer to the Spanish approach (garrotxa), and do a 10% wash?
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: Myrrh on June 23, 2012, 09:08:51 PM
Hmmmm. Not sure I can make that work, but I may give it a try.

I'll try washing with less water, but it's hard to imagine that 2/3s of a gallon of water in 6 gallons o milk will do much.
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: linuxboy on June 23, 2012, 09:14:08 PM
with the prolonged soak, adding it right away after 5-10 mins of stirring, 10-15% is often just that perfect amount to retain all of the goaty character while removing the slight flint and calcium oddities. More than that and cheese starts becoming ultra sliceable and more like a Dutch style than a Basque or Spanish style. It's just a thought... it's hard to say what would work best, milk is so variable. Might be nice for a smaller batch, as an experiment in textural differences?
Title: Re: Looking for a good Manchego recipe
Post by: jerseyknollfarm on July 18, 2012, 03:22:11 AM
I use this recipe and it turns out great.  I use cow's milk and add lipase powder with the rennet.  Since I use our own raw milk, I do not add calcium chloride.  I have a 6lb cheese in brine right now.

http://www.thebeveragepeople.com/pdf/webcheesepdf/Manchego%20Cheese.pdf (http://www.thebeveragepeople.com/pdf/webcheesepdf/Manchego%20Cheese.pdf)