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CHEESE TYPE BOARDS (for Cheese Lovers and Cheese Makers) => RENNET COAGULATED - Semi-Hard "Sweet" Washed Curd => Topic started by: Cheese Head on May 11, 2008, 08:39:18 PM
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My ninth cheese making, third time making Gouda, last time, yesterday's info posted here (http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php?topic=39.0). Again used this Gouda Recipe/Directions (http://cheeseforum.org/Recipes/Recipe_Gouda.htm) with cumin flavoured option.
MAKING - MAY 11, 2008
- 1:00PM Let milk warm outside fridge to room temperature.
- 1:30PM Boiled 1 tablespoon Cumin Seeds in 1/2 cup/125 ml water with lid on for 15 min, had to add water. Strained seeds, cooled flavoured water in fridge.
- 2:00PM Warmed milk to 90F/32C, whisked in cumin water, whisked in fresh cultured buttermilk based Mesophilic Starter Culture, whisked in Calcium Chloride and Rennet diluted in water for 3 minutes, covered and wait for curd to set holding at 90F/32C.
- 3:15PM Checked the curd, clean break, cut curds, kept warm at 90F/32C for another 10 min.
- 3:30PM Slowly warmed curds accidentally to 132F/55C, probably killing the Mesophilic Culture (!!!), started removing whey and replacing with cool water immediately to get temperature down quickly.
- 4:30PM Poured curds and watery whey into muslin sock lined colander, allowed whey to gravity drain for ~10 min.
- 5:00PM Stirred in boiled Cumin Seeds, placed sock full of curds and seeds into press and applied ~10 lb/4.5 kg for 30 min.
- 5:30PM Flipped cheese in sock, re-applied ~10 lb/4.5 kg weights.
- 6:00PM Repeated flipping cheese but applied ~20 lb/9 kg of weight (all 4 ends).
MAKING - MAY 12, 2008
- 6:30AM Removed Cumin Gouda from press, floated in saturated salt bath, flip every ~15 min to even rind development.
- 8:15AM Removed from brine, patted dry and placed in mini-cave.
RIPENING - MAY 12 - JUNE 3, 2008
- Once per day, flipped, wiped away water puddle (sweat from air frome freezer block) in mini Cheese Cave, replaced freezer block with new frozen one. After day 3, washed outside of cheese with saturated brine daily when outside started becoming slippery with presumably bad bacteria/mold. Humidity-temperature gauge reads good 50-55F/10-13C but humidity consistantly too high at 98% (gauge more not be highly accurate when this high).
THE END - JUNE 3, 2008
- Cut the cheese finally at 22 days, great flavour, nice little crumbly texture, both cumin and cheese flavours are strong, neither overpower the other, right amount of cumin!
- Aesthetically, thin lightly yellow rind, very white paste, cumin seeds are visually and textually in mouth very pleasing, cumin seeds little dry, but so was cheese.
THOUGHTS
- Cheese making phase: Have to be more careful with timings and less in a rush.
- Cheese making phase: Amount of cummin was perfect, don't increase or decrease.
- Cheese pressing phase: Didn't expell enough whey and thus cheese was too moist during ripening phase, needed more weight, better cheese press.
- Ripening-maturing phase: Need better Cheese Cave than my temporary setup, info posted here (http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php?topic=41.0).
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First 4 pictures . . .
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Second 4 pictures . . .
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Third 4 pictures . . .
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Fourth 2 pictures . . .
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CH you mention still moist and a bit slimey. just a thought, if you had a larger storage/aging area with more air volume do you think that could help ?
reg
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Slimy is probably a bit overkill, more slippery. Yes, the last few days it's been in a bigger cooler with it's big brother my 2 lb/1kg blue cheese with the lid cracked. Still cool enough and humidity better but still very high as the freezer blocks sweat from moisture in the air and nowhere to drain, frankly it's a poor set up.